Adapted from Business Gamification For Dummies:
What exactly is gamification? Gamification refers to the use of game mechanics and rewards in a non-game setting to increase user engagement and drive desired user behaviors. You can use gamification to increase such things as stickiness, sharing, content creation, purchases, and so on. For those looking to adopt this strategy for their businesses, the newly published Business Gamification For Dummies® will teach you how to apply gamification techniques and meet your business goals.
The most important thing that gamification does is improve ENGAGEMENT. Here are two ways lack of customer and employee engagement can hurt your organization:
1. Customer's aren't loyal. The Internet has leveled the playing field, inundating customers with choices. Thanks to this ample choice, they often flee to cometitors.
2. Employees under perform. Under utilizing the technology you provide, employees fail to optimize business processes.
In response, most organizations have simply invested in more technology -- lots of it. But the stubborn reality is:
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54 percent of customers are inactive in loyalty programs
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69 percent of customers don't use online communities
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50 percent of employees don't adopt enterprise software
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88 percent of employees don't use social software.
Gamification will enable you to drive, measure, and reward high-value behaviors by customers or employees. Game mechanics leverage design and behavioral psychology principles inherent in today's social games to drive and reward specific use behaviors in business environments. Smart gamification elements -- such as points, achievements, levels, leaderboards, missions, and contests -- can be employed to drive desired behaviors on virtually any website or enterprise application.
Your customers and employees, like anyone, crave attention, recognition, approval, and rewards. With gamification, you feel this craving and in the process convert customers into loyal fans and employees into highly effective collaborators and advocates.