Level Up Your Online Store: The Power of Ecommerce Gamification

Gamification tactics, including quizzes, wheel spins, scratch cards, and streaks, motivate users to gain points and redeem them for enticing discounts and rewards. According to 58.7% of internet users, winning awards and points is the part of the buying experience they value the most.

In this article, we'll explore the concept of ecommerce gamification and explain how you can use it to level up your online store. We’ll talk about the benefits of ecommerce gamification and list the best gamification techniques. 

Finally, we’ll show you some of the best Shopify apps for ecommerce gamification and help you how to choose the best for your store. 

Understanding Ecommerce Gamification

Ecommerce gamification means implementing game elements in your online store with the goal to engage and motivate customers. Some examples of game elements include reward schemes, badges and achievements, leaderboards, etc. 

Ecommerce stores can increase consumer engagement, loyalty, and retention by gamifying the shopping experience. This is due to the fact that gamification appeals to our fundamental need for competitiveness, success, and recognition, which can enrich and personalize the buyer journey.

Let's say that you have a loyalty program that offers prizes to users for making purchases or carrying out specific tasks. This can encourage customers to make repetitive purchases and boost their loyalty. Similarly, a challenge or leaderboard that lets users compete with one another can foster a feeling of community and motivate users to interact with the business.

In general, ecommerce gamification can help businesses wanting to improve consumer satisfaction, boost client engagement and loyalty, and eventually boost profits.

Benefits of Ecommerce Gamification

Online stores that use gamification can gain a competitive edge over other online retailers as well as boost consumer engagement and loyalty, increasing customer happiness. Let’s dive deeper into the benefits of ecommerce gamification. 

Increased Customer Engagement and Loyalty

Through the creation of a more engaging and enjoyable shopping experience, ecommerce gamification can greatly increase customer engagement and loyalty. Businesses could motivate consumers to engage in the shopping experience and return for more purchases by including game features like rewards, badges, and challenges.

Higher Customer Satisfaction

By giving users a sense of achievement and reward, gamification can also greatly improve customer satisfaction. Customers are more likely to be pleased with their whole shopping experience and form a stronger bond with the company when they receive rewards for their purchases or loyalty.

Increased Sales and Revenue

By motivating customers to make additional purchases and return for future shopping experiences, ecommerce gamification can significantly increase sales and revenue. Businesses can encourage customers to spend more money and raise their lifetime value by providing awards, discounts, or other incentives for purchasing or carrying out specific tasks.

Competitive Advantage Over Other Ecommerce Stores

Finally, by developing a distinctive and interesting shopping experience, ecommerce gamification can give businesses a competitive edge over other online retailers. Businesses may stand out from the competition and get more customers by providing gamified features that other retailers might not have.

Gamification Techniques to Implement in Your Ecommerce Store

Gamification is a strong strategy for boosting customer loyalty and engagement in e-commerce. Businesses can give their customers a more engaging and delightful shopping experience by implementing various gamification tactics. Here are some gamification strategies you can use in your online store.

Points and Rewards

Using points and incentives is one of the most well-known gamification strategies. Consumers can accumulate points by engaging in various activities, such as making purchases or submitting reviews, and then exchange those points for benefits like discounts or free products. This can boost clients' overall pleasure and motivate them to interact with your store more frequently.

This is an example of Amazon, where you get Kindle points for purchasing books: 

Progress Bars and Status Levels

Use of status levels and progress bars is another successful strategy. As they advance to higher levels, customers can track their advancement towards a goal, such as making a certain number of purchases or spending a certain amount, and feel proud of themselves. This can encourage customers to continue visiting your store and grow their loyalty.

Booking’s Genius program is one example of status levels: 

Challenges and Competitions

Businesses can encourage customers to interact with their stores in a fun and competitive way by establishing challenges and tournaments. Customers can participate in contests or quizzes in exchange for prizes, or they can take on challenges that demand certain actions or duties in exchange for prizes.

