Just a few years ago, business gamification was practically unheard of.
Before 2010, barely anyone searched for the term on Google, and it’s
still not in the dictionary. But that doesn’t mean you should say,
“gamifi-what?” and move on with your life. The fact is, business
gamification—or the use of gaming elements to drive, measure, and reward
high-value behaviors by customers or employees—is becoming a go-to
strategy for a rapidly growing number of companies. It’s here to stay,
and it can help your organization reach new heights.
“Games have been played for millennia because they’re fun, and people
enjoy them,” says Kris Duggan, coauthor along with Kate Shoup of
Business Gamification For Dummies® (Wiley, February 2013, ISBN:
978-1-1184-6693-3, $26.99). “Today, that love of games is being
leveraged by smart businesses to boost customer loyalty, employee
performance, sales, growth, and more.”
Specifically, explains Duggan, business gamification uses elements like
points, achievements, levels, leaderboards, missions, and contests to
drive desired behaviors. All of a sudden, promoting a brand becomes fun
for customers, and sharing troubleshooting solutions with fellow
consumers is an engaging challenge. Likewise, employees actually enjoy
training instead of seeing it as a chore, and they’re motivated to work
harder on a day-to-day basis.
“Like anyone else, your customers and employee crave attention,
recognition, approval, and rewards,” comments Duggan. “With
gamification, you feed this craving, and in the process convert
customers into loyal fans and employees into highly effective
collaborators and advocates.”
Here, Duggan shares ten examples of websites and apps that feature
smart—and successful—gamification:
eBay (www.ebay.com).
eBay has long used a points system that enables users to show their
status on the site. The success of this system, which goes so far as to
issue badges to the “best” sellers, has effectively demonstrated the
importance of reputation as a reward to both buyers and sellers.
Foursquare (www.foursquare.com).
Foursquare is a free mobile app that enables you to “check in” at
various places and share your experiences there. As you do, Foursquare
rewards you with points and badges. You might even get special deals,
such as a discount off your bill at a restaurant or a freebie for
bringing your friends.
“You can use Foursquare to get recommendations for what to do next,”
shares Duggan. “And if you check in at a given place enough times, and
you may become its “mayor”—which can bring with it its own set of
privileges, such as a special parking place.”
GetGlue (www.getglue.com).
GetGlue is a little like FourSquare…except that instead of checking in
at their favorite restaurants, shops, and such, GetGlue users check in
while watching shows, listening to music, reading books, or engaging in
other entertainment-related activities.
“In return, users get relevant recommendations, exclusive stickers (like
badges), discounts, and other rewards, such as goodies from their
favorite shows or movies,” explains Duggan.
Mint (www.mint.com).
Mint.com wants to help members get a handle on their finances, and it
uses subtle gamification—primarily in the form of progress bars and fun
feedback—to make it happen. Members can also post details about their
financial goals online to increase their chances that those goals will
be met.
MuchMusic.com (www.muchmusic.com).
MuchMusic, Canada’s MTV equivalent, gamified its site with its
MuchCloser program. Members of MuchCloser get points for doing all the
stuff they normally do on the site—watching videos, reading blogs,
leaving comments, sharing content, and so forth.
“As the points pile up, users unlock rewards and trophies and become
eligible for prizes and giveaways,” says Duggan. “The most active users
are flagged as key members of the MuchMusic community.”
Nike+ (www.nikeplus.nike.com).
Nike+ is a fitness-oriented service that enables you to log your
physical activity using a mobile app or other Nike gear. When you do,
you earn NikeFuel, which is a super-cool alterna-word for points.
Recyclebank (www.recyclebank.com).
Recyclebank gives members points for engaging in “everyday green
actions” such as using less water, recycling, making greener purchases,
using energy more efficiently, or even walking to work instead of
driving. For even more points, members can take online quizzes about
ecology and share information from the site with friends on Facebook,
Twitter, and mobile applications.
“Users can redeem points for goodies such as gifts and flowers, books
and magazines, health and beauty items, and music with participating
local and national partners,” adds Duggan.
Samsung (www.samsung.com).
Samsung’s social loyalty program, Samsung Nation, makes excellent use of
gamification to recognize and empower the company’s most passionate
fans. When you join Samsung Nation, you can earn points, level up,
unlock badges, and gain entry into various contests and promotions by
performing behaviors such as watching videos, commenting on articles,
reviewing products, participating in user-generated Q&As, and more.
“Top users appear on the Samsung Nation leaderboard and an activity
stream keep users up to date on the site’s goings-on,” says Duggan.
Sneakpeeq (www.sneakpeeq.com).
A retail site, sneakpeeq offers discounted goodies including gourmet
foods, home products, accessories, apparel (from big labels like Kate
Spade and Puma to smaller brands), and more. The twist? The site is
gamified to make shopping more fun.
“The more you buy, share, love (similar to liking an item) and peeq
(viewing an item’s price), the more badges and rewards you unlock, and
the more incentives and surprises you receive,” explains Duggan.
“Leaderboards make the experience more social and competitive, kind of
like throwing an elbow at a sample sale.”
Xbox Live (www.xbox.com).
First came Shakespeare with his “play within a play.” Now there’s Xbox,
with its “game within a game.” That is, Xbox, itself a game platform,
uses elements of gamification…within its games. (Is your mind blown yet?)
“Specifically, users can earn achievement points, referred to as
gamerscore, by performing specific tasks of actions in a game,” Duggan
shares. “This gamerscore is separate from the player’s score in the game
itself and is a way of conveying the player’s reputation across the
platform, including its social spaces.”
“Smart use of gamification is a big win for everyone,” concludes Duggan.
“Once it’s put into action, it helps customers enjoy interacting with
companies. The more they’re recognized and rewarded, the more loyal
they’ll be…and the more your organization will grow.
