Editor's Introduction: A good product can produce commercial benefits for enterprises and continue to grow, easy to operate, and can grow by itself. The gamification design is integrated into the product, which can produce a certain appeal to the user. This article summarizes some tips on how to achieve user growth through gamification design, and hopes to help you.
What is a good product? From a micro perspective, it needs to be effective for users, profitable for enterprises, and sustainable; from a macro perspective, it needs to have commercial considerations, easy to operate, and self-growth.
We all know that games are very attractive and addictive, and if our products are also incorporated into the gamified design, it will become much easier for the product to attract users. So the topic of today's talk is self-growth, that is, how to make the product grow users through gamification design.
First, what is gamification design
Gamification design is not simply to add game elements to the product, for example, some products only cartoonize the user character or add mini games to the user task, which is not gamification design.
The so-called gamification design refers to the integration of gamification mechanisms and gamification experience design, so that users are addicted and stimulate users to achieve self-realization of goals.
There are four major characteristics of the game, namely goals, rules, feedback systems, and voluntary participation, so the gamification design needs to reflect these four characteristics.
In product design, when considering the realization of functions and the user's experience, we must have a certain goal, fit the user's mind, and stimulate the user's active participation.
Second, the "Tao" of gamification design
The "Tao" of gamification design refers to methodology, that is, the theoretical basis that guides us to gamification design. Here we mainly sort out the three pieces of knowledge of octagonal behavior analysis, flow model, and PBL gamification thinking model.
2.1 Octagonal behavior analysis
The octagonal behavior analysis method refers to the eight core driving forces that help us design complete products, let users be happy to use the product, and also allow products to obtain user value, and form a continuous improvement platform to provide users with more high-quality products and services.
(1) Mission - Epic meaning and sense of mission: Refers to people who think that what they are doing is more important than the meaning of the thing itself, and they must do their best to complete the goal to comfort their hearts.
(2) Achievement - Progress and sense of accomplishment: refers to our internal driving force to make progress, acquire knowledge and skills, master technology and overcome difficulties.
(3) Authorization - creativity and timely feedback: can drive players to devote themselves to creation, continuous innovation, and continuous combination in order to expect the results or feedback of creation.
(4) Ownership - Ownership and ownership: Refers to the user can feel that he owns or controls something, and thus be incentivized.
(5) Social - social influence and relevance: give users a variety of scenarios and elements of social networking to meet their social needs.
(6) Scarcity - scarcity and desire: Something is too rare or difficult to obtain in time, thus arousing the desire of the user.
(7) Unknown - unknown and curiosity: People have a fan-like attraction for unknown things or uncertainty about future development.
(8) Loss - loss and avoidance: People do not want bad things to happen, do not want their previous efforts to be wasted, and do not want to admit that they have done useless work.
2.2 Flow model
Flow is the state in which a person is completely immersed in certain activities and ignores the existence of other things. In this state, people will feel great pleasure and even pay a huge price for it.
Depending on the level of challenge and skill, people's experiences can be divided into eight zones: anxiety, arousal, flow, control, relaxation, boredom, insensitivity, and worry.
One of these experiences that challenge both high and skilled at the same time is what we call flow. We are not aware of anything that is not challenging or skillful.
2.3 PBL Gamified Mind Model
The PBL Gamified Mind Model is a behavioral addiction strategy with three words corresponding to Points, Badges, and Leader.
Points are virtual points earned to encourage users to complete tasks, such as points earned, and can be exchanged for something of value.
Badges (badges) refer to the user to achieve a certain task, so as to give a visual display of achievements, such as various badges, indicating the user's progress.
Ladder refers to the comparison of their own level difference with other users through the leaderboard, so as to motivate users to work hard for new goals.
Third, the "art" of gamification design - take WeChat reading as an example
3.1 Leaderboards and Badges
The functions of "reading leaderboard" and "medal wall" in WeChat Reading give users a certain sense of achievement and a driving force for behavioral addiction.
This sense of accomplishment can be shared in the circle of friends and successfully shaped an image of loving reading. Here it is clear that the PBL gamified thinking is incorporated into the achievements of the octagonal behavior analysis method.
There are also reading points for reading books, and the points accumulated in the reading squad can be used for free to get different gold coins and days.
3.2 Loss Avoidance
Psychologically, we hate loss, and losing something makes us feel very uncomfortable. At the same time, because of the impact of "sunk costs", afraid of the waste of previous investment, flexibly applied to the "loss" driving force in the octagonal behavior analysis method.
For example, the obvious amount in the screenshot makes the user think, through the unlimited card free reading, actually saved so much money, if you suddenly give up the membership, you feel that you will lose a lot, it is very likely to continue to renew the membership, support their own membership decision "wisdom".
3.3 Social & community
The two modules of "Small Circle" and "Thoughts of Friends" are the direction of WeChat reading to social & community development. Likes and comments from other users can bring users touchpoints and integrate them into the product again and again. At the same time, community-based content also makes users pay for investment, and the cost of leaving the product is gradually expanding.
Teaming up and reading squads is also a social way to bring users an atmosphere where everyone reads together, and the co-reading tasks in the reading squad bring a great sense of identity.
3.4 Blind box effect
The blind box effect is a kind of psychology that uses the mystery of the unknown to arouse people's curiosity and induce an uncertainty, and eliminating uncertainty will bring people a sense of pleasure. In fact, this piece is applied to the "unknown" driving force in the octagonal behavior analysis method.
What free books can be drawn from the 9 cards in "Flip Over", guess what books I can get, and attract me to flip through every week to see my luck.
"Team up to draw unlimited cards" makes me look forward to the number of days of free experience for the group every Saturday; the "reading team" is based on the accumulated points, the reward is constantly growing, once it is to get 15 days of free days, under the influence of external driving forces, let me be more enthusiastic about this way of reading in groups.
3.5 Mission and Responsibility
The annual report in WeChat Reading, as well as the monthly report, can bring users a sense of mission and achievement, what they are doing is changing themselves, and satisfying their inner desire for their own achievements.
Strong numerical contrasts and famous quotes highlight your mission and the affirmation of your past efforts. Moreover, the act of reading books has its own aura, which makes people recognize the attitude of loving learning.
In short, gamification design does not mean inserting a flash mini-game, or there are animation elements on the design interface, it refers to the integration of gamification mechanisms and operating rules into the design of the user's psychological and behavioral analysis and the perception of the scene.
If we design product functions and user experience on the basis of insight into user psychology and take the eight driving forces as the driving factors to achieve the effect of gamification.
The above is just my own ideas for gamification design, the essence of deeper thinking, waiting for us to further explore.
This article was originally published by @Fengming on the premise that everyone is a product manager, and reproduction without permission is prohibited.
The title image is from Pexels, based on the CC0 protocol