What a difference a few years make.

When Bluewolf launched its gamification initiative in 2012, the company had two, well-defined objectives in mind. Now, four years later, Bluewolf’s digital engagement initiative is still humming, but its goals have been transformed and reshaped to meet the company’s changing business needs.

Bluewolf’s gamification program was originally designed to spur collaboration between employees and leverage their rich knowledge base of thought leaders to generate marketable content. To keep the program relevant and thriving, it has undergone multiple iterations since launch and continues to expand, but still holds fast to the four cornerstones of an effective gamification program:

1. Clear goals: High-level goals must be supported by tangible and measurable objectives. Metrics are the key to garnering executive endorsement. As the program and audience expand or change, it is important to revisit the goals that have been set and access if they are still a priority to the business. Businesses grow, so your program should too.
2. The right team: At a minimum, I recommend: 1) a Project Manager, to track program performance, analyze users’ needs, execute deliverables, liaison between team members, etc.; 2) a Technical Resource, who’s responsible for occasional integrations, implementations and systems maintenance; 3) an Executive Sponsor, to champion the program in the C-Suite (typically, the head of Marketing, HR, or Sales); 4) Client Support staff, who you can turn to for assistance, recommendations and the technical resources to maintain your instance.
3. Communication is key: To keep employees informed, communication about your program must be multi-channel and persistent. Bluewolf developed a regular cadence so that employees knew to expect updates and announcements periodically on specified channels.
4. Governance and innovation: Bluewolf proved that consistently adding new features and functionality motivates your audience. Analyze the performance of your objectives, listen to feedback and think creatively to deliver new features that target your goals and engage your organization.

Want to learn more? Register for the webcast 4 Pro Tips for Gamification Success, happening on Thursday, June 23 at 10AM PST / 1PM EST. In it, we’ll discuss:

• Best practices for goal setting
• How to structure your team for success
• Effective communication tactics
• Tips for keeping your gamification program fresh

If you’ve been wondering how to get started with gamification — or how to improve a program you already have in place — register today.