Feminine gamification viewpoint: Gamification conversations
In the aftermath of the Learning Technologies exhibition I am reflecting on conversations had with several people. We had a steady stream of people coming to the stand and asking about gamification and how it could work for their specific scenario. We totally appreciated the interest and I would say out of all the conversations I had over the 2 days, only one stood out as a bit on edge questioning my skills as a woman. Ironically it came from a man in serious gaming, do they really feel so threatened? I can laugh it off as a minor blip, because everybody else didn’t make any sexist remarks not questioned my skills as a women, they actually genuinely wanted to find out more.
I also had a few people checking in whether their number one person in gamification was indeed as well known in this industry and to be honest none of the names I knew. The selling point of being the best, must be a male one. I would rather be the best fit for their specific needs, than proclaim to be the best at everything. I loved the fact that a lot of my business connections called over to say hello and friends from previous projects and jobs. In any case it was refreshing to have so much great interest and a view on how it could work for them.
What struck me is that the level of understanding of gamification still varies significantly from very knowledgable to not knowing at all. A lot of learning management providers have been selling their features as gamification, totally forgetting and ignoring the fact that the motivational drivers of the learners is what drives which game mechanics are applied. By the time people got over to our stand, they either had the reaction that it was refreshing to hear that their suspicions were confirmed that there was more to it and others had actually bought the feature ‘BS’ as being truly motivational and I burst their bubble a little.
The experience of #LT2016 is a great positive one overall so far and when we make the conversions we will consider coming back next year. Originally I thought about bringing a game and I am glad I decided against it, because it would have been a hinderance rather than an aid for making connections with the right kind of people. In fact the presentation on my laptop with some showcases our business process etc, was only for the privileged few that got past the initial screening of my fabulous team (thanks Sophie and Pedro). Good execution of a chosen strategy worked this year and depending on the conversion we will tweak it for the coming year.
What gamification has worked for you at exhibitions? How was #LT2016 for you?
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