The other day I received my Barista Badge from Starbucks. I was ecstatic and even shared the moment with my friends and followers on Instagram and Twitter. What makes it so exciting? It is that element of gamification which made me visit five Starbucks different locations and check into those locations through Foursquare app.
I used to pay my credit card bill through my bank’s smartphone app. Why? Because using their app to make any transaction automatically register me into a monthly lucky draw to win a Samsung Galaxy S. I haven’t won it as yet, but the idea of winning something just by doing a simple task (which I have to do anyway) is exciting enough to force me to do it through an app. This is the simple concept behind using gamification in your app.
Why does my mobile app need gamification?
As evident through the examples, gamification has the tendency to change a person’s interaction with a product or service. Whether it is a simple act of attaining points for your credit card transactions or unlocking achievements while performing regular tasks. It is an effective way to engage your fans into activities which can produce good results for your product or service.
Mobile Devices and Online Shopping
Mobile devices are becoming a powerful element of online shopping experience. As the technology will progress more and more, people will use their smartphones to do online shopping. Adding gamification to your mobile app will enhance your fan’s engagement with the brand.
Last year a Korean company used shadow QR Codes to increase their lunchtime sales. If scanned during the right hours, (12 PM to 1 PM) the customers will be taken to a mobile website where they receive a coupon up to $12 and discount offers. Customers shop and utilize the coupon or discount offers through the Emart App. The items would then be dispatched directly to the customer’s home.
You see how the company innovates by adding a little game element (time & surprise) to a sales strategy? It is not all about badges, achievements and funny characters. By mixing a simple game element, camera on the smartphone, an app and a shadow QR code, the company increased its lunchtime sales up to 25 percent. Small and medium businesses can add such game elements to their apps to increase their reach and user base.
Wrap Up
Gamification is supposed to turn a boring and dull process into something fun. However, it has been abused a bit. People wrongly perceived it as a tool to add an Xbox factor to a process. I love to use an app that has a simple game element in it. And I know there are many people like me who would love to calculate and file their tax returns on a mobile app with a simple game element in it.
