Gamification is the concept of adding game characteristics to everyday actions to make them more interesting. Gamification in business has become an increasingly important motivation tool for companies. This video explains the core features and terms of gamification. Read more in our gamification software guide.
Welcome to the gamification guide! Today we’ll learn the basics of gamification strategy, including common terms, how to implement solutions, and what it can do for your company. Gamification is usually described as the application of game elements to non-game contexts. In simpler terms, gamification takes the characteristics we like about games and adds them to everyday actions to make them more interesting. Think about receiving points for filing paperwork or brushing your teeth.
These game elements leverage our love for competition and reward and use it to encourage certain actions. By changing the way people think about behavior, gamification can change people’s habits. Gamification encourage behavior with instant positive feedback. IN order to understanding gamification you have to speak the language. Like any tech industry, gamification has a lot of jargon. Let’s dive in. Users are anyone who participates in a gamification platform.
For some companies users will be their customers, for other companies users will be their employees. Feedback. Immediate positive feedback makes us feel good about completing something and motivates us to do it again. Feedback mechanics are the most widely known gamification elements. Badges. Badges are usually awarded for actions the user has just completed. They offer a more visual display of achievement than points and can be shown on profile pages or user accounts.
Leaderboards. Ranking top performers on a leaderboard broadcasts who gets the most out of a game. They foster a sense of community, especially if users are grouped into teams. Gamification can take many forms so it’s important to evaluate all your options. Gamification services can be grouped into three categories, software as a service. The most common form of gamification, these offerings are entirely cloud based and let companies take advantage of gamification services without the need for customer service or hardware.
SaaS platforms usually gives businesses a great deal of control with minimal coding and upkeep required. Because they run entirely in the cloud users can also access the services from any internet connected device. Custom software, on premise gamification software is generally reserved for specific industries and custom solutions. Developers will sometimes work with companies to create unique interfaces and mechanics based around their workflow and criteria.
Certain vendors even offer full-fledged game design. Hardware. While gamification is usually a software based technology, a few vendors integrate hardware into their product suites. One example is the company belly whose belly card rewards customers each time the scan it at a location. Innovative companies will find ways to further personalize the gamification experience. Some companies are creating personal leaderboards which only show a user’s closest competitors, this allows for a more personal experience and doesn’t encourage lower ranking employees. Visit technologyadvice.com to learn more about gamification and see reviews of top companies.
Gamification is the concept of adding game characteristics to everyday actions to make them more interesting. Gamification in business has become an increasingly important motivation tool for companies. This video explains the core features and terms of gamification.
Read more in our gamification software guide.
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