How to improve customer relations through gamification

How to improve customer relations through gamification

In marketing, gamification and interactivity are powerful tools for improving customer relations. They offer the opportunity to liven up marketing communications in an original way, with the aim of engaging customers and building loyalty.

By integrating gamification into the customer loyalty process, it is also possible to collect valuable proprietary data, which will enable communications to be targeted more effectively throughout the customer’s life.

Let’s find out together how gamification can improve customer relations!

Getting the customer relationship off to a good start

It all starts with the registration or first purchase, when the prospect commits to a brand, a product or a solution. This is a pivotal moment when it’s essential to stand out from the crowd. After all, there are always cheaper alternatives available. The efforts made to acquire new customers must not be in vain, because it is more difficult and costly to recruit new users than to retain those already acquired. That’s where gamification comes in!

Making an impression

The first challenge is to stand out from the crowd by leaving an imprint on the minds of the people with whom you are trying to make authentic contact. When concepts are approached in a playful way, they are not only understood, but also observed, experienced and felt emotionally. This encourages better retention of knowledge and stronger long-term memory.

To achieve this, there’s nothing like providing pleasure. For example, when a new customer registers, they can be invited, via an initial e-mail, to take part in a 100% winning operation simply by following a link. This operation can also be offered in the form of a flyer (with a QR code) included in the first parcel received.

As well as giving customers pleasure, this process increases conversionIt is important to offer rewards that are attractive and relevant to the target audience, such as branded products, exclusive experiences or meaningful promotional codes. It is important to offer rewards that are attractive and relevant to the target audience, such as branded products, exclusive experiences or meaningful promotional codes.

For example, the Cyrillus brand wanted to boost additional sales on its e-commerce site and in its shops before the arrival of spring. Thanks to a game, the brand’s conversion rate increased by 25%* for online purchases made by participants.

post-purchase game customer relations

*Source : Adictiz

Collect preferences

Improving customer relations is not just about one-way communication (brand to customer). It also contributes to the company’s dvelopment. To acheive this, this makes sense to capitalise on data, in particular propietary data or zero party data. Il s’agit de données fournies volontairement par les utilisateurs à l’entreprise. Ce sont des données précises et fiables.

This is where interactivity and gamification come into play. By offering games or fun interactive activities, you can capture customers’ attention. They are then promised rewards for taking part. Players or participants can then choose whether or not to continue and provide feedback.

Data collection can take different forms depending on the brand’s objectives: product preferences, interest in certain services, demographic data, etc. This data can easily be collected via surveys, personality tests or even wish lists (the digital version of Santa’s list).

By collecting this data on a regular basis, brands can communicate in a relevant way with their customers throughout the year, taking into account their profile, preferences and desires. Activating the data collected is a powerful process that brands put in place on a regular basis. They capitalise on past actions to propose more relevant future actions and so improve their return on investment.

personality test

Improve customer relations

But how do you improve a solid customer relationship once it has been established? The aim is to maintain interest over the long term, strengthen ties with existing customers and successfully win back former customers.

To achieve this, there’s no secret: it’s all about the little touches. Once again, gamification and interactivity come into their own in this context. These marketing tools can be adapted to different targets and objectives. Thanks to scenarios offering infinite possibilities, it is always possible to surprise and even win back lost customers. Let’s find out how gamification can be used to maintain customer relationships.

Communicating the brand in a relevant way

Good customer relations require personalised messages, thanks to precise audience segmentation. By understanding the needs and preferences of customers following a number of marketing operations, it is possible to make communications more relevant. How? By anticipating and responding to customer expectations.

For example, when launching a new product, it’s worth opting for interactivity. You can offer an immersive experience highlighting the product and giving people the chance to win it. If this communication is carried out as a preview, it creates a positive feeling of exclusivity for the brand.

It is also possible to place a customer at the heart of the marketing strategy by asking for their opinion on a future product. This can be done through a survey, for example. This feeling of belonging creates familiarity and arouses positive emotions in the user, who reacts as soon as he thinks of the brand.

new product game

Conveying a sense of exclusivity

Exclusivity creates a feeling of privilege that generates positive emotions in customers. Choosing a solid relationship and betting on its durability means above all choosing to please your customers.

For example, it is possible to automatically program e-mail campaigns for customers on the occasion of their birthday. In this way, they can win gifts or discount vouchers thanks to an interactive animation.

Abandoned shopping baskets are also a crucial moment when customers can be ‘reactivated’ by a targeted operation designed to remove their disincentives to purchase, for example by sending them a promotional code.

Live shopping is also an interesting way of inviting the most loyal customers to a live shopping session with gamified activities.

