How it's used in social media Allowing users to create content that expires/dissapears after a certain time interval. Notifying users of upcoming events, live streams, or content releases to create anticipation and encourage participation.

Examples

• Snapchat Stories
• Instagram Stories
• Twitter Fleets
• Twitch Live Streams
• YouTube Premieres

Book Quotes “Scarcity & Impatience is the Core Drive of wanting something simply because it is extremely rare, exclusive, or immediately unattainable. Many games have Appointment Dynamics or Torture Breaks within them (come back 2 hours later to get your reward) – the fact that people can’t get something right now motivates them to think about it all day long. As a result, they return to the product every chance they get. This drive was well utilized by Facebook when it launched: at first it was just for Harvard students, then it opened up to a few other prestigious schools, and eventuallyall colleges. When it finally opened up to everyone, many people wanted to join simply because they previously couldn’t get in.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To establish a habit of regular engagement by leveraging the psychological principle of commitment and consistency. By creating anticipation and expectation around scheduled events or content releases, users are motivated to return to the platform regularly, fostering long-term engagement and loyalty.

How it's used in social media Offering virtual gifts or tokens that users can send to each other as a form of appreciation or support. Or, offering virtual goods or tokens that users can purchase or earn through their activity on the platform. Some social media platforms, particularly those with live streaming features, allow users to purchase and send virtual gifts or stickers to content creators as a form of support or appreciation. These virtual gifts often have monetary value attached to them and can be a source of income for creators.

Examples

• Facebook Stickers
• Twitch Emotes
• Reddit Awards

Book Quotes “ the successful accumulation of goods leads to Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment, and when the sense of ownership sparks the need to become better and innovate, Core Drive 3: Empowerment of Creativity & Feedback comes in play.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To create a sense of ownership and investment in the platform, to encourage users to support each other, and to create a sense of scarcity or exclusivity.

How it's used in social media Comparing users' progress or activity levels with those of their peers to highlight achievements or encourage further engagement.

Examples

• Instagram Following/Follower Counts
• Twitter Retweets/Likes
• YouTube Views/Likes/Comments
• Twitch Subscribers/Donations
• LinkedIn Profile Strength

Book Quotes “With this technique, you place two options side by side: one that costs money, the other requiring a great amount of effort in accomplishing the Desired Actions which will benefit the system. For example, a site could give you two options for obtaining a certain reward: a) Pay $20 right now, or b) complete a ridiculous number of Desired Actions. The Desired Actions could be in the form of “Invite your friends,” ‘Upload photos,” and/or “stay on the site for 30 days in a row.” In this scenario, you will find that many users will irrationally choose to complete the Desired Actions. You’ll see users slaving away for dozens, even hundreds of hours, just so they can save the $20 to reach their goal. At one point, many of them will realize that it’s a lot of time and work. At that moment, the $20 investment becomes more appealing and they end up purchasing it anyway. Now your users have done both: paid you money, and committed a great deal of Desired Actions.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To motivate users through social comparison and competition by highlighting their progress or activity levels relative to their peers, leveraging the psychological principle of social comparison. By showcasing achievements or milestones in comparison with others, the platform stimulates users' intrinsic motivations and fosters a sense of achievement and competitiveness, driving continued engagement and participation.

How it's used in social media Limiting the availability of certain features, such as invites to exclusive groups or access to limited-time offers, to drive demand and engagement. Limiting the number of interactions or actions users can take within a certain timeframe to prevent spam or abuse and to create a sense of scarcity or exclusivity.

Examples

• Instagram Stories
• Snapchat Streaks
• Twitter Follow Limits
• LinkedIn Connection Limits
• Facebook Friend Requests

Book Quotes “Magnetic Caps are limitations placed on how many times a user can commit certain Desired Actions, which then stimulates more motivation to commit them”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To manage user engagement and prevent overuse or abuse of platform features by imposing limits or constraints on user interactions, leveraging the psychological principle of scarcity and constraint. By restricting the availability of certain features or actions, the platform encourages users to prioritize their engagement and make deliberate choices, enhancing overall user experience and satisfaction.

