Learn by playing: how to encourage engagement through gamification

The gamification of events goes beyond removing pieces from a tower of blocks or organizing outdoor games. Introducing the dynamics of gaming in an event helps to engage attendees and influence their behavior following a pre-determined strategy.

Pens or T-shirts with corporate logos, bags, pen drives and all types of promotional materials are the most common “souvenirs” from an event.  Merchandising is a typical investment made by event sponsors.  But is it the best way to make a good impression on the attendees?

The event guests don’t need more mugs or notebooks.  Instead of objects, people want to go home with relevant and meaningful educational and/or social learning experiences for the long term. That is what will make the difference between attending an event and skipping it altogether.

For some time now, events and conferences have been combining business and fun or entertainment.  Games to break the ice in a group are very common and help the participants that don’t know each other to introduce themselves to everyone else.  These games serve a social function.  Gamification (using the game to achieve certain concrete behaviors) however, is different.

Gamification is an activity that makes sense as a tool to achieve specific objectives.  It consists of using the mechanics of a game (such as goals, narratives, points, medals, etc.) to induce a change in behavior. While it might be “fun” or “easy”, it works because it taps into human motivations that are reflected in the learning.

In general, all event attendees at a meeting or conference want to learn something new.  If they do it while playing and enjoying themselves in the process, the experience will be remembered for much longer.

 5 keys to win with gamification

1. Make sure objectives are well-defined. Make them as concrete as possible.  Maybe you can’t completely explain the new strategy of a business with the game, but you can focus the gamification on a specific aspect or objective.
2. What behaviors do you want to promote? Outline them and with them in mind, choose the right game mechanics to achieve them.  Not all dynamics work with your objectives.
3. Make it easy. Adapt the game to the number of people that are going to participate.  If the group is big, try to make it as simple as possible so that everyone participates and that the game doesn’t go on for too long.  It’s preferable that the attendees end up wanting more instead of watching the clock.
4. Reward everyone. Perhaps the winner of the game was helped by the idea of another player. Participation is the most important thing, so everyone deserves recognition.
5. And make the prize original. It doesn’t have to cost a lot, but perhaps a unique experience would be more pleasing and would be a nice surprise for the guests.

As you can see, gamification goes beyond organizing rounds of play, accumulating points and medals.  If you can connect the desired objectives with the personal learning and the mechanics of a game, gamification will undoubtedly help you improve the outcome of your event for all involved.  Try it at your next meeting!