Using Gamification in Digital Marketing

• It is the use of game elements and game-design techniques in non-game contexts.
• by reverse-engineering what makes games effective and graft it into a business environment.

According to the book "For The Win" by Kevin Webach (Harvard) and Dan Hunter, there are three categories of game elements that are relevant to gamification:

• Dynamics are the big-picture aspects of the gamified system that you have to consider and manage but which can never directly enter into the game.
  • The most important game dynamics are:
  1. 1. Constraints (limitations or forced trade-offs)
     2. Emotions (curiosity, competitiveness, frustration, happiness)
     3. Narrative (a consistent, ongoing storyline)
     4. Progression (the player’s growth and development)
     5. Relationships (social interactions generating feelings of camaraderie, status, altruism)
• Mechanics are the basic processes that drive the action forward and generate player engagement.
  • We can identify ten important game mechanics:
  1. 1. Challenges (puzzles or other tasks that require effort to solve)
     2. Chance (elements of randomness)
     3. Competition (one player or group wins, and the other loses)
     4. Cooperation (players must work together to achieve a shared goal)
     5. Feedback (information about how the player is doing)
     6. Resource Acquisition (obtaining useful or collectible items)
     7. Rewards (benefits for some action or achievement)
     8. Transactions (trading between players, directly or through intermediaries)
     9. Turns (sequential participation by alternating players)
     10. Win States (objectives that makes one player or group the winner—draw and loss states are related concepts)
• Components are the specific instantiations of mechanics and dynamics.

The fifteen important game components are:

1. Achievements (defined objectives)

2. Avatars (visual representations of a player’s character)

3. Badges (visual representations of achievements)

4. Boss Fights (especially hard challenges at the culmination of a level)

5. Collections (sets of items or badges to accumulate)

6. Combat (a defined battle, typically short-lived)

7. Content Unlocking (aspects available only when players reach objectives)

8. Gifting (opportunities to share resources with others)

9. Leaderboards (visual displays of player progression and achievement)

10. Levels (defined steps in player progression)

11. Points (numerical representations of game progression)



12. Quests (predefined challenges with objectives and rewards)

13. Social Graphs (representation of players’ social network within the game)

14. Teams (defined groups of players working together for a common goal)

15. Virtual Goods (game assets with perceived or real-money value)

Gamification in Digital Marketing

Brands or events can use gamification in two primary ways:

1. Integrate gamification with existing services, portals, websites or apps to increase user interaction.

The Times of India - India

• Online versions of newspapers like Times Of India use a gamified system to increase interaction where users get points for commenting and sharing content.

Coca Cola Shake It in Hong-Kong

• In Hong Kong, teenagers are offered a free and branded app for their phones. A television spot ran during the evening. During this time, fans are asked to run the app and shake their phones to win discounts and prizes from partners like McDonald’s. In the evening, a spot was broadcast on television during which time it was possible to run the application and … begin to shake the smartphone in front of the TV!

• Similary, Dominos has incorporated gamification in to their mobile pizza ordering app. Users can shake their Droid or iPhone if they don’t know what they want to order and the app with pick the toppings. (Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottdavis/2012/06/21/getting-apps-right-how-dominos-is-beating-the-odds/)
• Airtel in India does something similar with their app.

Heineken Star Player in Italy

Tabasco Nation

Tabasco Nation, a gamified Facebook app brought people together around spicy food. "People who like spicy food are a tribe," says Zichermann, and the marketers at TABASCO know that, so they played on "gamified ideas of tribalism and team sports" to create an app that allowed those spicy food lovers to compete against each other. Every drop of sauce that the customers used earned them a virtual point. TABASCO created challenges such as using hot sauce on a cake or taking a bottle to the top of a mountain. It was practically impossible to keep track of, but it didn't matter because it was all about fun. Zichermann says that TABASCO gained about a million followers through this playful app. (Source: http://www.econtentmag.com/Articles/News/News-Feature/Applying-the-Secrets-of-Gamification-to-Your-Digital-Marketing-Strategy-97170.htm )

2. Use gamification as part of a new allied services to be introduced

• "Nike launched Nike+ Fuelband and accessories launched this application in January 2012. And since then it has developed into a popular gamified sport. The company extended themselves beyond their comfort zone as a well known product brand one that actively fosters lifestyle changes by helping their customer keep themselves fit." (Source: http://yukaichou.com/gamification-examples/top-10-marketing-gamification-cases-remember/ )
• Adidas created, Adidas Micoach, a virtual sports training environment for games like football, tennis, etc and the users had their avatars, whose capabilities and performance depended on the real workout of the users.

Examples of non-digital gamified marketing campaigns

1. Coca Cola Friendly Twist

However, one important point to be remembered is while developing a full-fledged game to promote your product, brand or service may be a viable option, it is not technically 'gamification'.