Due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a massive shift to virtual meetings. And contrary to the disappearing mask mandates, everyone has realized Zoom calls and virtual meetings are here to stay.

Virtual meetings have many massive advantages when compared to its face-to-face counterpart. However, there is one problem that organizers are consistently having — keeping their audience engaged.

Everyone’s asking: “How do I make my virtual events more engaging?”

Welcome to gamification.

We all love playing games. And gamifying virtual events creates better, more engaging experiences. Implementing it in your next virtual meeting doesn’t have to be complicated. It just has to be done right.

By arming yourself with a little knowledge, you can create a memorable virtual event that people will actually enjoy attending.

Gamification is about more than just playing games. It’s about creating an immersive learning experience by offering rewards, arousing curiosity, or creating competition. Research shows that gamification helps people learn better than just trainings or meetings alone.

Gamification is the process of integrating game-like elements into non-game settings. This means transforming normally mundane tasks into games, something that rewards you.

It’s important to note that gamification is not a new idea. We experienced gamification frequently when we were kids. Remember when you could eat dessert only after finishing your broccoli? Or how you got to watch TV after completing your homework?

Simply put, gamification is anything that provides you with gratification to help you overcome a challenge. As one definition puts it: “Gamification is exciting because it promises to make the hard stuff in life fun.”

How can gamification help with virtual events? People might be checked into a virtual event, conference, or meeting physically but not always mentally.

Zoom fatigue, social media alerts, distractions at home, and other reasons make it WAY more difficult to keep your audience engaged in virtual events. Participants are much more likely to zone out during a Zoom meeting than when they are in a room full of people.

Gamification helps keep people mentally checked in to virtual events because it draws out real human emotions such as excitement, curiosity, and happiness.

The benefits of gamifying your virtual event can be massive:

• Higher engagement
• Maximized learning
• Stronger networking
• Increased brand exposure
• More comfortable atmosphere

The point: Using gamification can make a virtual event enjoyable to attend. When people enjoy attending a virtual event, they are more emotionally invested in the program and will gain more from your presentation.

Grasping the concept of gamification is one thing. Implementing it in a virtual event is another. Here we offer 5 key principles to follow when gamifying your next virtual event.

Gamification hinges on the principle of rewarding hard work i.e reinforcing good behavior. Rewards are the backbone of gamification. In games, you get points, a new character, or some other reward every time you complete a task. This drives you to push through the next challenge.

Make sure you reward dedicated actions in your virtual event. Be creative with what “levels” participants can complete and reward them accordingly.

• Completing a certain assignment
• Winning a game
• Posting on social media with the event hashtag
• Checking in at an exhibitor booth

Rewarding attendees for event-related tasks serves as a strong motivator. Plan what reward you will offer. Will there be points that they can cash in later? Will it be a prize? Be creative and talk to your sponsors about what gifts they would like to offer as well.

One of the big reasons virtual events fail to engage their audience is because, unlike real life events, people aren’t actually meeting together. Therefore, networking has to be encouraged all the more so.

Some find success in assigning attendees into teams and awarding points for everything from attendance to participation. Working as part of a team motivates us and makes us feel a sense of responsibility. Collaboration encourages communication and idea sharing between participants. You can also include certain social elements that would work towards improving brand recognition on social media.

The only thing that motivates us more than collaboration is competition. People love to win. Recognizing people’s achievements can massively motivate them to stay engaged.

You can do this with a shout out: “Tom from XYZ Corp. just broke a new record!” Or you can use a leaderboard. Leaderboards tap into our natural instinct to compete by making us want to rise to the top. Leaderboards also help with transparency (mentioned below).

Confusion sows disinterest. So provide clear instructions to ensure that people will know exactly what is expected of them and how they can earn points. This will make them feel motivated to work harder in the direction that you want.

It’s also important that the audience knows that you are measuring the points they are collecting. Analytics are key to virtual event gamification. Your attendees need to feel that their contribution is recognized. For example, creating a type of “progress bar” helps people know how far they’ve come and what they’ve achieved so far.

Gamification provides an excellent opportunity to promote your sponsors and increase sales. Encourage your sponsors to be a part of certain games and offer prizes. You can also encourage your virtual event sponsors to include gamification in the virtual booths. You will be creating unique opportunities for attendees to interact with them.

This dynamic will forge a relationship where attendees will get to see more of what your sponsor stands for. As a result, they will get increased awareness and have more desire to support your event. It’s a win all around.

There is little use in having people show up to your virtual event if they aren’t paying attention. Engagement is one of a virtual events’ most unique issues, but it’s not unsolvable.

Virtual Velocity offers full virtual and hybrid event support for companies of all types. We have been using gamification in virtual events, conferences, and meetings all around the world for years to keep audiences immersed and create better learning experiences.

Implementing gamification into your next virtual meeting doesn’t have to be complicated. It just has to be done right.

Are you curious how to implement these 5 key ideas into an event, conference, or meeting? Do you need help knowing which games you should set up and how you should present them? Set up a free consultation and we’ll gladly explain how gamification can be the difference maker in your next virtual event.