Gamification, or the use of game mechanics in non-gaming contexts, has quickly made its way into the lexicon of the marketing and tech world. Companies in every industry imaginable are trying to tap into this powerful new strategy for influencing and motivating their customers, employees and fans.
Blindly slapping badges and points on your site isn't going to work. Like any technology or methodology, there's a right and wrong way to implement gamification.
Here are three key strategies for creating a gaming solution that has lasting value and truly engages consumers and site visitors.
1. What Is Your Core Experience?
What is the core experience that you're trying to gamify? Understanding this dictates everything else you'r e going to do, so it's crucial to set this foundation correctly and understand both the experience and your users. Here are just a few of the many core experience types:
- A content and community site for fans of a TV show or musical artist: Your users are fans who have a passionate interest in something and want to indulge and share that passion.
- An expense-reporting application: Your users are employees who are dealing with a necessary evil in order to get paid.
- An ecommerce website: Your users are customers who are looking for a trusted vendor, a good deal and quality information that can help them make an informed purchase decision.
- Complex media creation software: Your users are people who are probably using 10% of the available functionality of the software and need a compelling reason to move up the mastery curve.
What’s your core experience is?
2. Know Your...
