How to Use Gamification in Business? VAK Marketing Review

The term gamification was first introduced in 2002 by Nick Pelling, and was considered a teaching method. The approach is based on the assertion that young people nowadays find it difficult to assimilate information with traditional teaching methods, but easily learn when knowledge is passed on in a form of a game.

This approach has moved into marketing. But instead of educational goals, marketing uses gamification to sell goods and services. Until now, the majority of gaming technologies are used for audiences under 24 years old, because it is believed that people of this age are more inclined to interact with gaming content. In practice, gamification is popular among people aged 27–35 years. There are also some positive examples of gamification mechanics targeting 55+ audiences.

In fact, gamification means a way to promote a brand or product that uses game mechanics. It can be different contests, posts that encourage action, game elements. The key goals of this strategy are to create a positive brand experience for the buyer and increase conversions. Here are some ideas for games to be introduced:

Examples of gamification methods:

Achievements: For completed tasks or completed stages, the customer receives points, prizes and other types of encouragement.

Progress: In this case, the main thing for the player is the current progress: this mechanic creates engagement instruments that motivate the customer to compete with people in the rating. At the same time, progress is demonstrated in real time, which adds a competitive spirit to the game.

Challenges: In this case, people create and promote videos with a certain challenge from a Brand. Such Challenges on Instagram & Tik-Tok increase brand awareness and customer loyalty. The buyer also is happy, since he feels involved in the global media trend.

Countdown: In this case,the customer is given a game with limited time — this is the main feature of the game. Often the user is given multiple attempts to win a prize.

Lottery: Requires no active action from users. The customer just needs to click a button or leave a comment. Then wait for the draw. The disadvantage is the loss of interest after the draw is completed = unfollows

Golden Hour: In this case, the user must go to the site or brand account at a certain time and take action. The choice of a particular mechanic depends on your product as well as your goal. In our practice, we also use gaming solutions to implement the promotion strategy. If you are interested in trying these mechanics, feel free to contact us and discuss!