How it's used in social media Limiting access to certain features or content, such as invites to exclusive groups or access to limited-time offers, to drive demand and engagement. Limiting the number of interactions or actions users can take within a certain timeframe to prevent spam or abuse and to create a sense of scarcity or exclusivity.

Examples

• Private FaceBook Groups
• Twitter Communities
• Instagram Verification
• Twitter Verification
• YouTube Partner Program
• Twitch Affiliate/Partner Status

Book Quotes “If the game designer also adds Scarcity & Impatience (Core Drive 6) through Moats (Game Technique #67) by telling the user he can only equip this sword once he defeats all the adversaries at a particularly difficult level, the user now becomes obsessed and tries to figure out all sorts of ways to conquer that level”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To incentivize user investment and commitment by introducing barriers to entry or offering exclusive features, leveraging the psychological principle of exclusivity. By limiting access to certain features or content, the platform enhances perceived value and prestige, motivating users to invest time and effort into the platform to gain access to exclusive benefits or opportunities.

How it's used in social media Social media naturally introduces delays or waiting periods between content updates or notifications to maintain user interest and prevent burnout.

Examples

• Daily YouTube Vlogs
• Twitter Feed
• YouTube Subscriptions
• Scheduled Twitch Streams
• LinkedIn Feed

Book Quotes “this is what I now call a “Torture Break” (Game Technique #66), where a user must wait an interval of time regardless of their actions, a game technique to be explored under Core Drive 6: Scarcity & Impatience”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To regulate user engagement and prevent burnout by strategically introducing breaks or delays in content delivery, leveraging the psychological principle of intermittent reinforcement. By spacing out content updates or notifications, the platform maintains user interest and anticipation, preventing users from becoming overwhelmed or disengaged.

How it's used in social media Creating arbitrary thresholds or goals by displaying engagement metrics like follower counts. Encouraging users to complete their profiles or take specific actions to unlock additional features or benefits.

Examples

• Instagram Verification
• Twitter Verification
• YouTube Partner Program
• Twitch Affiliate/Partner Status
• LinkedIn Profile Strength
• Facebook Profile Completion

Book Quotes “n that frenzy, people quickly outbid each other before the time runs out. This effect is a combination of a Countdown Timer (Game Technique #65) and a Last Mile Drive (Game Technique #53), where users feel that they are so close to the goal that they rush to complete it. For the record, these mostly employ Black Hat techniques.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To guide users towards completing specific actions or tasks that contribute to their engagement and overall experience on the platform, leveraging the psychological principle of goal-setting. By prompting users to fill out their profiles or take other essential actions, the platform increases user investment and commitment, enhancing user satisfaction and retention.

How it's used in social media Giving users the possibility that they could go viral, become famous, start a career, be noticed by a streamer or creator or celebrity, etc. by using the platform.

Examples

• TikTok Viral Challenges
• Instagram Influencer Status
• YouTube Creator Awards
• Twitch Affiliate/Partner Status
• Streamers Reading Twitch Chats
• Celebrites Reacting to Tweets

Book Quotes “An important factor to consider when using the Dangling technique is the pathway to obtaining the reward. You have to allow the user to know that it’s very challenging to get the reward, but not impossible. If it is perceived as impossible, then people turn on their Core Drive 8: Loss & Avoidance modes and go into self-denial. “It’s probably for losers anyway. However, if the banner said, “Joining Prerequisite: Prince/Princess by royal blood, OR individuals who have previously ran a marathon.” Now you are motivated, and might even ponder the effort required to run a marathon. As long as there is a realistic chance to get in, the Scarcity through exclusivity is enough to engage you. Interestingly, at this point you still haven’t even determined what the organization actually does! Without any information on its actual function, the human-focused motivation of scarcity is compelling enough for you to consider running a marathon”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To create a sense of urgency and anticipation by leveraging the psychological principle of scarcity. By presenting users with incomplete challenges or tantalizing rewards that are just out of reach, the platform motivates continued engagement and participation, driving users to take action to complete tasks or unlock rewards before they expire or become unavailable.

