Milwaukee Electric Tool's new interactive Web site, www.v28power.com, is a comprehensive teaching tool that shows visitors the new V28 Lithium Ion power tool system. The line of tools — which includes a hammer drill, circular saw, and impact wrench, among others — operates cordlessly, yet is designed to be powerful enough for everyday professional use. The site is a helpful and engaging tool itself, and helps visitors see the benefits of the products without picking up a tool.

Launched March 1 to accompany the introduction of the V28 system, the site emphasizes the unique features of the tools using Flash animation. “This is one of our biggest new product launches ever, so it needed a little more bang,” says Rich Peterson, brand media manager for Milwaukee Electric Tool. “We put a lot into it to try to make it fun.” Traffic to Milwaukee's Web sites has almost doubled since the V28 site went live.

When pulling up the Web site, visitors will want to make sure their volume is turned up because sound accompanies many of the features. Following the verbal cues, the visitor should click on the battery in the middle of the lineup first. Learning about the battery first is beneficial because it is the basis for the whole line of tools. From this point, click on any of the white links directly above the product to learn more about the V28 system. At any time the visitor can click Close This Tool to return to the full lineup of products to choose a different tool.

When clicking on any tool, visitors will first get a general overview of the product. After the overview, click on the links for further information. And if the user wants to interrupt the introduction, he or she can by just clicking on one of the links. For any of the tools, the user can scroll over different parts of the tool to activate pop-up descriptions and information.

The Virtual Test Drive link allows the user to compare different brands to Milwaukee Electric tools. Visitors can click to compare just a couple of tools, or take their time and compare all of the tools to see how they stack up. These test drives compare numbers such as the cuts a tool will get on one battery charge, board feet cut per charge, and the number of cross cuts per charge. Instead of graphs and charts, this information is compared using moving icons, such as bolts, tools, and holes in boards.

The 360° View link brings up an image of the product. By clicking on the arrows below the image, the user can spin the image around so he can see it from different angles. The Catalog Specs link takes the user to a separate Milwaukee site where the user can read product descriptions, look at a list of features and specifications, and link to PDFs of brochures and operators manuals.

The Watch The Pros feature is a cool element of the site. Clicking on this link brings up a video that includes comments from real contractors as they use the tools. These videos vary in length from about a minute to three minutes and really add to the interactive learning experience. The videos include excerpts from video taken from contractor focus groups and roundtable discussions and feature contractors giving their opinions about the tools. The clips also let the user view how the tools work and how they compete with other tools.

Peterson says the site is meant to encourage visitors to take a test drive with the tool to see its potential. But the Web site, with its interactive features and Flash animation, allows the user to take a test drive without leaving the house.

Like to see your rental company's Web site featured in a future Bricks & Clicks? E-mail Erin Chapman at echapman@primediabusiness.com.