Gamification in eCommerce: The ultimate playthrough
Article topics
- What is gamification?
- What different types of gamification mechanics are there?
- What are the benefits of gamification?
- 8 examples of gamification you can apply to your eCommerce store
When you’re not looking after your online store, what do you like to do to relax?
If you play games, whether desktop or online, you’re in excellent company. In fact, it’s estimated that by 2027, about 16% of the UK population will unwind by playing online games!
Did you know that you can apply the mechanics of the games you play to your eCommerce website? By using gamification in your store, you can improve the customer experience, encourage shoppers to buy more, and build a community around your brand.
In this article we’ll show you what gamification is, share some examples we love, and answer some of your most burning questions about what gamification is all about.
Player 1 ready? Let’s go!
What is gamification
Gamification is all about taking elements associated with playing games and applying them to a non-gaming environment. In this case, your eCommerce store.
When you hear the word ‘gamification’, you may think of actual games you can play on a website. And while some websites do indeed offer mini games that customers can play, gamification is more about using the psychological drivers that games use – the desire to be rewarded or praised for a job well done.
The key aim of gamification is to engage your store visitors and make your website an exciting, interactive experience that they want to come back to again and again.
When done right, gamification can lead to a 150% increase in user engagement and a 22% increase in customer retention.
What different types of gamification mechanics are there?
There are lots of different gamification mechanics you can use in your store, including:
- Points collection and loyalty programmes
- Progress bars
- Instant rewards, like ‘spin to win’ wheels and scratch cards
- Mini games
- Quizzes and polls
- Daily challenges and streaks
- Achievements
- Ranks and badges
- End of year reviews
- ‘Build your own’ tools
We’ll cover some of these mechanics in more detail later in this article.
What are the benefits of gamification?
70% of companies use gamification in some shape or form. This means that if your eCommerce store doesn’t use it, you may be missing out.
Some of the advantages of using gamification include:
- You can boost customer retention and loyalty: Give your customers a good reason to visit your website and they’ll keep coming back, buying products and telling other people about your brand
- You can grow sales: Gamification can give customers an extra incentive to buy, meaning more products sold and more revenue
- You can increase brand awareness: Get your gamification on point, and customers will be talking about you for weeks and months to come. Think McDonald’s Monopoly and the buzz it always generates online!
- You can stand out in a crowded marketplace: A solid gamification strategy can give you a unique selling point, meaning you stand out from your competitors
- You can gather useful data: You can use certain types of gamification, like quizzes and polls, to get valuable insights into how your customers think and behave
8 examples of gamification you can apply to your eCommerce store
The great thing about gamification is that there are lots of different types you can add to your store. It’s all about finding the mechanic that your customers respond best to!
In this section, we’ll show you some great examples of gamification used on online stores as well as across other businesses.
1. Rocket Dog
One of the easiest ways to implement gamification into your online store is through a points scheme. This is when you offer customers points through purchases as well as specific actions. They can then redeem these points for rewards or perks.
This gamification mechanic ties well into a loyalty programme – it engages existing customers and encourages them to spend more, and can be a great incentive for new customers.
We like how Rocket Dog’s points system is set up. It’s accessible across the website, easy to understand, clearly outlines the expiry date, and offers additional points for leaving reviews or liking the brand on social media.
2. Amazon
Feedback is a vital part of any eCommerce store – 98% of people check out at least one review before making a purchase.
In the last example, we showed you how you can use a points-based system to encourage customers to leave reviews, but there are other ways you can use gamification to get valuable ratings.
Amazon has a fun, quirky, yet low-demand way of encouraging customers to review the products they’ve bought; rate enough products, and it will tell a cheesy joke!
3. Bloomchic
If you want to collect email addresses for your mailing lists, consider ‘spin-to-win’ pop-ups, where customers spin a virtual wheel in exchange for a reward, like a money-off voucher or free delivery. These are an easy way to encourage customers to give you their personal information in return for something of value.
More engaging than the typical website pop-up, all customers have to do is enter their email address, and they’ll receive a unique discount code in their inbox.
Spin-to-win pop-ups, like this one on the Bloomchic website, have a 642% higher conversion rate than traditional pop-ups.
4. Thrift+
We’re hard-wired to celebrate our successes, no matter how small. When we achieve our goals, our brain releases a feel-good hormone called dopamine to reward us!
