Designing Gamified Apps for Sustainable Consumption: A Field Study

Abstract

This research tests the effectiveness of a social marketing field study on sustainable consumption conducted by energy companies on real customers. The study uses a gamified app to encourage sustainable household energy usage. We analyze app usage, survey, and energy bills data to demonstrate the impact of specific game design elements on customers’ perceived enjoyment and knowledge, and their behavioral intentions regarding sustainable consumption. We show the gamified app influences energy saving behaviors and word-ofmouth, and results in significant monetary savings compared to a control group. These are exciting results that provide novel insights and help support the potential of gamified apps for businesses and consumers