What is Gamification
Gamification is the use of dynamics often associated with games as an application to improve certain human resource metrics such as productivity, contentment, etc. [Source]
In just a few short years I expect that we’ll be seeing life become more gamified, that is, rewards for doing everyday things like chores, homework, compassion, friendliness, productivity, sleep, exercise, healthy eating, etc. There are a ton of apps that already track this, but it hasn’t come together to seamlessly provide a unique experience. I expect that Google or Facebook will eventually produce (or buy out) an app or a suite of apps that help individuals level-up in real life.
This kind of already exists, to a degree. Superbetter, a game by Jane McGonigal already takes a step in that direction by helping users cope with stress, anxiety, and depression.
At the core of SuperBetter is a powerful community united by the belief that each of us has the ability to unleash our heroic potential, and that together we can make the world better.
A randomized controlled study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania found that playing SuperBetter for 30 days significantly reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety, and increases optimism, social support, and player’s belief in their own ability to succeed and achieve their goals. They also found that SuperBetter users were significantly happier and more satisfied with their lives.
I think gamification is an inevitability because of how small technology is getting, along with the advent of augmented reality. When AR technology will be small enough to implement into contacts – that’s when you’ll see the adoption of gamification. Currently, Google Glass could do the job, but its problems in startup led to developers abandoning their projects. It recently relaunched and had a price drop (now $500) – but still there aren’t a lot of people scrambling to get their hands on one, at least compared to the exponential growth saw by iPods in the 2000s.
AR and VR are inevitably in our future. It also has fruitful results in important industries such as healthcare. Results of using badges, points, and leaderboards have been promising.
I’m excited to see how developers and industries adopt gamification to improve performance and user experience.
One industry that gamification might prove difficult to penetrate is Marketing.
One option I can think of is a point system for customers. How many customers act on call-to-actions (CTAs) and the attributing points to each action. This already exists with member cards but retailers haven’t found an exciting way to gamify shopping, as it already has its rewards.
Ebay has a star system for reputation. Perhaps retailers could implement something similar (increase in points for purchases, negative points for returns, positive points for social sharing). Top performing shoppers (think the top .1% of shoppers) will become brand advocates who then have social reach otherwise not available to retailers. This is kind of reminiscent of sponsored posts from brand ambassadors, advocates, and influencers on YouTube. Wouldn’t it be great if you could buy enough products to get you to level 150, the top of the leaderboard; a position that awards you with your own sponsored post with the help of the retailer or brand you’ve leveled-up with.
This is a stretch. Even for me, as someone in marketing, I’m not so sure that this model would easily be adopted. I do think that we will start to see gamification test different models and applications. An exciting future awaits us for sure.
We should be careful, however, so we don’t totally ruin life and turn it into a long annoying commercial.