Badges and Achievements

Implementing badges and achievements is another gamification method to consider.  Customers can get badges for completing particular tasks or accomplishing desired objectives, such as making their first purchase or suggesting a friend. They could feel more satisfied and loyal due to this sense of accomplishment and acknowledgment.

Here’s an example from Adore Beauty:

Personalized Experiences

Last but not least, businesses can use personalization to develop a more interesting and distinctive purchasing experience. Businesses may boost customer engagement and loyalty by customizing their gamification strategies to each consumer based on their interests or behavior.

Best Shopify Apps for Ecommerce Gamification

Now, let’s look at some of the best Shopify apps you can use to implement ecommerce gamification. 

Spin-a-Sale - for Spin-to-Win

Spin-a-Sale is a popular Shopify app that allows you to implement a Spin-to-Win game on your ecommerce store. With Spin-a-Sale, you can create a customizable spinning wheel that offers customers the chance to win a discount or other prize. 

One of the key features of Spin-a-Sale is its customization options. You can design your spinning wheel to match your branding and adjust the win probability to suit your needs. Additionally, the app integrates with email marketing tools, allowing you to send follow-up messages to customers who have spun the wheel. 

Another advantage of Spin-a-Sale is its unlimited spins feature. This means that customers can spin the wheel as many times as they want, increasing their chances of winning and keeping them engaged with your store. 

Overall, Spin-a-Sale is a great option for ecommerce stores looking to implement gamification techniques and engage customers with a fun and interactive game.

• Pricing: Starts at $9.99/month
• Key Features: Customizable wheel design, integration with email marketing tools, customizable win probability, and unlimited spins.
• Customer Reviews: 4.8/5 stars on the Shopify app store

Smile.io - for Loyalty Programs

Smile.io is a Shopify app that helps ecommerce stores create and manage loyalty programs. With Smile.io, you can incentivize customers to make repeat purchases and engage with your brand over the long-term.

One of the key features of Smile.io is its points and rewards system, which allows you to offer customers points for completing certain actions (e.g. making a purchase, leaving a review) and then redeeming those points for rewards (e.g. discounts, free products). Additionally, Smile.io supports tiered rewards, allowing you to offer more valuable rewards to your most loyal customers.

Smile.io also offers a referral feature, which allows customers to refer their friends to your store and earn rewards for doing so. This can be a powerful way to grow your customer base and increase engagement.

Another advantage of Smile.io is its integration with popular email and SMS marketing tools. This allows you to communicate with customers about their rewards and keep them engaged with your brand over time.

• Pricing: Starts at $49/month
• Key Features: Points and rewards system, tiered rewards, referrals, and integration with popular email and SMS marketing tools.
• Customer Reviews: 4.7/5 stars on the Shopify app store

Octane AI - for Quiz-based Marketing

Octane AI is a powerful Shopify app that focuses on quiz-based marketing. With Octane AI, you can create customized quiz templates that help you engage with your customers in a fun and interactive way. 

This app is designed to integrate with Facebook Messenger and SMS, making it easy for you to reach your customers wherever they are. Octane AI uses AI-powered algorithms to provide personalized recommendations to customers based on their quiz responses. 

The app also provides detailed analytics to help you track your quiz performance and make data-driven decisions. 

• Pricing: Starts at $9/month
• Key Features: Customizable quiz templates, integration with Facebook Messenger and SMS, personalized recommendations, and analytics.
• Customer Reviews: 4.9/5 stars on the Shopify app store

Tada - for Scratch and Win

Tada is a Shopify app that allows ecommerce store owners to implement the scratch-and-win gamification technique. 

One of the unique aspects of Tada is its ability to be fully customized to match the branding and aesthetic of the ecommerce store. This means that store owners can create a seamless and immersive experience for their customers, which can increase engagement and customer satisfaction.

Additionally, Tada provides integration with email marketing tools, which can be used to notify customers of their winnings or to offer additional discounts or promotions. This can be an effective way to incentivize repeat purchases and increase sales.