Conclusion

Gamification is an effective way of enriching customer relations. Stand out from the crowd by leaving a lasting impression on your customers. Offer them pleasant and captivating experiences that strengthen their loyalty. Finally, use the data collected to offer your customers an interactive experience that is ever more personalised and effective.

How can gamification be used to improve customer relations?

Improving the customer experience through personalised marketing

Improving the customer experience through personalised marketing

Personalised marketing is an imperative for brands. A study by Accenture shows that 91% of consumers are more likely to buy from companies that offer relevant content.

These figures illustrate the importance of understaning the expectations of your audience, and of addresing each consumer as a unique individual,
with specific needs. Personalised communication helps to establish a strong relationship, and to engage and retain buyers.

But with the adoption of strict laws and regulations on data collection, it is becoming more complicated for brands to set up a CRM to design personalised campaigns.

In this article, we look at the benefits and challenges of personalised marketing. We will see how gamification platforms can help you overcome these obstacles and deliver personalised messages.

What is personalised marketing ?

Personalised marketing is a strategy that consists of adapting each and every one of your messages and interactions (campaigns, emailing, customer journeys) based on the data collected from its prospects and customers. This may be demographic, psychographic or behavioural data (
product preferences, purchase history, interests).

Personalisation means creating an experience for each customer (or for each customer segment). When this strategy is put in place, it enables brands to ensure that customers feel listened to (without having the impression of being profiled).

It can be found at every stage of the customer journey. It can be involved right from the product or service design stage, by offering audiences the opportunity to give their opinions via a customisation mechanism

The challenges of personalised marketing

Personalised marketing helps to improve the customer experience by taking account of expectations and preferences. The result is personalised content that increases satisfaction and loyalty.

Over and above the quality of the experience offered, personalised marketing makes it possible to pursue a number of marketing objectives:

  • Increase engagement and conversions by deploying marketing actions. A targeted message or product recommendation is more likely to lead to a purchase. Personalisation makes it possible to present products and offers that are likely to be of interest. In addition to conversion objectives, personalisation is used to refine the up- or cross-selling strategy and increase the brand’s average shopping basket.

  • Boosting customer loyalty. Content and offers aligned with customer preferences are likely to lead to repeat purchases. A brand that understands and responds to customer needs will create a stronger relationship. Anticipating needs demonstrates real proactivity and interest in the brand, which strengthens loyalty.

  • Stand out from your competitors. Rather than slashing prices, the brand can differentiate itself by offering unique, tailor-made experiences.

  • Optimise the ROI (Return on Investment) of your campaigns. Investing in personalised marketing generates a higher return on investment than generalist campaigns. Refined customer knowledge and targeted messages will lead to more conversions and therefore better use of your budget.

How do you do personalised marketing?

Personalised marketing is a powerful strategy for targeting, engaging and retaining your audience. Comment la mettre en place ? Voici 3 étapes à suivre pour personnaliser ses prises de parole.

Collecting data (first-party and zero-party)

The basis of a personalisation approach is to understand who you are talking to and the expectations of its audience. This means collecting data, while respecting confidentiality.

Customers need to share information that they feel will have a positive impact on their shopping experience. The transparency and the establishment of a win/win relationship are essential when collecting data for the purposes of personalisation.

This is what the Louvres Hotel group has done. To get to know its audience better, the company has shared a marketing game via which participants could try to win a free trip after filling in a collection form. The company explained at the start of the form that the information would be used to personalise its communications and customer experience.

Louvre Hôtels - Personalised marketing game

Creating personalised content

Once the data has been collected, the brand will be able to segment its audience and create targeted content. Club Med has used the data collected as part of a Swiper to retarget new leads. Participants were invited to choose their favourite Club Med resort. This information enabled the company to personalise its email campaigns with relevant content and offers (price range, location, etc.).

Club Med - Personalised marketing swiper

Optimising personalised campaigns using customer feedback

Personalisation is a strategy that needs to be continuously improved. Chaque prise de parole et interaction doit permettre à la marque d’affiner la qualité du ciblage. Notamment en sollicitant des feedbacks post achat (via un Interactive survey shared in the order confirmation email).

Total used the marketing game as a lever to enrich its customer base. Sent to a targeted part of its CRM base, the Quiz permited to promote the company’s offer and identify prospects likely to become customers.

Total - Personalised marketing quiz

Conclusion

Personalise the experience you offer each of your customers by getting to know them better. Our Playable marketing mechanisms allow you to collect personalised data about your audience, with their consent (demographic data, product preferences, etc.). You can then segment your customer base using Segment and create targeted marketing messages that are much more powerful for engagement and conversion.

In 30 minutes, we show you how to launch your own high-performance interactive marketing campaign