Gamification

What is Gamification?

Gamification is all about motivating the right behavior through structured play. Successful gamification needs to be a perfect balance of fun and purpose, this inspires participants to complete ordinary tasks to achieve extraordinary results. The application of gamification uses game design and principles to captivate, engage and motivate participants to achieve specific goals. Forward-thinking businesses are using gamification to educate students, incentivize consumers and stimulate employees. Gamification is widespread and is transforming our daily lives, we now learn, work, buy, create and think with the help of gamified tactics.

There's a long list of reasons why we use gamification in almost every industry, its applications can be implemented at any level of business to serve all kinds of purposes. The 5 main reasons we use gamification is to motivate, engage, challenge, relate and reward.

History of gamification

Despite being first coined in 2002 by Nick Pelling, the term "gamification" gained widespread usage in 2010, in a more specific sense referring to the incorporation of social/reward aspects of games into the software.

Due to the increasing importance of engagement, more research is being poured into learning the ins and outs of gamification and its many applications. Throughout history, gamification has been used to incentivize and reward users in unique ways, it's fascinating to watch it explode in popularity and penetrate new markets.

Here's a brief timeline of the history of gamification spanning the last 50 years:

The 1970s

• 1970 - Researcher Clark C. Abt wrote his book 'Serious Games', he explores how games can be used to instruct and inform as well as provide pleasure.
• 1973 - Hailed as the grandfather of gamification, Charles Coonradt published 'The Game of Work'. Coonradt noticed the decline of productivity in the US and suggested fun-and-games might be the answer to the problem of employee engagement.
• 1978 - MUD1 is created by Roy Trubshaw at Essex University. It was the first multi-user Dungeon game, using a text-based interface MUD1 was the beginning of social online gaming.

The 1980s

• 1981 - AAdvantage, the world’s first frequent flier program is released by American Airlines. The initiative sought to encourage customer loyalty by offering rewards for frequent patronage
• 1982 - Organisational theorist Thomas W. Malone writes the article 'What Makes Things Fun to Learn: A Study of Intrinsically Motivating Computer Games.
• 1983 - Two brands lay claim to firsts involving frequency programs in the hotel industry. Holiday Inn launched its program in February 1983, followed by Marriott in November of the same year. holiday inn launched its program
• followed by marriott

The 1990s

• 1996 - Richard Bartle (MUD1 developer) defines 4 gamer types based on how different people approach playing a game. This model would go on to become a cornerstone of many gamification initiatives.
• 1999 - More and more people start to recognize the power of ‘fun’. Stephen W. Draper releases a paper suggesting that user enjoyment should be a major requirement of all software design.
• 1999 - LeapFrog Enterprises introduced the LeapPad, which combined an interactive book with a cartridge and allowed kids to play games and interact with a paper-based book.

The 2000s

• 2002 - Nick Pelling coins the term gamification
• 2005 - Rajat Paharia founded Bunch, a platform designed to boost engagement on websites by adding a layer of game mechanics. It would be another 3 years before they adopt the term ‘gamification’
• 2008 - Gamification Co. holds the first Gamification Summit in San Francisco.

The 2010s

• 2012 - 45,000 people enroll in Professor Kevin Werbach's online gamification course.
• 2014 - 9/10 companies report their gamification efforts are successful.
• 2016 - Pokemon Go is one of the most successful applications of gamification with over 800 million downloads.

5 Types of Gamification Techniques

Over the last two decades, gamification techniques have evolved in complexity, with organizations seeking to use gamification to meet any number of business

Gamification has also made massive strides in the field of personal development, apps that focus on fitness, productivity, time management, and even relaxation have revolutionized people's lifestyles.

According to a study by TalentLMS, here’s a list of the most common gamified elements staff come across, in order of popularity:

• 71% mention badges as the most common gamification element.
• 59% say they’re granted points by an app or software at work.
• 56% are awarded virtual or physical rewards for accomplishments.
• 51% put leaderboards fourth.
• 47% work with levels.

How can gamification help you?

Whether it's through exercising with the help of an app, learning a language, or participating in a social cause, gamification has proven to be the most effective approach to captivate a wide range of audiences. Some most innovative digital solutions today are thanks to the advancements in gamification techniques and modern technology.