Why Gamification Is Taking Over Wellness Programs

1. Why Gamification Is Taking Over Wellness Programs A lot of organizations are utilizing game mechanics to connect with employees as well as drive behavior change in various sectors of the organization. According to a global study nearly 70% of Global organizations employ at least one gamified application in their corporate environment; and for all good reasons. Game mechanics are built in such a way that that they break down big tasks into little, short- term and achievable goals and further reward achievement. They fascinatingly convert all the passive users into the active “players” in the game. This means that they simply drive employee participation and engagement. These applications include a subtle power that turns actions into habits. Also, they help to build a unifying experience towards an unfamiliar and frequently changing assortment of tasks. Game Mechanics Join hands with Health and Wellness Game mechanics is an effective and a proven strategy for superior employee participation as well as completion in technology-based programs in Wellness. The strategies based on games drive employee engagement and act as a bridge to the all-important offline healthy behaviors. Game mechanics further motivate employees to build the healthy choices and aid organizations in improving the health of the workforce as well as manage the skyrocketing healthcare costs. Gamification for Achieving End Goals Before integrating few game mechanics in the health strategy of your employee, it is very important to do some thinking. Always make sure that gamifying the health is not the final goal, but simply one strategy for building a healthier workforce. Game mechanics simply lend a hand to your employees for easy participation in the programs. Gamification further educates employees about what they must do for healthy behavior changes as well as helps them to understand their growth against goals. Moreover, they present opportunities to power social connections with peers to further enhance the game and its outcomes. Quick Tips to Consider Before You Enter the Field So, now the question is how to apply the game mechanics to employee wellness initiatives that successfully drive engagement and make employee active players from passive users? You can follow these quick tips: 1. Keep it easy, simple as well as achievable Levels, points as well as rewards aid in driving engagement along with ongoing employee participation. Including a common set of mechanics throughout the programs makes it interesting and simple to understand. 2. Create Regular Competition and Challenges

2. Ongoing challenges and healthy competition keeps employees motivated for good health. It further presents an opportunity for employees to join socially with their peers and cheer for one another in the journey of good health. 3. Make it simple to monitor and track progress Unlike traditional wellness programs that created burden on employees and HR to monitor the success of the program. Present wellness technologies have vastly improved, now tracking and monitoring the progress is easily done with the help of a validated online process. 4. Drive Social Engagement Offer ways for employees to unite socially to share their scores, gossip about leader-boards, exchange tricks and tips, and allow them to brag regarding their success. 5. Determine the Efficacy for your game Organizations must include strong reporting capabilities, as it will help in understanding the impact of the health effort of the employees. With the help of reporting tools, companies can collect the data and make changes accordingly to drive ongoing results. Mobile applications, social networking as well as other technologies help in driving success for your strategy of health gaming. Impact of Social Relationships and Culture on our health. According to a research, the chances of individuals to become obese are 71 percent more, if their close friends and family members are obese. Social activity and health gaming are a complementary pairing and with peer-to-peer support and motivation employees gain encouragement and stay in the race for longer duration. Mobile apps are also very important as they offer employees with the freedom to participate in the fitness game from anywhere and anytime. Nowadays, modern apps can track your nutrition, physical activity, and even blood pressure and heart rate. The freedom to record, monitor and share activity progress, on game standings provides encouragement and instant motivation. Game On!! Workplace Wellness Game mechanics are turning out to be one of the highly winning strategies companies are utilizing to tap boost employees productivity and health. Game mechanics present an instant reinforcement cycle and serves as an amazing way to keep health momentum of the employee going. At the time of adding game mechanics to health incentives of your employees, make sure that they are simple and easy to understand, as people tend to become frustrated with complex, conflicting rules. By accomplishing small tasks, employees feel encouraged and develop a sense of achievement that keeps them motivated. Remember, engaging employees to play the game isn’t the final motive. Your strategy should help you in creating a great workplace culture of health as well as drive continuous offline behavior shifts. One of

3. the major challenges in today’s scenario is employee engagement and retention. Therefore it is very important to keep your employees engaged and active and Gamification in your company can really help you in achieving your goals.