Gamification: The Greatest Call to Action
Posted on November, 07, 2012 by Kerry Rego -
I voted today. As I was leaving, I made sure to check in on my mobile phone using the location based service, foursquare. Why would I want to telegraph my location? Because I’m playing the game of life, that’s why. And I knew I would get a badge. I’m competitive but it doesn’t have to be with other people. I enjoy being the best (at anything) and I’m not the only one. (I also play to get coupons and to become the “mayor” of locations that I frequent.)
What am I talking about? Gamification or the use of game mechanics and design techniques in non-game contexts. It’s really a psychological manipulation to get people to do things. This can also be referred to as a “call to action”. What makes gamification more effective at behavior modification than a simple call to action, is that it may offer a reward. The reward can come in the form of more playing time, a virtual item such as a badge, points or bragging rights with the use of a leader board. I’ve learned that people will jump through hoops for real (or virtual) gold stars.
There is a great trend in applying these techniques to achieve positive lifestyle changes. Basic tasks in the areas of community participation, exercise, tobacco cessation, and productivity can all be “gamed” to get people to do them. Make it fun, give them a reward, and people will do a lot. Check out this list of products that take advantage of the game scenario possibilities:
Nike+ FuelBand – tracks activity, goal setting
Jawbone Up – tracks activity and sleep
RunKeeper – social workouts
Foodzy – food, beverage, exercise tracking
You can apply this to getting your customers to act in desired ways or observe how you, as a consumer, are effected by gaming.
Just in case you are wondering, I have 48 badges, I’m the mayor of 56 locations, and I’m a Superuser Level 1. Who’s competitive? Not me! (yea, right)
This “I Voted” sticker is cool too!
Sample Editorial Calendar
Posted on September, 26, 2012 by Kerry Rego -
I’ve been wanting to post this for some time and was finally prompted to do so as I listened to Chris Denny of The Engine is Red talk about “Content is King” at the Santa Rosa Young Professionals Network last week. He had so many excellent points about how to convey your company message as well as good and bad examples of how well known brands are doing so.
In order to deliver good content that communicates your brand’s message effectively, planning ahead is necessary. I provide my clients with an example editorial calendar (shown below). Sometimes I help them develop it and sometimes they take it back to homebase and use it as a springboard. I wrote the blog 15 Easy Blog Topics which gives you a solid set of content ideas for blogs as well as use with other social media platforms. I used those ideas to build a sample editorial calendar to give to my clients.
The beauty of using a calendar is that you can plan a year ahead in a very short amount of time. It can be done within one meeting or brainstorming session. Once you plan a structure for the upcoming 12 months, it allows your marketing brain to relax a little because it knows you won’t be drawing a blank when it’s time to write. You can bank the content ahead of time by writing in batches. Batch writing is great for tackling a subject that is too large for just one post. You can write parts 1, 2, and 3 in a single sitting then schedule them to publish at preset times. Writing ahead of time will allow you to look for the topical items in the news that you should be addressing, the things you could never have anticipated but fit nicely with your message.
Feel free to click on the image below for a jpg or on the link to download a pdf version of it. I build it in Excel and you can do the same. Think about your subjects and ideas as you construct it for yourself, this is just a guide. Change the channels that you use to fit your needs. You will most likely expand it to have 4-5 weeks in the month. I’ve seen calendars that show the hours. If that is what you need, make it flex to fit you.
Kerry Rego Consulting Sample Editorial Calendar
Editorial Calendar Tips
Posted on August, 10, 2012 by Kerry Rego -
I have a simple technique I use to help build an editorial calendar. I print out my physical calendar, identify the events that I want to promote or talk about, using color coding for social media channels I then systematically distribute information. I do this every other week. Sometimes it takes an hour sometimes only 20 minutes.
Give it a try and tell me if it works for you or you have a better approach.
The Benefits and Obstacles of Strategic Social Media Planning
Posted on July, 18, 2012 by Kerry Rego -Kerry Rego presented “The Benefits and Obstacles of Strategic Social Media Planning” to the Professional Services Marketing Group-North Bay on July 17, 2012. She introduced concepts for reputation management, strategies for developing and delivering content, and utilizing specific tools to streamline the time investment. You can contact Kerry to schedule an in person presentation or webinar for your team or organization. 707-520-4572