What’s the first thing that crosses your mind when you read the word “gamification”? The word is certainly reminiscent of “games” and it’s very common for the general understanding of gamifying to be “turning something into a game”, but the concept actually goes far beyond that.
When we define that gamification is turning something into a game, we run the risk of imagining that this game is software, an application, something tangible or digital, when actually turning a product into an application does not necessarily imply gamifying it.
Gamifying something is transforming the user experience of your product, class, company, or whatever your area of expertise, using elements present in games in order to create engagement. The digital medium can be used to help create this experience, and applications can also receive the action of gamification, but gamification is not necessarily something digital, but the set of elements built with the intention of engaging the user. With that, we can reach a beautiful conclusion: gamification is not about creating a game.
Okay, gamification is an experience and not a game, but what do I want that in my life for? How I use? How it works?
You’ve certainly felt unmotivated doing the most necessary things in life: studying, working or going to the gym, performing everyday but necessary activities. On the other hand, you’ve also probably felt motivated to win at truco, get through a difficult phase of your favorite game or score a goal in football with friends. Why does this difficulty in staying motivated for things that are fundamental in your life exist, but doing the things that theoretically won’t give you real benefits is so good?
That’s where gamification comes in. Games – and not just digital ones – have several aspects that engage the user and make them feel motivated to overcome their obstacles, since in everyday life we have few opportunities to feel engaged and empowered by our obligations. The games tell you what to do, where to go, how long it takes to get there and reward you for getting to important points, everyday life not so much. We know what we need to do at work, and that in the end we get our reward, but we’re not motivated by small rewards and directions along the way, so it’s hard to feel engaged to work every day. It is possible to observe this during Fridays, or on the days close to pay, when the desire to work increases, as the “reward” is visibly close.
Although gamification is not just based on a points and rewards system, but a series of elements that help trigger motivating factors in the user, and these are not the only features of the games, these examples illustrate an overview of points that usually help our engagement and motivation.
Okay, now that we’ve found that games motivate us more than our everyday lives, what’s gamification going to do to help? Simple, from analysis and studies on why games are so engaging, with gamification we can take some of these game elements and apply them to whatever doesn’t motivate us enough.
Image by brainygames on Pixabay
