Inflation is rising, gasoline prices are rising, and the costs of vehicles are rising–but one more thing that is at an all-time high (also distressing) is high customer expectations for great shopping experiences. 74% of customers are more likely to buy from a brand based on customer experience.

Many studies emphasize that you need to keep customers first at all touchpoints to cut through the cluttered business landscape along with your unsurpassed marketing and advertising endeavors. Digitally, one such effective way is with the help of coupons. Digital coupon marketing has become quintessential and helps marketers offer a positive CX.

Retailers want customers to come back time and again and increase loyalty. This requires providing a unique, personalized experience and a frictionless customer journey. Gamification in digital coupons helps them to offer a new experience every time customers purchase and improves the overall rewarding system. In fact, research shows that gaming elements can help build a positive attitude toward a product or brand.

With gamification, retailers can deliver a highly-branded and personalized experience to their target market, connecting and engaging with them, getting valuable data, and rewarding them for opting for their products and services. And when consumers enjoy the experience, they recommend it to others, increasing brand awareness.

M&M launched a gamified campaign during the release of new pretzel-flavored chocolate. Like Candy Crush, users had to find a hidden pretzel among M&Ms on their device screen. This campaign helped the company boost its digital presence and increase sales. This shows gamification is not complex, and even a simple ‘Fine the object’ game can entice customers and give you fantastic output.

If you want to start implementing gaming elements, here are some ways to take your digital coupons to the next level.

Scratch and Win
Scratch cards can add a zing to your promotional campaigns by allowing customers to win exciting prizes. Scratch and Win coupons have gained a lot of limelight, especially since online payment merchants like Google Pay and Amazon Pay offer scratch coupons to encourage more users to use their apps. It’s simple–once you scratch on your smartphone or desktop, you receive a unique coupon code that you can redeem on your current or next purchase.

Merchants employ this game feature to lower cart abandonment and offer something, persuading customers to make that purchase. It is also an effective method of bringing in new customers by offering them rewards and maintaining existing ones by rewarding them with exclusive offers. Further, as new customers register for a scratch-and-win competition, the brand gets to capture customer information and expand its email list.

Retailers use this gaming element to reduce cart abandonment and give something, so customers make that purchase. It is also a good way to attract new customers by giving them prizes and retaining existing customers by rewarding them with special discounts. Additionally, when new customers sign up for a scratch-and-win contest, brands can collect customer data and build their email database.

Spin the Wheel
Spinning the wheel is useful when companies have several products or wish to sell a new product or range. It makes you popular among brands than your competition because you win every time in this game! With a spin of the wheel, consumers will get the prizes assigned by the brand and receive free stuff or exclusive discount deals. This is an excellent method of offering customers a certain win, building brand interest, and gaining new customers.

Brands can even provide customized offers based on customer shopping behavior and purchase history. Our platform will assist you in creating personalized wheels and embedding them on your app or website to offer a one-of-a-kind experience. You can even send auto-personalized winning emails to users and make them feel special.

Slot Machine
A game of a slot machine can have your users playing for hours on end since customers will continue to attempt to achieve three identical images consecutively. Businesses incorporate the slot machine on their websites, and it will attract new and current clients. They can offer coupons to winners that can be used on any of the customer’s preferred platforms.

Brands can distribute unlimited rewards, determine odds, and specify rewards based on observing their activity on the website or shopping history of current customers. CRED, one of the top fintech companies in India, usually offers its customers slot machine games as rewards. For every payment you make, you can win a chance to receive a reward by playing the slot machine game.

Memory Game
All the games described above depend on your luck, but memory games depend on your skills. Usually, 8-10 cards are shown on the screen, and you must recall the back of the card to pair them up. The catch is that you have limited attempts to pair the cards up, making it more exciting and challenging. Memory games are very effective if you have several product categories within a single segment; for instance, the fashion segment has various products such as clothing, footwear, accessories, etc.

Many people find memory games interesting as it helps them to sharpen their skills and focus. They spend more time playing the game on the website or app, allowing marketers to study customer behavior. It helps brands to increase their conversion rate as users will play it carefully to ensure a guaranteed win.

Match and Win
This is similar to the memory game–you have to match 2 items/cards to win the game, but you don’t know what’s beneath the card and have to memorize it as you keep opening the cards to get a perfect match. This is an entertaining and interactive game to play and build a deeper connection with your customers. You can integrate this with your loyalty program and let members play the game to increase their rewards. It helps to increase customer engagement and, eventually, conversions.

Do it the Right Way
Whatever the kind of game you choose, OptCulture platform helps you with the correct integration and gamification strategies to help you grow. Moreover, the sky’s the limit in creating gamification content–get creative with what you wish to offer, and our platform will help you implement them. It’s simple, quick, and impactful!