Applying the concept of gamification can help you grow your business
Did you know that you have most likely been gamified? If you have ever played FarmVille and other meta games on Facebook, completed your profile on LinkedIn to reach the 100% level of completeness, made a bid on Ebay, used Foursquare to find great places, collected frequent flyer miles or collected points for MyCokeRewards, you have definitely been gamified.
So, what is gamification and what good can it do for your business? How can you apply its principles to achieve your business goals? In a nutshell, gamification refers to the use of game mechanics in non-gaming applications to make them more fun and enjoyable. As a result, using this concept in business applications can encourage user engagement and influence users to take a desired action.
Gamification ? Why Does It Work?
People are naturally competitive. Most people crave for competition, self-expression, status and achievement ? and these things can easily be provided by gaming.Smart marketers know this for a fact so they started using the concept to influence customer behavior.?
They know that by rewarding people with virtual items (such as points and badges), they can encourage them to take specific actions. They can apply the concept of gamification to encourage people to sign up for a newsletter, use a particular product or fill up their profile, among other things. It may be one of the most effective marketing strategies today.
Applying the Concept of Gamification to Grow Your Business
Are you ready to apply the principles of gamification in your small business but are absolutely clueless on how you can make it work? Here are some simple ways by which you can apply the power of gamificationto achieve your business goals.
- Encourage user engagement. Engage existing customers with your product by awarding points that can be exchanged for a new product. You can also use gaming elements to boost engagement with potential customers at trade shows. Reward them with points for attending and/or completing assigned tasks and allow them to exchange the points for discount coupons that can be used to purchase your products.
- Generate brand advocates. Give your customers a reason to advocate your brand. You can do this by creating an attractive reward system whereby they can exchange their points for discounts.
- Motivate your employees. You can likewise apply the concept in motivating your employees to complete mundane tasks and improve their performance. Rewarding desired behavior will definitely go a long, long way.
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