2. What Gamification Is
Essentially, gamification is exactly what it sounds like: incorporating
game- and game-like elements into activities and business processes
outside gaming products. It is a UI/UX process that intends to make a
product appealing and competitive for a given customer base.
Modern gamification leverages the years of research of addiction
science. It formalizes an idea that has existed for decades, in elements
such as the Boy Scout badge system, by condensing into the core tools
of gamification.
4. The Scope
o Over the past decade, gamification has been formalized and extended
across almost every industry in the world.
o Pioneers include ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft, which use
gamification to motivate their independent contractors by earning points
for . One of the most prominent examples is Fitbit and the fitness
industry, which have made gamification the norm.
6. How It Works
Gamification is effectively a way to mimic the neurological effects and
symptoms of addiction in a customer. By working with long-established
principles of behavioral science, gamification gives the user a sense of
accomplishment and a surge of “happy chemicals” for engaging with the
gamified product.
This process has been shown both theoretically and practically to vastly
improve the product’s customer engagement and enthusiasm.
7. Multiple examples of how Fitbit uses gamification:
leaderboards, trophies, and challenges
8. Implementation
Gamification is implemented by measuring customer behavior, then
creating playful challenges for them to beat, as a consequence of which
they gain accomplishments, which provides a surge of dopamine, the
effects of which are then measured. This creates a feedback loop that
keeps the customers coming back.
10. Ethical Issues
In recent years, the idea of gamification
has repeatedly come under fire for
ethical concerns raised by the prospect
of using addiction science to draw
customers in. Troubling comparisons
have been drawn between gamification
and gambling, with regulators and
stakeholders suggesting that the
process, especially when targeting
children, should be banned. However,
these concerns have yet to significantly
impact gamification’s popularity.
11. The FinTech Industry
The fintech industry has been one of the slowest to take gamification up.
This is partly because the serious nature of the financial industry does
not lend itself well to the somewhat frivolous aspects of gamification;
and partly because the reward mechanism for savings and profits
presents a (much weaker) short-term reward.
Additionally, the fintech industry’s demographics skew older than most
others, a fact that hampers the growth of gamification.
13. Nevertheless
Nevertheless, growing amounts of research and business experience
have shown that gamification is just as useful and beneficial in the
fintech industry as any other. Rather than undercutting the solemnity of
fintech, gamification supplements it with a lighter aspect that helps users
engage from day to day.
Additionally, the combination of reward mechanisms of virtual money
and virtual points has the potential to produce a stronger effect than
anywhere else.
15. The Way Forward
The spread of gamification over the past decade has been
nothing short of spectacular, and this trend is expected to
continue for quite some time yet. The vital 18-49 demographic is
increasingly inundated in gaming culture and game-like elements,
and the passing of time will only make gamification more
important.
Further, the maturation of the science and the proliferation of
more and more sophisticated models has greatly increased the
influence of gamification, further suggesting that it will soon be a
core aspect of most customer interaction models.
18. What is the science behind gamification?
Gamification is the combination of behavioral science principles with our
current understanding of neurological addiction. The elements of
gamification: badges, milestones and rankings, reinforce the sense of
accomplishment which alters neural pathways with a surge of dopamine.
Scientific research on the biological basis of gamification’s successes can
be found here:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S074756321630855X
19. How is gamification implemented practically?
Gamification is a user-facing feature. That means its implementation
must come at the UI/UX level, typically with interactive elements that
allow the user to constantly evaluate their progress and compare it with
friends. The most commonly implemented element is milestone-
recognition, whereby users are rewarded for devoting time or effort to
the service. Leaderboards, trophies, and community contests are also
found commonly.
20. What are the latest trends in gamification?
Diversification and expansion is now the name of the game in the
gamification world. Companies are being pushed to find new and
unique ways of leveraging social mechanics to stand out and maintain
their edge. Some companies have turned to game-based reinforcement,
others social leaderboards, and yet others competition and micro-
credentialing. These are all different ways of implementing the same idea
that are pushing the horizons of gamification as a practical feature.
21. Does gamification ever fail to work?
Gamification only fails if the execution fails. Gamification’s underlying
principle of addictive engagement is not new or innovative at all – it’s
used everywhere in the business world, including McDonalds, the NYT,
and Google. However, if gamification is implemented imperfectly –
whether by focusing too much on the competitive aspects or too less, or
by creating a challenge that’s too difficult for the average user to easily
accomplish – gamification has certainly been known to fail – Lyft saw
astonishingly high employee burn-out rates before it adjusted its
gamification model to be less intensive.
22. Is gamification only useful for young people?
By 2020, the majority of the workforce will be millenials. Even now, they
have a huge influence on workplace solutions. But gamification of
learning as a solution is relevant for all generations as this trend has
been facilitated by penetration of smart phones and social networking
sites. So we will see more and more generations of workforce
participating in gamification driven learning. Gamification doesn’t mean
playing games at work, but rather using game techniques to motivate
employees and provide them with intrinsic rewards like status, social
validation and personal satisfaction. These rewards are universal in
nature and apply to all age groups.
