The benefits of applying gamification to the travel industry

The travel industry is still working on its recovery. For this reason, the sector needs to renew itself and bet on practices and dynamics that will help boost activity to pre-pandemic levels. The inclusion of gaming techniques can be key for this industry not only to recover, but also to overcome its impact in the coming years.

These are the benefits that gamification brings to the world of travel:

Motivation
Tourist travelers have ceased to be passive subjects and have become active elements, seeking to perform a large number of activities during their trips. On vacation, for example, they have gone from spending the whole day lying on the beach to taking more excursions, visits and activities. Gamified environments help to enhance this motivation so that the tourist is an active part of everything that happens.

Knowledge
It is just as important to see a monument or a city as the history behind it. The bad thing is that normally this information is received through plaques with long texts or guides with learned discourse that offer endless data, which causes the tourist to forget quickly. On the other hand, if this information is transmitted through a logical framework, the traveler will remember what he has learned much better, since he will associate it with a fun experience.

Viralization
In this era of social networks, it is as important to live an experience as it is to tell others about it, especially if the activities are out of the ordinary. A gamified environment when making a visit will be a much more enriching experience, which will make it easier for the traveler to echo in their social networks, thus helping to attract new visitors.

Loyalty
In addition to getting new visitors, another of the main objectives of any tourism company is to get repeat customers. To do this, it is essential to put them at the center and carry out actions that really make a mark on them, so that they do not hesitate to repeat. Gamification will help to make the traveler's experience unforgettable.

Differentiation
Today, tourists have a wide range of options when planning their outings. Therefore, companies in the sector need to find elements that are able to offer a differentiation with respect to the other players in the market. Rising trends such as including gaming in the experience can be key to stand out.

Innovation
The competitiveness of the sector means that it has to constantly renew itself, betting on the latest techniques and technologies. Through mobile phones, a great number of possibilities are opening up when it comes to betting on innovative activities based on games, thanks to technologies such as geolocation or augmented reality.

For Enrique Arias, founder of Outfinders: “The tourism sector is gradually recovering after two disastrous years due to the pandemic, but it still has some way to go before reaching the figures that were handled before the arrival of covid-19. It is time to bet on activities capable of offering something different and new to tourists thanks to trends such as gamification, who are increasingly eager to live memorable experiences in their days off work.