Posted by Gaming is everywhere – cell phones, households, streaming platforms – reaching a wide demographic. The vast popularity of the burgeoning pastime begs the question: can gamification engage customers and promote brand loyalty?
One player in the burger wars is betting heavily on yes.
“Having a gamification strategy in the ‘hyper-competitive’ burger industry is table stakes,’” says Preston Nix, director of loyalty and CRM for Burger King. His organization reportedly has a “full pipeline of new and unique in-app games,” designed specifically to drive engagement for the brand’s famous flame-grilled approach to serving up burgers.
The overriding goal of Burger King’s gamification strategy is to “create an emotional connection” that provides a touch point for its loyalty program members who reap rewards on the company’s Royal Perks app.
“We have to come up with other ways to get [customers] to engage with our brand,” Nix explained. “That’s what these campaigns are for: we want people to come into the stores and app more frequently.” He added the most successful strategy drives engagement among their active users, but also brings in new followers.
Another key is to make the games “as seamless as possible” for guests and easy to participate in, so customers “feel rewarded and valued,” said Nix.
While it comes as no surprise the gaming app is popular with younger audiences like Gen Z and Millennials, the burger giant also strives to reach a wider demographic. “We are a large brand and we want to cater to everyone as a whole,” Nix expressed.
To appeal to older age groups, Burger King leans into nostalgia, including their “Balloon Burst” game that nods to a popular classic carnival game. “It’s classic nostalgia-meets-modernization,” which Nix says “is what the Burger King brand is all about.”
The chain often releases games to complement limited-time offers or special events like Burger King’s 70th birthday. Nix says they monitor games’ performance continuously to note who’s engaging with the brand, who’s dropping off, and how the experience can be improved.
“Nowadays everyone has a rewards program and offers,” said Nix, “and the winners of this space are the ones who can lean into taking it one step further.”
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