How gamification is changing loyalty marketing

I recently had the chance to chat with Badgeville CEO Kris Duggan about the Badgeville platform; you can read that article here. Now, for Kris' take on trends in the category.

Kristina: How is gamification changing the loyalty space? And why is it happening now - has technology 'caught up' with what consumers want?

Kris Duggan, Badgeville:Gamification, in many forms, is just another form of loyalty; but what's really changing here is that identity is now available on the web (because of sites like Facebook and Twitter). Also, the social graph is a major accelerant to the value of social rewards and behavior. Overall, gamification can be about loyalty or engagement--it means lots of different things--and both have huge benefits to brands.

Kristina: What trends are you seeing in social loyalty?

Kris: One observation is that even companies you wouldn't expect to have a loyalty strategy now do (i.e., in education, healthcare, and government). Finding ways to make social experiences meaningful and exciting is a major trend and it's falling under the umbrella of gamification.

Kristina: What do you expect to see from gamification/social loyalty moving into 2012?

Kris: I expect to see even deeper social capabilities. Right now, Gamification 1.0 is about status, reputation, points, level, achievements--powerful motivating sources of behavior. The next phase is making those much more social, akin to how social gaming elevated gaming and transformed the industry. We will see that happen in the gamification space.

Tags: Badgeville, gamification, Kris Duggan, loyalty marketing, rewards programs, social marketing