When we are talking to potential clients at some point in the conversation, we will get asked ‘What are your deliverables?’. For each project, they may vary slightly depending on the scope and the type of project. But as a rule we create the following deliverables:
- Project Scoping
- Target objectives
- User research findings and persona
- User journey flow
- Gamification design document specifying all triggers, points and messaging
For each project, we want to be clear on the scope of the project. We know from experience that scope tends to creep unless boundaries are quite clear from the start. Having it in a document gives us a reference point and it also allows us to discuss how a change to the scope is requested.
For gamification to be effective, we need objectives. These can take the shape of hard numbers or softer described behaviours. We strongly believe in encouraging what you want more of, but in order to design for this, we need to know what we want more of. Sounds simple, but it often takes a few iterations.
We place a high value on understanding the target audience for which the gamification design is created, for us it gives clear guidance as to what to include or exclude. Hence will look for the opportunity to speak and meet with the intended target audience through surveys, focus groups, interviews and observing them in their natural workplace. Sometimes we extend the user research to individuals with experience of the process we are gamifying to gain from their hindsight knowledge and expertise.
In our gamification design workshops, we may interact with the same user groups or extend the reach by including more people in the design process. Co-creation works very well and gives much more insight into what will or won’t work for people. The pride in co-ownership of a solution can go a long way in overcoming resistance at the roll-out stage.
The combination of user research and game design workshops results in both the user journey flows and the gamification design document. The user journey flow is a visual representation of where we found meaningful touchpoints, where game elements can make a difference and it reflects the process we are working on. The gamification design document is then the granular detail of how the game elements are applied with triggers, game mechanics and messaging. I have linked to a previous post where we go into more detail on what it should include.
In some projects, we create a prototype on paper, on powerpoint or with wireframes. More often than not, when in-house developers or platform suppliers are involved we discuss the gamification design document and user flows with them to ensure it is all possible and then they go and build out the solution.
