3 ways to get buy-in from a non-gamer

We at Gamify are all about gamification and having fun with it. “It” being whatever task needs an injection of life put into it in order to see the required results. So it comes as a surprise to us when we meet a non-gamer, yet it happens! 

How could one not be into the benefits it provides in business, marketing and eLearning?

When pitching the concept of gamification strategies to a colleague, a boss, or even a friend, we’ve got you covered. Your audience might think that gamifying something means involving a Nintendo Switch or an Xbox. That could be true, but here are so many ways to implement gamification inside of a business setting to make processes more fun. Not to mention the benefits. 

How does one get the buy-in? What data and proof do you need to provide in order to convince the non-gamers in your life that this is a great investment?

In this blog we will cover how to pitch gamification in the workplace and educational world. Let us show you how to create a gamer fan out of someone who was previously disinterested. Let’s look at 3 great tips on how to successfully pitch a gamification campaign to a non-gamer. 

1)Be confident and educated about the benefits 
2) Create and present with your audience in mind
3) Present proven case studies and data                                 

1) Be confident and educated about the benefits

Before you try to convince someone else of the power of gamification, you must first believe in the concept yourself. Through that belief comes confidence in your strategy and pitch. Gamification solutions are known to be a bit outside of the box, so make sure your presentation reflects that. 

Use gamification techniques such as fun quizzes and video games with rewards inside of the pitch to show the instant benefits and game experience, and increase the engagement of your audience. Then be confident in the results it could provide for your company long term.  

When implemented within a business or educational setting, one must fully know the benefits as well as how to execute to achieve those benefits. 

If you believe that gamification is the right strategy for your business, be confident and educated about the steps that you will need to take. Understand and be excited about your business potentially taking out of the box and exploring unique strategies to grow. Understand that for your decision-makers, this is definitely a risk. 

Be passionate and convinced about its potential, as gamifying anything requires enthusiasm if you wish for it to see success. Understand the rules, narrative, and guidelines that are needed to implement successfully. Having examples of previous successes regarding how companies have used game mechanics successfully will boost your confidence and strategy sessions for your own business gamification. 

Your decision-maker is most likely all about results. Show them how other sales teams have thrived under gamified strategies, or how students have increased their classroom engagement with gamification. If you are confident and prepared with your approach, and your audience is sure to become fans of gamification.

2) Create and present with your audience in mind

If you have been gaming or studying gamification for a while now, you would be very familiar with the terminology in the world of gamification. This, however, won’t always translate easily to someone who is unfamiliar. When showing a live demo to a non-gamer, the concept and rules might seem overwhelming at first, and the audience might be harder. 

Make sure you have game examples to play and case studies to share that are easily broken down and simple to engage with. This will help them even win easily, creating a dopamine release and excitement for the reward they just won. It’ll be easier to “win” them over from there! 

You don’t want to go into the complexities of implementation straight away. Simply show off the fun game elements and get them excited about the fact that this could be a part of their day to day life and business operations.     

Be careful using industry jargon, or highly specific wording that might seem intimidating at first. Know your audience and the type of game they might enjoy playing during your presentation and curate the content around that. Let your objective be for your decision-maker to have fun, and learn something new.

3) Present Proven Case Studies and Data 

When trying to prove the effectiveness of gamification, nothing does this better than having previous successes of other businesses to show. There are many case studies and strategies your school or organisation can use and be inspired by. 

Gamification may seem daunting at first, but there are simple steps forward that you can take and review the results accordingly. 

There are many impressive statistics that prove the positive effects of gamification. A few examples being a 71% increase in energy levels of employees, or increasing company productivity by up to 50%! 

These stats are sure to impress your audience and lead you to win others over in your case and presentation. Gamification results speak for themselves, so don’t be afraid to confidently report on successful case studies. 

It is also recommended that you share data based on which part of the business you would like to Gamify. We don’t recommend a rehaul of every department. Start with pitching to implement gamification in sales, or even as a marketing campaign. Pitch to create fun mini-games, competitions and giveaways that will help motivate employee engagement, using extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. 

Create a strategy with live examples of free games and leaderboards in your presentation. This will engage and have fun with your audience and create a great first-time user experience. 

It would also be great to show and explain the current growth of gamification in the business and educational world, and explain that your company should get on board. 

Conclusion

Pitching gamification to a non-gamer might seem a bit intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Gamification or the implementation of game mechanics into work and activities is meant to be fun! Interactive strategies have been known to increase user engagement and productivity across multiple different businesses in the real world, and yours should definitely consider it!

When pitching the concept of gamifying a business or learning lessons, it could be hard to convince an audience unaware of its impact. If the right confidence, data, and case studies, you are sure to win them over. If you enjoyed this blog, you can find more content like this here.