Social media has changed the way we interact, share and consume information. In just a few short years, social media has evolved from a place to post your travel highlights to a place where companies can market their products and services.

With the advent of social media, competition has driven users to create more interesting and engaging content. The emphasis on creating meaningful content has grown tremendously over the past couple of years. The growing desire for better content is not only true for personal use, but also for marketing campaigns and advertisements as well.

If you’re looking to amplify your social media strategy reach and increase engagement, it may be time to add a little gamification into the mix.

Gamification on social media is the idea that if you add fun into the mix, users will be more likely to engage with your content and participate in a campaign, thereby amplifying your reach exponentially.

Related article: What is Gamification?

While this seems like a simple concept at first glance, there’s actually a lot of work that goes into creating an effective gamified Social Media campaign—one that takes into account your brand message and aesthetic, as well as your target audience, so that you can sit back and watch the results roll in!

 

Rewards Incentive

Rewards are another central component of gamification. You may have been asked to do something at work that didn’t really interest you. Perhaps it was a task that required time and effort but that seemed pointless. But what if your boss told you that if you complete the task before Friday, they’ll give you a free lunch? Now your attention is piqued—and so is your dopamine production as you anticipate that delicious reward!

The more people you can get involved in your campaign, the more success you will be able to achieve, and offering rewards is a great way to make people want to do just that. It sounds like a simple solution, but it’s important to know the social benefit of handing out rewards to those with whom you want to actively engage with your campaign.

Related article: How does Gamification affect motivation?

 

Timing is everything!

Neil Patel says, “Social media marketing pros know that timing is everything.”

You’ve likely seen a lot of advice online about how to gamify your offers and discounts so you can increase engagement. But have you considered what happens when you add a time element to your strategies? Time helps create a sense of urgency, which creates more engagement.

 

Award points

Everyone loves earning points. It helps them feel accomplished and that much closer to an established goal. This also creates fun interaction and competition!

One of the most relevant examples of gamification on social media would have to be Nike.

Nike has a running app, which tracks all your data including time, pace, calories, distance, and location. The app also encourages friendly competition because users can share their data across Facebook and other socials.

Related article: Fitness Tracking: Now Gamified – 3 Basic Steps!

 

Build Your Community

Building a community around your brand will make it easier to grow your business because you’ll be able to identify the most engaged customers and build relationships with them.

The easiest way to get your customers to interact with your brand is to create a community that they can affiliate themselves with. This is where you start building a relationship with your most engaged consumers.

Once you’ve created the space, whether that be a hashtag or an online forum, take part in the conversation and build relationships with those at the top.

 

Final Thoughts

Gamification has always been a great way to get people engaged with the content. The biggest benefit of using it within your social media campaigns is that it provides your audience with a reason to continue engaging with your brand while pushing the boundaries of what they are willing to do for you. So, go ahead, gamify your social media campaigns strategy and see how results differ from traditional marketing campaigns.

For a quick introduction to gamified solutions, visit our website.