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Personaliseringsindex 2023 framsida. "PINDEX23 | STATE OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE IN THE NORDICS" Title: The Battle of The Mind

RESEARCH REPORT

Personalization Index

Customer experience analysis of the top 200 retailers in Scandinavia

Gamification: What it is and how it works

A collage of e-commerce gamification examples, including spin-the-wheel discounts, memory games, mystery rewards, leaderboards, achievement badges, and interactive assignments, showcasing how brands engage customers through gamified experiences.

What is gamification?

Gamification is one of those things you’ve seen a hundred times but might not think about. It’s everywhere. The idea of gamification is super simple. It’s to turn the regular, boring stuff into something people actually want to engage with.

How does gamification work

Gamification taps into core human psychology. People love progress. We love winning. And we really hate missing out.

  • Progress and achievement. A progress bar, a tiered system, a leaderboard. When people see how far they’ve come, they are more motivated to continue.
  • Curiosity and surprise. Spin to win popups. Scratch off discounts. Mystery rewards. People have to know what they’ll get.
  • Loss aversion. Streaks, points, VIP tiers. Once you’ve earned something, you don’t want to lose it.
  • Social proof and competition. Leaderboards. Referral challenges. Your friend just unlocked a reward. Can you keep up?

Examples of gamification in different industries

It’s not just e-commerce. Gamification works in any industry where you want people to stay engaged.

E-commerce gamification

Retail brands use gamification to make online shopping interactive. You can learn more about how to do this in our article about e-commerce gamification.

Three mobile screens showcasing e-commerce gamification using "Spin the Wheel" popups. Each wheel offers discounts or free shipping, encouraging engagement through interactive rewards. The leftmost wheel guarantees a win, the middle requires email signup before spinning, and the rightmost is themed for Black Week deals. These gamified popups boost conversions by adding excitement and urgency to online shopping.

  • Tiered loyalty programs. The more you spend, the better the perks. And once someone reaches a high tier, they’ll keep spending just to stay there.

A VIP loyalty tiers and progress bar system using e-commerce gamification to reward customers. The left side displays tiered membership benefits, from Basic to Gold, incentivizing spending for better perks. The right side shows a dynamic progress tracker notifying customers of unlocked discounts, free shipping, and how close they are to the next reward. This strategy boosts engagement, increases order value, and encourages repeat purchases.

  • Referral challenges. Invite friends, earn bigger rewards. First referral, free shipping. Three referrals, a gift. Ten referrals, VIP status.

Harry’s gamified referral program using e-commerce gamification to reward customers for inviting friends. A progress tracker shows how many referrals have been made, unlocking tiered rewards like shaving cream, razors, and free blades for a year. This system encourages word-of-mouth marketing by making referrals feel like a game with milestone-based incentives.

Airlines

Airlines have been using gamification forever. Their secret is simple.

  • Tiered status levels. Economy, Silver, Gold, Platinum. The more you fly, the better the perks. And once you reach a tier, you don’t want to drop back down.
  • Mileage challenges. Fly a certain distance in a year to unlock rewards. It makes travel feel like a game.
  • Points that expire. If you don’t use them, you lose them. It’s that simple.

Fitness apps

Apps like Strava, Nike Run Club, and Apple Fitness have made working out addictive. How?

  • Streaks and badges. Run three times a week, and you get a badge. Work out every day, and your streak keeps climbing. Miss a day? Feels awful.

A screenshot of Strava's Run Challenges for February 2025, displaying six challenge cards designed to engage runners through gamification marketing. Each card features the Strava logo, an illustrated background, and challenge details. The available challenges include the 'February 5K Challenge' to complete a 5 km (3.1 mi) run, the 'February 10K Challenge' for a 10 km (6.2 mi) run, and the 'February Half Marathon Challenge' requiring a 13.1 mi (21.1 km) run. Longer-distance challenges include the 'February Run 100K Challenge' for 100 km (62.1 mi) in a month and the 'February Run 300K Challenge' for 300 km (186.4 mi). There is also a 'February Elevation Challenge' that encourages participants to climb a total of 2,000 meters (6,561.7 ft). Each card includes an orange 'Join Challenge' button, reinforcing Strava’s use of gamified incentives to boost user engagement and physical activity.

  • Leaderboards and challenges. Compete against friends or the global community. The best part? Even casual users feel motivated just to stay on the board.

A gamified leaderboard showcasing e-commerce gamification in action. Users compete by earning achievements, writing reviews, and engaging with the platform to climb the ranks. The leaderboard highlights top participants, their levels, and earned badges, creating friendly competition and social proof to drive engagement and loyalty.

  • VIP Tiers and progress bars. Seeing improvement, even if it’s in the same session, makes people come back for more

A VIP loyalty tiers and progress bar system using e-commerce gamification to reward customers. The left side displays tiered membership benefits, from Basic to Gold, incentivizing spending for better perks. The right side shows a dynamic progress tracker notifying customers of unlocked discounts, free shipping, and how close they are to the next reward. This strategy boosts engagement, increases order value, and encourages repeat purchases.

Best practices for gamification

  • Keep it simple. If users have to think too hard about how to win, they’ll lose interest.
  • Make progress visible. Show progress bars, levels, or streaks. Seeing growth keeps people engaged.
  • Use real rewards. Nobody gets excited about 5 percent off. Give something valuable. Exclusive access, free shipping, VIP perks.
  • Tap into loss aversion. Streaks, expiring points, limited time challenges. If there’s a risk of losing progress, people stay committed.
  • Add surprise elements. Mystery rewards, spin the wheel discounts, random bonus points. Uncertainty makes the experience fun.

Tools that help you gamify

E-commerce

  • Triggerbee. Personalized popups with gamification. Spin to win, memory games, calendar campaigns, and more.
  • Smile.io. Loyalty programs with points, tiers, and VIP rewards.
  • Gamifiera. Gamified loyalty programs that scale.

FAQ about gamification

Does gamification actually work?

Yes. When done right, it increases engagement, boosts retention, and drives conversions. Just look at airlines, fitness apps, and loyalty programs. Here is a case study of swedish auto brand Däckskiftarna who used a memory game which boosted their sign up rate by 250%.

Is gamification just for millennials and Gen Z?

Nope. It works on everyone. Airlines and hotels have been using status tiers forever. Grocery stores have been running stamp card programs for decades. Gamification is just human psychology at work.

What are the downsides of gamification?

Bad gamification feels forced. If rewards aren’t valuable or if the game feels like a trick, people will ignore it. Worse, if you take away progress too easily, like Snapchat’s broken streaks, users might just quit.

How do I start gamifying my business?

Start small. Add a progress bar to your checkout. Test a spin to win popup. Run a limited time leaderboard challenge. You don’t need to overhaul everything, just experiment and see what sticks.

Felix Langlet
Felix Langlet

Felix is a self-taught marketer and the head of marketing at Triggerbee. He is specialized in SEO, content marketing, and copywriting. Outside of work, you can find him spending time with his family, listening to podcasts, or watching documentaries.

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