By Published On: December 10, 2018

The Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA) is one of my city’s best museums. They’re always coming up with fresh ideas and new attractions to keep their audience coming back. And this fall, they’ve launched a new interactive event that once again puts them ahead of the curve.

Riddle MIA This is an interactive puzzle. Download a free app, visit the museum (for free) scan in at the visitor desk and proceed to work your way through the museum with progressive clues to solve a mystery. Don’t have a phone? (Seriously? Who doesn’t have a phone?) They have some you can use for free.  Clues are received via messages within the app. A variety of puzzles request the solutions be entered or scanned to receive a new clue.

I admit, I’m biased when it comes to MIA, but what a clever concept. A great way to bring back previous visitors and also appeal to an audience addicted to everything digital and social. Personally, I saw areas of the museum I’d never even realized existed.

My friends and I enjoyed it so much that we immediately started thinking of people we could recommend it to. And being a marketer, I thought about other areas where this type of gamification could be applied.

For instance, could shopping malls or big box retailers lure customers back into their dying establishments by hosting an interactive game? Odds are, if you’re led around a store or mall looking for solutions to a puzzle, you’re sure to stumble upon something you need to buy.

And what a fun idea for a business conference or convention. The final answer to the game leads attendees right to your booth.

Gamification is always a fun way to breathe new life into a product or service. And potentially capture a new audience along the way. You’ll have fun developing it – and your audience will have fun playing it.

MIA – if you’re reading this – I’m eagerly awaiting the second installment. Thanks!

About the Author: Carol Wahl

Avatar
How to lead a truly effective meeting
Video Game PR Nightmares in 2018