Pokémon Go – Lessons to be Learned from the Biggest Mobile Game in History

Surprised by the record-breaking hype surrounding Pokémon Go? Sure, we’re impressed, but we get it.

Mobile marketers understand the not-so-secret ingredient of the Pokémon Go craze – engagement. The brilliance of Pokémon Go is in creating an experience for its users; and it’s easy to understand the appeal. The game’s immense popularity and fundamental appeal is a direct result of creating a unique social adventure by encouraging users to go outdoors, something that other games don’t do; and if you’re not part of it, you’re missing out. So how do you “catch” some of that excitement to benefit your business?

Mobilizing Nostalgia

The game is highly personalized, striking a chord of nostalgia and childhood imagination. Many users who grew up playing and loving Pokémon, now have the opportunity to see it in an exciting, augmented reality setting. What’s more, it’s bringing generations of players together in the universal charm of collecting. Let’s face it, the very act of catching and collecting Pokémon is satisfying and makes you feel good. Who doesn’t want to be a part of that?

It seems that just about everyone is joining in, which is why Pokémon Go feels like it is literally everywhere. Not only is there a distinct connection for millennials who have a nostalgia for the original Pokémon games, but these are also the people who most want to talk about it on social media. Compound that with record-breaking usage statistics and a veritable media frenzy, and it can feel like it’s, well, everywhere.

Capitalizing on the Frenzy

With there being so many ways to “Poke-tize” your marketing and engagement to take advantage of the opportunity to turn Pokémon Go players into customers, we’ve decided to list out a few below to give you a head start.

• If your business is a gym or PokéStop location, chances are good that additional foot-traffic will come to you. There are an estimated 15 million downloads as of July 14th, meaning 15 million potential customers coming through your door. Through a few simple in-app purchases, your restaurant or business could persistently have a “lure” on it – attracting both wild Pokémon and trainers looking to catch them. Your text message marketing campaign is the perfect delivery channel to let your customers know you’re in on the fun – announcing when and at what locations you’re launching lures.
• Promoting your participation on social media can bring a huge boost to interaction. According to TechCrunch, Pokémon Go users spend an average of 33 minutes on the app, 22 minutes on Facebook and 18 minutes on Twitter. This is a great time to push your marketing message to all your social media channels.

Admittedly, the game has some drawbacks. Users have noticed the app can crash and stall frequently, is a data and battery hog, and has been described as “buggy” requiring multiple log-ins and failing to track a user’s progress. Despite these problems, users are left wanting more and are not only readily coming back for it, but likely getting it in the months to come. There are currently 150 Pokémon available to be caught, but another 570 available for future release. And you can bet players will stay tuned. To learn more about engaging your customers using mobile marketing, give us a call at (877) 282-7660