Gamification is an accelerated video-game-like user experience design philosophy that aims at making electronic transactions fast and enjoyable for users. This can also be described as the assimilation of all the addictive features found in videogames and applying them to real-world activities.

Originally coined by a British programmer named Nick Pelling in 2002, the term got popular in 2009 when it was promoted on Foursquare and then again, when it was officially added as a buzzword by Gartner in 2011.

Based on the intrinsic psychological principles of reward and recognition, Gamification is used as a market hype generating technique that transforms user experiences by involving users in a gamified system that stimulates and entertains them as they use the system.

Companies like Trello have gamified Project Management into a fun activity by introducing milestones and rewards in their membership program.

Why gamify?

Gamification is important as monotonous apps can increase user churn. Gamifying apps ensures that users stay engaged and motivated at all times to continue to use and promote your app. This is the biggest challenge that developers and companies face with their applications.

Developers try various methodologies that can help them increase their user base. These range from enhancing the user experience to completely re-engineering the app to suit user requirements. Gamification is a user enhancement exercise that has far-reaching benefits.

The promise

Gamification carries a promise to solve the challenge that most companies have – reducing user churn. Providing benefits to users and ensuring that they use the app and continue to utilize these benefits and compete for them within the app. This also ensures that your apps get popular as users continue to use them and share them with their friends and family, further boosting its popularity. Apps like LinkedIn have used this with a very high rate of success.

The appeal

Gamification utilizes the competitive play methodology that is available in videogames and applies it to regular applications to entice users to carry out game-like behaviors while using other apps.

This approach appeals to some of our desires and tendencies such as socializing with others, learning new things, mastering existing skills, achievements and elevation of status.

Gamification affects your users’ psyche and keeps them interested and motivated to use your application. This is accomplished by the use of teamwork and encouraging interactions between users. This makes the application more engaging as a social network is created between users that helps them interact with one another.

Adding aspects like unpredictability can add to the thrill of using the application, as this allows users to stay engaged and keep exploring and using the app instead of moving on.

Techniques like this have been uzsed for a long time in the form of “Easter Eggs” where users would find unexpected behaviors in applications and get rewarded in some way or the other when they uncover those Easter eggs.

The human brain has always welcomed challenges. This is what differentiates us from other animals. We naturally accept challenges, find solutions and adapt. Skill enhancement or mastery is another important aspect of gamification that increases its appeal.

Gamification allows the mechanics of an app to be gleaned through persistence and skill enhancement and not just plain luck. This entices users to stick on and keep using the app because of various challenges presented by the app instead of abandoning it.

Gamification for Companies:

Team motivation using gamification

As Tech Company employees work on textual, monotonous tools day in and day out, gamification of employee tools can add the spark that they need to trigger enhanced performance. As gamified tools take over the workplace, they add healthy competition and motivate employees to up their skills as they wish to climb up the employee leaderboard ladder. Apps like Facebook for Work can help teams socialize and create a healthy and competitive ecosystem within the workplace.

Enabling team mastery with motivated teams

Creating masters out of users is a factor that can motivate employees in a positive manner. Master users become motivators and trainers, helping others to grow and create a healthy, competitive ecosystem where everyone is in a race to be at the top.

Additional variable incentives can further add to team morale as everyone tries to put in their best to win that coveted variable incentive.

Gamification for Users

The intent of gamification is to keep customers engaged, happy and make them stick! This five-point list of ensuring your gamification strategy success can help you succeed in your gamification efforts.

1.       Communication

Companies that communicate with their customers and have consistent interactions fare better

2.       Service

Providing world class customer service to ensure that they are never left in the dark

3.       Branding

Develop a brand around your business strategy

4.       Incentives

Give incentives to your users to ensure that they stick.

5.       Fun

Increase the fun factor in your app. happy users are consistent users.

Gamification has far-reaching effects and can really help you boost your company’s morale. We at Volumetree believe that gamification can be used within the workplace and beyond to ensure that the world is a happier place! Contact us today to help you gamify your apps.