Bringing Gamification to Your Credit Union

In general terms, gamification has been a part of the credit union world for years now, although it wasn’t until recently – when gamification became the buzzword – that there’s been a direct link of the two. Gamification is the use of games in a non-game context to boost user engagement, ROI, education and more. It’s the education aspect of gamification that credit unions have embraced with their online products and services such as youth savings clubs.

Even though the term gamification was first coined in 2002 by British computer programmer Nick Pelling, it didn’t really catch on until 2010. According to eWallStreeter.com, gamification is expected to be used by 70% of the world’s largest companies in some form by 2014 and is thought to generate $2.8 billion in consumer spending by 2016.

While becoming a “mayor” in FourSquare and earning reward points for credit card purchases have solidly set the stage for company and brand gamification, financial institutions are on the playing field as well. And in this online world of gaming and mobile, the gamification of personal finance seems like a natural progression.

That being said, the marriage of personal finance and gamification needs to be a somewhat cautious one. Like in everything credit unions do, their members’ needs should be put first – not the credit union’s need to market its’ products and services. Although the overall ROI of an online endeavor is a major consideration, so should a member’ trust in their credit union.

Still wondering if you should dive into the gamification world? Here are a few things it could do for your credit union:

• Modernize its image
• Attract the Gen Y and Gen Z demographics
• Increase quality website traffic
• Motivate members to make smarter financial choices
•  Encourage members to consider additional credit union products and services 

     Where to start? There’s no need to reinvent the gamification wheel at your credit union, there are plenty of websites out there that you can partner up with. A few examples are Mint, SaveUp, Payoff and the kid-friendly website Playmoolah. Wherever your credit union decides to start, we at CU Solutions Group promise that your members will thank you for bringing a little gamification fun into their lives. And who knows? Your credit union could end up reaping the benefits.