Gamifying the Customer Journey: Turning Onboarding into an Engaging Experience

In today's competitive market, simply acquiring customers is no longer enough. Businesses need to focus on creating exceptional experiences that keep customers engaged and loyal. One powerful strategy for achieving this is gamification, especially within the onboarding process. By transforming onboarding into an engaging journey, companies can significantly improve customer retention and advocacy. This post dives into the concept of gamified onboarding, explores its benefits, and provides practical examples to inspire your own implementation. We'll also delve into the psychological principles that make it effective and introduce tools to help you build a gamified experience. All of this and more was discussed in my latest episode of the Conversations with Rich Bennett podcast with Mark Stern, CEO of Custom Box Agency. You can listen to the full episode here: Mark Stern: How to Build a “Top of Mind” Experience People Keep

Transforming Onboarding into an Engaging Journey

Onboarding is often viewed as a necessary but tedious process. It’s the initial phase where new customers learn about your product or service and decide whether it's a good fit for them. A poorly executed onboarding experience can lead to frustration, confusion, and ultimately, customer churn. However, by strategically incorporating elements of gamification, you can transform onboarding from a chore into an exciting and rewarding experience. This involves creating interactive elements, challenges, and incentives that guide customers through the onboarding process while keeping them motivated and engaged.

The Problem with Traditional Onboarding

Traditional onboarding often involves overwhelming customers with information, lengthy tutorials, and generic welcome messages. It lacks personalization and fails to capture the customer's attention. This can lead to several problems:

• Low engagement: Customers quickly lose interest and fail to complete the onboarding process.
• High churn: Frustrated customers abandon the product or service before fully understanding its value.
• Poor product adoption: Customers don't learn how to effectively use the product, resulting in underutilization and dissatisfaction.
• Negative perception: A bad onboarding experience can leave a lasting negative impression on the customer.

These issues highlight the need for a more innovative and engaging approach to onboarding, and that's where gamification comes in.

What is Gamification in Customer Onboarding?

Gamification is the application of game-design elements and game principles in non-game contexts. In customer onboarding, gamification involves integrating game mechanics like points, badges, leaderboards, and challenges to make the process more interactive, enjoyable, and rewarding. The goal is to motivate customers to actively participate in the onboarding process, learn the product or service effectively, and develop a sense of accomplishment.

Gamified onboarding can take many forms, from simple progress bars and checklists to complex interactive simulations and story-driven experiences. The key is to align the game mechanics with the specific goals of the onboarding process and the needs and preferences of the target audience.

Mark Stern's Insights on Experiential Marketing

Mark Stern, CEO of Custom Box Agency, is a leading expert in experiential marketing and has helped numerous brands create engaging customer experiences through physical products and gamified onboarding. He emphasizes the importance of creating a "top of mind" experience that resonates with customers on an emotional level. According to Mark, in a world overloaded with digital content, physical products can provide a tangible and memorable touchpoint that helps brands stand out from the competition. He was an excellent guest and provided great insight into tangible and digital experiences.

Mark's approach involves carefully designing physical products, such as custom boxes, envelopes, and badges, that are integrated into the onboarding process. These products serve as both a reward and a guide, leading customers through a series of challenges and milestones. By combining physical and digital elements, Mark creates a truly immersive and engaging onboarding experience that drives customer loyalty.

The Customer Lifecycle Framework: Acquisition, Onboarding, Retention

Gamification can be applied throughout the entire customer lifecycle, but it is particularly effective during the onboarding phase. The customer lifecycle consists of three key stages:

1. Acquisition: Attracting new customers to your product or service.
2. Onboarding: Guiding new customers through the initial learning process and helping them understand the value of your product or service.
3. Retention: Keeping existing customers engaged and loyal over the long term.

Onboarding is a critical stage because it sets the tone for the entire customer relationship. A positive onboarding experience can significantly increase customer retention, while a negative experience can lead to churn. By gamifying the onboarding process, you can make it more engaging, enjoyable, and effective, ultimately improving customer retention and driving long-term growth. Mark emphasizes that the physical touchpoint during each of these stages can further reinforce the customer journey and help them remember you for longer.

Examples of Gamified Onboarding Experiences:

Here are some real-world examples of how businesses are using gamification to create engaging onboarding experiences:

Turning Online Courses into a Physical Journey

One of the most compelling examples is turning online courses into a physical journey. Instead of simply providing students with access to online modules, course creators send them a series of physical packages, each containing materials that correspond to a specific lesson. For instance, one package might contain a workbook, a pen, and a badge that students can earn upon completing the lesson. Another package might include a puzzle or a challenge that reinforces the concepts taught in the module.