Tada also offers customizable win probability, which can be adjusted to fit the specific needs and goals of the ecommerce store. This can help store owners strike the right balance between offering enticing rewards and maintaining profitability.

• Pricing: Starts at $29.99/month
• Key Features: Customizable design, integration with email marketing tools, customizable win probability, and unlimited plays.
• Customer Reviews: 5/5 stars on the Shopify app store

Referral Candy - for Referral Marketing

Referral marketing can be a powerful tool for ecommerce stores to increase their customer base, and Referral Candy is a great Shopify app for implementing it. The app is easy to set up and offers customizable rewards for both the referrer and the referred customer. It also provides social sharing options to make it easy for customers to refer their friends and family. 

Referral Candy integrates with popular email marketing tools, allowing for seamless communication with customers. 

• Pricing: Starts at $49/month
• Key Features: Easy setup, customizable rewards, social sharing options, and integration with popular email marketing tools.
• Customer Reviews: 4.7/5 stars on the Shopify app store

60 Seconds App - for Dynamic Discounts on Checkout

With gamified bidding for negotiated discounts by shoppers, 60seconds is an app that will definitely increase your Shopify store's conversion rate. It can help you create exit popups, free shipping offers, discount popup promos, and automatic discount coupons. 

You can use 60 seconds for purchase incentive bids through discount offers, exit-intent pop-ups to collect emails, naming your price, making an offer, and negotiated rates.

How does it work? 

1. Choose the products you want to put discounts on and set up a triggered popup
2. When the customer is on the product page and they are acting hesitantly, the popup will appear, offering them to choose discount
3. Once you approve their discount, they have 60 seconds to claim the offer

• Pricing: Starts at $9/month
• Key features: Gamified discount bidding popups, automated discounts, exit popups, coupon popups, analytics
• Customer reviews: 5/5 stars on the Shopify app store

Choosing the Right Gamification Techniques for Your Ecommerce Store

Gamification has the potential to be an useful force for boosting sales, customer loyalty, and engagement in your online store. However, it's critical to pick the appropriate gamification strategies that will connect with your audience and encourage the desired behaviors. Here are some things to take into account while deciding which gamification tactics to use:

• Know your audience: Understanding your target audience and their motivations is key to choosing the right gamification techniques. What types of rewards and challenges are they likely to respond to?
• Align with your brand values: The gamification techniques you choose should align with your brand values and messaging. For example, if you're a sustainable fashion brand, you might want to incorporate eco-friendly challenges and rewards.
• Keep it simple: Gamification should be easy to understand and participate in. Avoid overly complex or confusing techniques that may turn customers away.
• Track and analyze results: To determine the effectiveness of your gamification techniques, track and analyze key metrics such as customer engagement, loyalty, and sales.

Here are a few tips for implementing gamification techniques effectively:

• Start with one technique at a time. Choose one or two gamification strategies to use initially, and then add more as you achieve success.
• Make it entertaining. Gamification should give users a fun experience. Use entertaining language and nice images to achieve this. 
• Promote social sharing. Including social sharing options in your gamification strategies might help you reach a larger audience and raise brand awareness.

Gamification enables you to build a more enthusiastic and devoted consumer base for your e-commerce store. Use these techniques to make the buyer journey on your website memorable and engaging. 

Conclusion

Ecommerce gamification can be a powerful tool for boosting customer engagement, loyalty, and sales. By implementing gamification techniques such as points and rewards, progress bars and status levels, challenges and competitions, badges and achievements, and personalized experiences, ecommerce stores can create a fun and interactive shopping experience for their customers. 

However, it's important to choose the right gamification techniques that align with the store's goals and to implement them effectively to ensure success. With the help of the best Shopify apps for ecommerce gamification like Spin-a-Sale, Smile.io, Octane AI, Tada, and Referral Candy, store owners can take their gamification strategy to the next level. 

By considering the factors and tips mentioned in this article, ecommerce store owners can implement successful gamification techniques and differentiate themselves from their competition, ultimately leading to increased customer satisfaction and revenue.