Bridging the Gap: Can Gamification Increase Fan Loyalty in the Music Industry?

We hear a lot about gamification success stories, but there really aren’t too many regarding music. Most success stories involve increasing engagement and motivation to have users and/or consumers interact with brands and institutions in favorable ways to both parties. Nike+ allows users to obtain more feedback on their running routines while providing Nike with a way to get people more accustomed to having Nike in their everyday life. The Buffalo Wild Wings Scvngr app allows people to have an engaging experience while eating their favorite wings, providing the restaurant chain with ways to increase customer loyalty. However, in the case of the music industry, there isn’t that definitive success story that provides ample evidence that gamification largely benefits music. Therefore, it begs the question: does gamification have a place in music?

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Gamification Myths Part 2: Game Mechanics are Being Misused

One of the more vexing questions within game design is “what is a game mechanic” and its corollary — what isn’t. Along with some of the other major disagreements in game design, the mechanics question is both existential and crucial for understanding the interplay between games and gamification. Very long and interesting articles, papers, speeches and presentations (n.b. there are obviously thousands more) have been given on the topic of what is a game mechanic, how it works, what conflicts are, etc – most of them interesting, if academic.

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Finalists Announced for Best Use of Gamification at MITX Awards

The Massachusetts Innovations and Technology Exchange (MITX) will be holding their annual Innovation Awards on June 16th. Categories include Best “Doing Good” Innovation, Best Commerce Game Changer, Best User Experience, and others. SCVNGR was an awardee in 2009, and with the increasing interest around gamification, MITX introduced the “Best Use of Gamification” category. Finalists have been announced…

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Weekly Recap: gamification around the web

This week’s recap covers some great media content. Saatchi & Saatchi S produced a good introductory video on gamification and the power of games, Mashable looks at implementing SCVNGR for marketing, TNS Global asks the question, “Gamification: Future or Fail?”, and Kaila Colbin of Minimonos argues for “fail”. Also, Gabe Zichermann’s talk from TEDxKids at…

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Weekly Recap – gamification around the web

This week, the world of gamification was buzzing. Our recap covers comments by BigDoor’s CEO, Keith Smith on the engagement economy and recent partnership with Major League Baseball. Also, an older video that provides an overview of gamification in education by Extra Credits, as well as Gabe Zichermann’s recent talk at the Nordic Games Conference. Check out…

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Hopskoch Promises a New Take on Platforms

Hopskoch is a new social interaction platform for publishers and marketers looking to attract, cultivate and retain brand enthusiasts. It was released a few weeks ago by the developer, Sifr, a startup out of New York. Hopskoch makes it easy for a mainstream web and mobile audience to interact with each other and the brands they love through a language of fun photo-taking games and storytelling. The platform already has a growing community of players, and I sat down with Sunil Madhu and Marty Monaco, Sifr’s founders, to talk about the motivations behind the play.

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SCVNGR Raises Another $15m in Funding

Congratulations to SCVNGR, the location-based mobile app, for recently raising another $15million in funding from European VC firm Balderton Capital! SCVNGR is a fast-growing location-based site that puts its focus on gaming by giving challenges to go with your check-ins. SCVNGR is among the most business-friendly of location-based apps as hundreds of companies, schools and…

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Gamification in the LA Times

Our own Gabe Zichermann was recently interviewed for an article in the LA Times by Zachary Pincus-Roth that came out this weekend. The piece is called “Not Motivated? Make a Game of It” about gamification encouraging productive behavior and helping players feel more accomplished about everyday tasks in apps like EpicWin, Health Month and SCVNGR….

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