Even though we are all grown up now and take life much more seriously than we used to do as kids on a playground, an enjoyable game still has a good chance of helping us reclaim our inner child.

It is of no surprise that businesses use game principles to attract new and encourage existing customers to perform certain activities or motivate specific behaviors among a target group.

BUSINESSES USE GAMES AS A MARKETING TOOL TO DRIVE CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

The first study on the principles of people’s behavior in a game was published in the book Theory of Games and Economic Behavior back in 1944 by Princeton University Press. This work is still relevant despite many games migrating to the computer environment. Furthemore, digitalisation in businesses have enabled game principles to be extended into a non-gaming experience.

A new version of this trend called Gamification addresses the desire for amusement, fun, social communication, reward and self-confidence. Enjoying these benefits, customers feel like they have value and they engage with gamified services.

MAKING THE ORDINARY ROUTINE ENJOYABLE

The largest banks, fintechs and insurance companies are now introducing a new type of loyalty programs which include typical game elements in a mobile app or on a website.

What do people receive while playing gamified loyalty programs? Excitement and rewards. The idea behind this is to create immense value for consumers and make them feel like they have an exclusive relationship with the brand.

Gamification is a great way to straighten the banks’ strategy of providing personalized services and digital channels are perfect for that purpose.

A WINNING STRATEGY

Here are a few examples of how gamification in the financial sector is successfully been used by different banks worldwide as a part of their loyalty efforts:

    • Emirates NBD is a great example of the embedding of gamification in financial services which is beneficial for both the customer and the bank. The banking app suggests users to connect to a fitness account to track their day-to-day activities. It has levels and challenges that allow users to earn redeemable points and a progress bar to track their efforts. Customer’s ones who reach a certain goal (12,000 steps a day) receive a 2% interest rate.
    • Advent Calendar by Russian bank Tinkoff. It consists of 31 days and every day there are tasks. Customers who complete no less than 10 tasks will compete for the main prize of 300,000 rubles. In any case all participants will receive gifts: cashback of up to 50% on purchases and discounts of up to 30% from project partners.
    • BBVA is a leading Spanish bank which has developed a unified strategy to increase customer loyalty. The bank launched a BBVA Game – a web app with videos on how to perform ordinary banking operations and tutorials on mobile banking apps. By completing tasks customers earn points which they can redeem to download music and stream movies or to participate in various lotteries and giveaways.

GAMIFICATION = LOYALTY

It is not easy to win and to keep customer loyalty. And gamification comes to the rescue by making banking operations exciting and fun while still being convenient. Winning a rewards makes customers feeling emotionally attached and generates a long-term positive impression about the bank offering the reward. When a person is cheerful, their entire neuromuscular system expresses a state of openness. Hence, the more positive a customer is at the outset, the more likely the bank is to succeed in capturing the person’s attention for the ultimate business proposal. So, by the time they need another type of service, the prior positive experience will encourage them to choose that bank first. Moreover, happy customers will share their success story with their social group, so the bank gains a loyal customer and positive PR.

SOLAR LOYALTY HELPS OUR CLIENTS TO MAINTAIN STRONG POSITIONS IN THE FINANCIAL MARKET. PLATFORM ALLOWS TO IMPLEMENT ALL MODERN IDEAS OF INCENTIVE PROGRAMS THAT ARE TAILORED TO YOUR BUSINESS NEEDS