Guest blog: Using gamification as a component in live events

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2030

By Neil Coombes, senior account manager, UKSV

Gamification is a relatively new feature of live events. Like anything new, gamification is still developing, and new and exciting strategies are always being created. But, why is this?

Introducing gamification to an event has a range of effects and influences on delegates. One of these main effects is driving information. You may struggle to engage delegates with the material of your event. However, introducing a gamification feature, such as online quizzes, draws the attention of delegates and therefore enhances their retention of your key messages.

Receiving feedback from delegates is a key feature of measuring the successfulness and return on objectives of an event – often in the form of a post-event survey. However, why should delegates feel obliged to complete a post-event survey? This is where gamification can help. By using a quiz or voting system to gather feedback with a reward at the end, you’ll find a significant increase in responses leading to more accurate feedback.

Gamification also provides a unique opportunity for delegates to experience a sense of achievement. We have used competitions, such as an adventure hunt with a leader board, in order to give delegates the opportunity to compete against each other and feel like they have achieved something. The effect of this achievement means delegates are likely to be more receptive of the key messages of your live event.

Despite all of the positive influence gamification can have on an event, it is important that it should be partnered with a well-planned event which has clear objectives. Gamification itself should be a component of a live event – not the main focus. Instead, the focus should be on the key information you want to deliver to delegates.

Once this information and your objectives are built into the event, you can then start planning how gamification can be used to effectively deliver this information, boost engagement from delegates and ensure that every member of the audience leaves with a firm grasp of the key takeaways.

It is equally important to ensure that if you are going to utilise gamification, it is built in from the start of the planning stage and not just added at the end. This helps to enhance the effectiveness of game-playing features in delivering key information.

Molly Hookings
Author: Molly Hookings

Molly joined the editorial team in March 2019. She has several years’ experience working in broadcast and journalism, as well as marketing and PR. Past experience includes working for the BBC and independent publishing houses. If you have a story you think Molly might be interested in, please email: molly@eventindustrynews.com