How it's used in social media Displaying user-specific content or features based on their activity or preferences, such as personalized recommendations or content feeds. Introducing new features, layouts, or design elements periodically to keep the platform fresh and engaging.

Examples

• Facebook Redesigns
• Facebook News Feed
• Instagram Explore Page
• YouTube Recommendations

Goal To provide users with a sense of progress and advancement through their interaction with the platform, leveraging the psychological principle of progression and advancement. By adapting the user interface to reflect users' evolving needs, preferences, and accomplishments, the platform enhances user satisfaction and retention, fostering continued engagement over time.

How it's used in social media The ability to show off realworld accomplishments, engagements statistics on the site, friends and follower counts, etc. is a common feature in social media platforms.

Examples

• Instagram/Twitter Follower Count
• LinkedIn Profile
• Facebook Timeline
• Instagram Highlights

Book Quotes “Bragging is when a person explicitly and vocally expresses their accomplishments and achievements, whereas a Trophy Shelf allows a person to implicitly show off what they have accomplished without really saying it. Intuitively encouraging users to brag about and show off their achievements comes in handy when it comes to recruiting new players and keeping veteran players active, but the two techniques are appropriate for different scenarios. A Brag Button is a Desired Action that users can take in order to broadcast what they feel accomplished about - driven by Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment. In other words, Brag Buttons are little action tools and mechanisms for users to broadcast how awesome they are. Take the game Temple Run for example. Whenever a game is over, there is a quick and easy way for users to tap a button and share a screenshot of their high scores on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To encourage users to showcase their achievements or milestones to their social network. To create a sense of ownership and investment in the platform. To nurture a sense of accomplishment from contributions.

How it's used in social media Often seen in social media in the specific form of likes, tips, or other forms of virtual appreciation. Or, offering virtual gifts or tokens that users can send to each other as a form of appreciation or support.

Examples

• Facebook Likes
• Twitch Bits
• Reddit Awards

Book Quotes “Back in the days of Farmville, there were certain types of virtual goods that were not obtainable through regular channels, including purchasing with real money. The only way to obtain these items was to have friends click on the “Give to Friend” button and have them sent to you, without your friends losing anything in the process. As a result of this type of design, when people wanted these unique Social Treasure items, they just gave one to each other, ensuring a win-win situation. This of course, pushed people to get their friends to join the game, so they could get more opportunities to obtain these Social Treasures”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To encourage users to support each other and to create a sense of community and shared purpose. To create a sense of scarcity or exclusivity. To create a sense of unpredictability.

How it's used in social media Sending notifications or prompts to encourage users to interact with friends' posts or join group discussions.

Examples

• Facebook Pokes
• Facebook Notifications
• LinkedIn Connection Requests

Book Quotes “A Social Prod is an action of minimal effort to create a social interaction, often a simple click of a button. Good examples are Facebook Pokes/Likes and Google’s +1s.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To encourage users to interact with each other and to create a sense of community and shared purpose. To prompt and encourage users to interact with friends' content or join group discussions.

How it's used in social media Incorporating elements where experienced users like moderators or admins can guide or mentor newer ones through user-created tutorial-like content or guides.

Examples

• Reddit Moderators
• Facebook Group Admins

Book Quotes “As a result, instead of quitting, I joined his Kingdom, became a valid member on his team, and helped the Kingdom collect resources such as lumber, fruits, stones, and equipment. Instead of playing the intended two hours, I ended up playing the game for two months before I forced myself to quit in order to start researching other games. Sadly, when I did quit, one of the members in the Kingdom did become fairly upset with me because he spent a good amount of time helping my character grow, in the hope that I would become a strong force within the Kingdom. At the time, I felt quite horrible being such a big letdown. This is the power of Mentorship, one of the Game Techniques in Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness that we will cover in this chapter. How many times have you tried to withdraw from a volunteer group, team, church, or even a relationship, but had an extremely hard time because you didn’t want to upset other people? We derive some of our most joyful experiences when we are with friends and family, and experience stress and anxiety when these relationships aren’t going well. We are innate social animals, and naturally endowed with a sense of empathy. We are influenced by what other people feel and think about us.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To onboard new users and to create a sense of community and shared purpose. To give a sense of purposes to veteran users. To stimulate social interactions between different user types. To create a system where users prevent each other from quitting.

