International Front

A few weeks ago I was at MI6 (game industry marketing conference). Eedar spoke at the event and shared some very interesting information about the gaming community.

Two weeks later at Web 2.0 Lithium Technologies gave a talk about community sites.

The common thread? Accomplishment.

Solid accomplishment systems help to build community and loyalty online and within games. Eedar defines accomplishments as goals within games that provide long term recognition or rewards for users beyond the core game itself. Lithium defines it in the context of online communities or forums; rewards to users with high participation.

Either way, by setting up an opportunity for your audience to be rewarded for participation greatly increases loyalty, customer satisfaction, and sales. Game advertising can be spread virally when linked to accomplishments and reward individuals with game points by watching an ad or trailer. Eedar found that on average, Xbox 360 games that have viral marketing accomplishments sell 28% more units than those which do not.

Meanwhile, on the community site front, Lithium has witnessed amazing results by utilizing accomplishments. On the Dell Community, Lithium found that setting up an accomplishment system that rewarded top users created enthusiasm and helped to grow the community. The Dell community accomplishment system fostered Super Users, with some users participating in the online community (answering questions and helping customers) in excess of 10 hours a day. When Dell’s customer service line when down on Christmas day, Super Users stepped up and helped answer customer questions, changing a public relations disaster into an exceptional user experience. Not only were customer issues addressed, but user satisfaction was higher than usual.

By utilizing a system of accomplishment for users and customers, you can encourage a level of interaction that grows loyalty and reach.

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