- Contest Factory
- January 17, 2018
To say that the marketing industry in general is currently at a crossroads is something of a dramatic understatement. According to a 2017 study conducted by the experts at PageFair, 615 million devices around the world now have some type of ad blocking software installed on themi – a number that equals roughly 11% of the global Internet population. This means one thing: people no longer want to be “sold to,” which has harrowing implications if selling is your job.
This doesn’t mean that “marketing is dead,” however – far from it. It just needs to evolve as the world around us continues to do the same. The concept of “gamification” and other incentive-based marketing initiatives therefore become the best way to engage with your target audience on a whole new level and circumvent modern day marketing challenges at the exact same time.
What is Gamification?
Marketing is about nothing if not engagement, which is exactly what you create through gamification. As a term, gamification describes the act of taking elements that are typical to game playing (like scoring points, competing with others, etc.) and applying them to your marketing campaigns. Instead of running a more traditional campaign, you can instead take your message and package it around something like a sweepstakes, an instant win game, or a user-generated contest.
Gamification works because it transforms marketing from a passive experience into an active one – your audience has an opportunity to participate in your campaign beyond simply buying a product or service. Giving someone the chance to win a prize, receive other rewards, or gain some type of recognition is a perfect way to increase their own motivation to interact with your brand – thus making them more receptive to your marketing message in the first place.
When you consider that the worldwide gamification market grew from $242 million in 2012 to an incredible $2.8 billion in 2016ii, it’s clear that this doesn’t just work – it works incredibly well. It’s also one trend that shows absolutely no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
In the modern era, gamification and other incentive-based promotional tactics are by far the best, most organic ways to not only promote your business but to also generate leads, increase brand awareness and renew customer loyalty – all at the same time. If you’d like to find out more information about gamification as a concept, or if you have any additional questions you’d like to see answered, please don’t delay – contact Contest Factory today!
i Matthew Cortland “2017 Adblock Report,” PageFair
ii Tim Pickard “5 Statistics That Prove Gamification is the Future of the Workplace,” Business