How it's used in social media Recommending connections based on mutual friends or interests, and prompting users to interact with friends' content.

Examples

• Facebook Friend Suggestions
• LinkedIn Connection Recommendations

Goal To encourage users to connect and interact with each other. To prompt and encourage users to interact with friends' content or join group discussions. To explicitly facilitate the formation of social connections and relationships.

How it's used in social media Displaying popular or trending content prominently to encourage users to engage with what's popular or widely accepted within the platform.

Examples

• Facebook Trending Topics
• Twitter Trending Hashtags
• YouTube Trending Videos
• Twitch Top Clips
• LinkedIn Trending Posts

Book Quotes “A game design technique I call Conformity Anchors implements this effect into products or experiences by displaying how close users are to the social norm through Feedback Mechanics. The SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) company Opower, which supplies services to public utilities, is a great example of using Conformity Anchors. Opower’s mission is to reduce our collective energy consumption. Their model is inspired by Robert Cialdini whom we have mentioned a few times in this book and is one of the leading experts on Core Drives 4 and 5, as well as the upcoming Core Drive 6: Scarcity & Impatience. Opower has discovered that, the best way to motivate households to consume less energy is to show them a chart comparing them to their neighbors.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To influence user behavior and preferences by highlighting popular or trending content and encouraging users to conform to established norms or trends, leveraging the psychological principle of social proof. By showcasing popular content or activities, the platform shapes user perceptions and preferences, driving increased engagement and participation in activities endorsed by the community.

How it's used in social media Incorporating comments sections, chat rooms, or forums where users can engage in discussions about shared interests or trending topics.

Examples

• Facebook Groups
• Twitter Chats
• YouTube Comments
• Twitch Chat
• LinkedIn Groups

Book Quotes “ In American corporate office culture, the water cooler is often the place where people take a small break from work and chat about a variety of non-work related topics. Much of the conversations focus around office gossip or complaints, and actively gets employees to bond with one another. One example of a Water Cooler is adding a forum to your site. Forums are very helpful for getting a community to bond and share ideas with each other. For this purpose, it also provides an environment to broadcast a social norm, while also connecting veterans to newbies for Mentorship opportunities.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To foster a sense of community and camaraderie among users by providing spaces for casual conversation and social interaction, leveraging the psychological principle of social bonding. By facilitating discussions around shared interests or trending topics, the platform strengthens user connections and engagement, enhancing overall user satisfaction and loyalty.

How it's used in social media Implementing features like gratitude buttons or thank-you notes where users can appreciate each other's content or actions.

Examples

• LinkedIn Endorsements
• Facebook Reactions

Goal To encourage users to appreciate and support each other's contributions and to create a sense of community and shared purpose. Also, to create a feedback loop that triggers intrinsic motivations to participate in generating content. Lastly, to create a sense of future reciprocity

How it's used in social media Social media challenges or events where users participate together to achieve a common goal, such as fundraising challenges or viral hashtag campaigns.

Examples

• Facebook Fundraisers
• Twitter Hashtag Campaigns

Book Quotes “Group Quests are very effective in collaborative play as well as viral marketing because it requires group participation before any individual can achieve the Win-State.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To encourage users to work together and to create a sense of community and shared purpose. Also, to create a sense of unpredictability and to create a sense of accomplishment from positive responses to content.

How it's used in social media Social media sites often create status points for individual contributions.

Examples

• Reddit Karma
• StackOverflow Reputation

Book Quotes “When you design your Status Point systems, make sure it is based on something meaningful - something that the users themselves want to engage in. Or else, points just become meaningless counters meant to stress people out.”

Chou, Y.-k. (2019). Actionable gamification: Beyond points, badges, and leaderboards. Octalysis Media.

Goal To encourage users to contribute to the site and to allow users to see who is viewing their content and receive immediate feedback. Further, to create a sense of accomplishment from positive responses to content and possibly to create a sense of competition between users. Lastly, to create a sense of unpredictability.