Looking for a low-tech growth hack? We have simple gamification marketing strategy inspired by the Easter Bunny called the Egg Hunt Technique.

If you get paid for writing code or need to impress a boss with your latest high-tech growth hack – move on. If you can somewhat confidently create a hyperlink in a blog post or send out a few emails, you came to the right place.

Ever-shortening attention spans and a world of content just a swipe away threatens to fatigue users and cripple social media engagement. The Egg Hunt Technique is a simple way to encourage engagement and dip your toes into your first gamification marketing strategy.

This “egg-tastic” growth hack taps into our basic desires and needs of status and achievement. The idea is to lay “eggs” or clues throughout your site that can help you achieve a desired outcome and provide your readers with an incentive.

The outcome is:

  • Encourages activity
  • Deepens engagement
  • Creates connections with your products

Get Started with this Simple Gamification Marketing Strategy

Simple Gamification Marketing Strategy

Step 1: Choose a desired outcome

For example: Increase pages per visit on your site by two pages.

Your average page per visit is two, and your goal is four. Use the target of four as the number of pages you will place ‘eggs’ or clues on.

Tip: Don’t include too many pages in your ‘Egg Hunt’. Readers will lose interest and leave. Be selective in the path you want readers to take.

Step 2: Select a prize

Simple Gamification Marketing Strategy: Select the right prize

Once readers find the last egg, what’s the payoff? Be creative and make the prize well worth your reader’s time.

For example: Discounted product, coupon, free e-book, etc. You could even ask for their email address to receive their prize at the end. Bonus!

Step 3: Set-up the Egg Hunt

Each clue should lead to the next. It could be simply a link with a symbol next to it.

Tip: You want readers to read the blog post so be creative in the placement of the link to the next clue. Mix it up. Remember it is an egg hunt.

Let’s take an example:

The paragraph below is from a recent blog post on 3 Ways Your Nonprofit Can Use GoPro to Make a Difference. The paragraph appears near the end of the page. This is how it currently looks:

Take away the difficulty of sharing outside the GoPro environment. Sharing videos from GoPro to social media is easy using dlvr.it’s smart automation. All you need is an RSS feed and a little creativity. Automation is easy. By following the steps in our post on Easy Tips to Share GoPro Videos Across Social Media, your GoPro videos can come to life in your social feed.

If this same article was part of my Egg Hunt, and I want readers to click on the hyperlink and read the linked post on Easy Tips to Share GoPro Videos Across Social Media, I might change that link to something like this:

Take away the difficulty of sharing outside the GoPro environment. Sharing videos from GoPro to social media is easy using dlvr.it’s smart automation. All you need is an RSS feed and a little creativity. Automation is easy. By following the steps in our post on Easy Tips to Share GoPro Videos Across Social Media, [icon name=”github-alt” class=”” unprefixed_class=””] your GoPro videos can come to life in your social feed.

Note the icon next to the link.

This icon indicates the link I want readers to find and click. I would let readers know what to look for when I set-up the promotion. On the page Easy Tips to Share GoPro Videos Across Social Media, you would place your next clue. The last link on the last page of the Egg Hunt should lead to the prize.

Another alternative is to include a word or phrase next to each page that readers have to include to get the prize at the end.

Step 4: Promote the Egg Hunt

Simple Gamification Marketing Strategy: Promote the egg hunt for social media engagement

Promote the Egg Hunt in a blog post, email to readers, or post on social media. You don’t have to get as clever as the Easter Bunny! Clearly outline the ‘rules’ and what the prize is. Let readers know what to look for during the hunt.

Other Options:

  • Have readers opt-in to the Egg Hunt up front. Each day you send a clue or link to the next blog post.
  • At the end of the Egg Hunt, ask readers questions about what they read or have them enter a clue you left on each page. It could be a word or phrase.
  • Do a theme – March Madness Egg Hunt.

Be creative and have fun.

Gamification Marketing Strategy in Practice

Obviously, these eggs don’t contain jelly beans or those hollow Easter bunnies, but you’ll still get a great prize without all the wasted calories!

  1. Look for the symbol on each page: [icon name=”rss” class=”” unprefixed_class=””]
  2. There are three pages with eggs that lead to the prize
  3. Prize: FREE ebook –  19 RSS to Social Media Hacks Guaranteed to Boost Engagement and Massively Grow Reach

Read the first page: What do Science and Curated Blog Posts Have in Common [from the experts]?

Share your simple gamification marketing strategy ideas in the comments below.