Dopamine – emotion in mobile advertising
Dopamine is a naturally occurring chemical in our brains and it is one of the most addictive substances known to man. Marketers are well aware of the fact that the euphoric highs dopamine gives us can help influence a number of mental processes, including pleasure, cognition and motivation. Dopamine has a strong influence on human behavior – from what we eat and how we behave in relationships to how we function at work.
Game developers and marketers should benefit from dopamine
Dopamine is also the key driver behind the phenomenon of lots of people checking SMS, email or Facebook multiple times every hour, to the point that no one can be in doubt that they are addicted. The point here is not for me to get on a high horse and complain about the way modern technology is taking advantage of our primitive urges. The point is that knowing this and taking advantage of it can make you a better marketer or application developer.
Dopamine in games
Playing games that are challenging or competitive increases dopamine level. If you are aware of the patterns of intermittent reinforcement and you know how, over time, this can release dopamine squirts when people use your games, you can design your games in a way that fits into this pattern and even takes advantage of it. Intermittent reinforcement is the addictive quality of games and it affects people at such a core level that it does not matter what kind of person you are – gamer, geek, whoever – you are can still be conditioned with the help of this pattern.
Dopamine in marketing
As marketers, we can use that fact that playing games releases dopamine by inserting our marketing into the games, and this way have our message and brand seen in a more positive light. In addition, the latest research shows that dopamine is associated with seeking out and searching, so treasure hunts and other location based marketing techniques where a mobile game or app guides the user to find something, like a retail location, to get a reward will release higher levels of dopamine resulting in pleasure, cognition and motivation connected with the brand.
Better games and marketing campaigns
At CloudMade we believe that an approach to the way games and brands can go beyond demographics and use behavioral analysis in conjunction with user testing can help improve gameplay and the brand experience in marketing campaigns. We work very closely with the game developers and consumer brands that partner with us to achieve this.