You can use this to your advantage by celebrating customer accomplishments in your eCommerce store.
Preloved marketplace Thrift+ offers achievements that show customers how sustainable they are, including how much water and carbon dioxide they have saved by selling their clothes online.
5. Tesco
In 2016 Spotify launched its end-of-the-year ‘Spotify Wrapped’ mechanic, which provided listeners with a summary of their listening habits that they could share with their friends.
Many businesses have jumped on the trend since then, providing users with personalised stats they can use to see how they compare with others.
We particularly like Tesco’s version, which shows shoppers what they have bought over the course of the year, and even if they are the top purchasers of a specific item!
6. Duolingo
When you run a website or app, you want to encourage your customers to visit as often as possible. This boosts loyalty and increases the chances of them making a purchase.
Language learning app Duolingo does this through its Daily Quests. By getting customers to open the app every day and complete specific challenges, they’re more likely to spend in-app currency and recommend the app to friends.
7. Kerastase
Quizzes are a great addition to any eCommerce website. People have an innate desire to understand themselves better, and quizzes can help them learn more about themselves.
Plus, you can gather valuable data that you can use to refine the products you sell, understand more about your target audience, and personalise your online offerings.
Kerastase offers an insightful online quiz that customers can use to discover the perfect haircare routine. They answer a few easy questions, then receive a personalised haircare plan and product suggestions.
8. Canvas Tent Shop
‘Build your own’ tools on eCommerce sites are an underrated gamification mechanic.
They allow customers to create their own bespoke package. They can have fun trying different combinations of products, feeling a sense of achievement that they’ve put their ideal package together.
We created a nifty package builder for Canvas Tent Shop on WooCommerce. The package builder allows customers to create several combinations of products, with discounts applied for bulk purchasing.
Gamification: Frequently asked questions
What type of gamification mechanic is best for my eCommerce store?
We recommend asking the following questions to determine which gamification mechanic to add to your eCommerce store:
- What is your ultimate goal? For example, do you want more email subscribers, to increase sales, or encourage customer loyalty?
- Who is your target audience? This will help you determine if gamification is right for your online store, and if so, what type of mechanic is right for you
- What stage of the sales funnel do you want to target? For example, quizzes are ideal for shoppers at the start of the sales funnel, while points programmes are best for retaining customers
- What industry do you operate in? Even the more serious industries can take advantage of gamification, but some mechanics, like quizzes and surveys, may be better suited
- What is your budget? Some gamification mechanics are easier and more affordable to implement than others
Once your gamification mechanic is in place, it’s important to monitor it to make sure it’s delivering the right results. For example, if you’ve implemented a ‘spin-to-win’ wheel, how many people are converting, and how many people are leaving your site?
A/B testing is a brilliant way to see what gamification elements work well – try different wording, images, and colours to see what customers respond best to.
How can I add gamification to my website?
There are tools you can install that allow you to add gamification to your website, most usually through a small snippet of code. For example, Triggerbee provides a fun memory game that you can add to your eCommerce store.
Most eCommerce platforms also offer apps and extensions that add gamification elements to your website. For example, WooCommerce has a gamification extension you can use to implement loyalty points, badges, and ranks.
Alternatively, if you’re looking for something bespoke, an eCommerce agency can build something for you, like we did for Canvas Tent Shop.
Can I use gamification across other elements of my eCommerce marketing?
Yes! You’re not restricted to just using gamification in your online store; you can use it across your marketing channels too.
For example, many eCommerce businesses use prize giveaways in their emails or social media posts to entice people to visit their website.
Xigen: The eCommerce agency dedicated to helping you grow
Gamification is the perfect way to boost engagement in your online store and turn casual shoppers into loyal, devoted customers. And it’s not as tricky to implement as you might think!
Let us leave you with one final piece of advice – make sure any gamification mechanic you add to your site provides value to your customers. It’s far better to introduce elements that benefit your site visitors rather than adding something just because it’s trendy.
Still not sure how to add gamification to your online store? We’re here to help.
No matter which eCommerce platform you use, our dedicated team of developers will identify the right mechanic for your needs, seamlessly add it to your store, and optimise it to maximise conversions.
Level up your eCommerce store – get in touch with us today!
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