Gamification is the use of game design techniques to solve problems and engage an audiences. The gamification of entertainment has been growing significantly over the past few years. Similar to how individuals check into physical locations with services such as Foursquare & Gowalla, now it is possible to check into entertainment destinations such as your favorite TV Show, Movie, Music, Video Games, etc… and enjoy the interaction. It also being used to develop skills within large corporations in fun and interactive ways.
Linkedin has created a small example of gamification by incenting users towards 100% profile completeness with a progress bar that is seen while on the edit profile page. This visual representation of your profile’s completeness Linkedin hopes to trigger behavior that drives us towards completeness.
Salesforce has also taken gamification to another level with an addition to the popular CRM platform. With Engage, Salesforce users activities within the system are tied to various game mechanics and offers direct competition with other users within their organization.
ShopKick also offers incentives and game mechanics for users to engage with specific products. By incenting users with offers prior to entering a retail location, ShopKick users can then interact with those products in store and earn points which translate to virtual currency. ShopKick also incorporates a geo-targeted approach to driving engagement by rewarding behavior by simply entering a participating retailer, ShopKick can influence behavior via a game mechanic.
Starbucks also incorporated game mechanics into its popular loyalty program “My Starbucks Rewards”, showing that Starbucks brand is not just a place to get a cup of gourmet coffee, but a center for socializing and a lifestyle that customers want to possess.
Gamification is clearly one of the latest marketing and sticky customer relationship techniques which is being employed by the largest brands in the world. Email contact@dojit.com to find out how dojit can help you.
