6 Tips on Effective Call Center Gamification [Checklist]

Gamification can help you measure a variety of metrics in a very public way.

At its most basic level, gamification applies the mechanics and design of games in non-game activities, with a goal of influencing human behavior. The mechanics, for instance, might include the use of scoring points, ranking the players, and earning some sort of badge or token for high performance. The design aspect might mean that people could do something as simple as spinning a prize wheel, or interacting will primarily with software on a computer screen.

Gamification can be used for a variety of ends, and it can take on a variety of appearances. In all cases, however, there are some basic ground rules to cover:

1. Keep it simple

The less complicated you make the game, especially at the beginning, the better. Inevitably, companies try to game too many things too quickly. Don’t be afraid to pause, step back and reduce.

2. Explain the rules

For the game to succeed, everybody has to know how it works and why the game is important. As simple as that sounds, this is an easy step to mess up. If you have one person who doesn’t understand, from reps to trainers to QA staff, the game might fail.

3. Understand the risks

Think through all the things that can happen as a result of the game, good or bad. If you want agents to talk less and reduce average handle time, a game can get them to do that. But risks might include reps hanging up on customers, or a decline in the quality of the interaction. So be aware that if you push down on one thing, other things could pop up.

4. Know your group

If you want everyone to participate, you have to create a game that will interest a majority of the people involved. Part of that is knowing what to offer as prizes. Don’t assume you know what your players want. Ask them. (Cash is usually the most popular prize.)

5. Be ready to adjust

Gamification means posting information a leader board, either on paper or digitally. Competition should inspire better performance, but there are always going to be people who are last. If people fall too far out of first place, they can feel hopeless and then disengage. There is a fine line between competition and humiliation. So tailor the game to your team’s talents. Be attentive and know when to pull back, push ahead, hit pause, fast-forward, or even change the rules if necessary.

6. Keep games short

You can’t keep a game for more than a month, as a rule of thumb. Nobody wants to play a game forever. It has to be innovative to hold people’s attention.

There’s no recipe for how to cook the perfect game. Fortunately, that means you have the freedom to experiment. The qualitative side is challenging. For example:

• Who will create content?
• What type of content is most effective in each operation?

And, as with, any other tool, you can implement it skillfully or crudely. But follow this checklist and you’ll be well on your way to successful gamification.