This approach transforms the online course into a tangible and interactive experience. The physical products create a sense of anticipation and excitement, motivating students to actively participate in the course and complete the lessons. The badges and rewards provide a sense of accomplishment, further reinforcing their engagement and motivation.

Real Estate and 'Top of Mind' Kits

Real estate agents are increasingly using gamified onboarding to stay "top of mind" with potential clients. One popular strategy is to send prospective buyers or sellers a "top of mind" kit containing useful items like a branded notepad, a pen, a measuring tape, and a magnet with the agent's contact information. The kit might also include a checklist of things to consider when buying or selling a home, or a guide to local neighborhoods.

By providing value upfront, the real estate agent establishes themselves as a trusted advisor and increases the likelihood that the client will choose them when they are ready to buy or sell a home. The physical products serve as a constant reminder of the agent and their services, helping them stay top of mind throughout the decision-making process.

Coaching Program Packaging

Coaches and consultants can use gamified onboarding to create a more engaging and effective coaching experience. One approach is to send clients a welcome package containing a personalized journal, a set of inspirational cards, and a tracking sheet to monitor their progress. The package might also include a small reward for completing certain milestones, such as a gift certificate or a handwritten note of encouragement.

The physical products create a sense of connection and support, making the client feel valued and motivated. The journal and tracking sheet help the client stay organized and focused on their goals, while the rewards provide an extra incentive to stay on track. By incorporating these elements into the onboarding process, coaches can significantly improve client engagement and outcomes.

Using Physical Products to Book Podcast Interviews

Authors, entrepreneurs, and experts can use physical products to increase their chances of getting booked on podcasts. One effective strategy is to send podcast hosts a "book box" containing a copy of their book, along with other items that are relevant to the podcast's audience. The box might also include a personalized pitch letter highlighting the key takeaways from the book and suggesting potential interview topics.

The physical products create a memorable impression and make the pitch stand out from the hundreds of emails that podcast hosts receive every day. The book provides the host with a tangible resource to prepare for the interview, while the other items create a sense of connection and rapport. By using this strategy, authors can significantly increase their chances of getting booked on podcasts and reaching a wider audience.

The Psychology Behind Physical Products and Brand Recall

The effectiveness of gamified onboarding with physical products is rooted in several psychological principles:

• Tangibility: Physical objects are more memorable and engaging than digital content because they appeal to our senses.
• The Endowment Effect: People place a higher value on things they own, even if they are given to them for free. This creates a sense of attachment and loyalty to the brand.
• Reciprocity: When someone gives us something of value, we feel obligated to reciprocate. This can lead to increased engagement and loyalty.
• Dopamine: Receiving rewards and achieving milestones triggers the release of dopamine in the brain, creating a sense of pleasure and motivation.
• Novelty: Gamified onboarding provides a unique and unexpected experience that captures the customer's attention and makes them more likely to remember the brand.

By understanding these psychological principles, businesses can design more effective gamified onboarding experiences that drive customer engagement, loyalty, and advocacy.

Tools and Resources for Building a Gamified Experience

Creating a gamified onboarding experience may seem daunting, but several tools and resources can help you get started:

Activate Deck and Dash

Activate Deck and Dash are tools designed to help businesses build and launch physical product experiences quickly and easily. Activate Deck provides a framework for developing your product strategy, while Dash offers a platform for managing your inventory and fulfillment.

57 Hats

57 Hats is a business management tool that helps entrepreneurs identify and delegate tasks effectively. This can be particularly useful when planning and implementing a gamified onboarding program, as it allows you to streamline your workflow and focus on the most important aspects of the project.

Key Takeaways: Why Gamification Matters for Customer Retention

Gamification is not just a trendy buzzword; it's a powerful strategy for improving customer retention and driving long-term growth. By transforming onboarding into an engaging journey, businesses can:

• Increase customer engagement and participation.
• Improve product adoption and utilization.
• Reduce customer churn and increase retention rates.
• Create a positive brand experience and build customer loyalty.
• Differentiate themselves from the competition and stand out in a crowded market.

Creating Memorable Experiences That Drive Loyalty

Ultimately, the goal of gamified onboarding is to create memorable experiences that drive customer loyalty. By focusing on engagement, rewards, and personalization, businesses can build stronger relationships with their customers and turn them into advocates for their brand. As Mark Stern emphasized, a "top of mind" experience is one that resonates with customers on an emotional level and creates a lasting impression.

By embracing gamification and incorporating physical products into the onboarding process, businesses can transform the customer journey and create a truly engaging and rewarding experience that drives loyalty and long-term success. I hope this article gave you some good ideas and that you will listen to the full episode with Mark Stern on the Conversations with Rich Bennett podcast: Mark Stern: How to Build a “Top of Mind” Experience People Keep. We dive even deeper into his strategy and you'll hear some great real-world examples!