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MPI ‘Gamifies’ their Networking & Education Event


Discovery

MPI Orange County (MPIOC) was looking to add a fun and valuable game to their networking and education event, “Gaming for Events”, that would help them to achieve their event goals. As the primary topic of the educational session was about how to integrate games, fun and competition into events, they wanted to illustrate their point by ‘gamifying’ their own event. The event stakeholders’ goals were that the game help facilitate networking, education and sponsor interaction. They wanted to ensure that attendees were gaining value from the game (as well as being entertained playing it!) One of the challenges was ensuring all of the games and activities were coordinated, providing a unified experience for the attendees. Having worked with Lumi on adding interactivity to many of its previous events, MPIOC reached out to them to provide a gamification solution.

Solution

Lumi Say was chosen as the best solution based on the needs and goals of the event. Lumi Say is a versatile app that attendees download to their phones or tablets and use before, after or on-site at the event, with or without an internet connection.

Several different games utilizing Lumi Say were designed by Lumi and Midori Connolly, which were played throughout the event, including:

  • Play Together, Stay Together – Dave & Busters (the host venue) set up a few Wii gaming stations with referees. Attendees were encouraged to play a game with someone they knew, to help them reconnect. Barcodes were given out by the referees for the guests to scan to show they had completed this game.
  • Capturing Moments – As guests mingled and networked, they could take a picture with a new acquaintance in the photo booth and receive points for their participation in this activity.
  • Brain Food – Attendees couple sample snacks from Dave & Busters (increasing their exposure) and then enter in the PIN from the food table into the Join In Sight app.
  • Education Recap – Polling questions were pushed to guests, which reviewed content from the education session given by Midori Connolly. To encourage more interaction and participation, points were given for participation, not correct answers.

One of the major keys to success for this event was giving out rewards randomly, rather than to top scorers. Simply rewarding attendees for participation encouraged attendees to play the games in a way that matched their reasons for attending, such as reconnecting with industry friends, meeting new contacts or soaking up as much educational content as possible.

Insight

Guests had a blast playing all of the games and found the gamification component easy to use and engaging. The event stakeholders liked the versatility of the app, noting that some of the other options available could only perform one of the many functions that Lumi Say could accomplish. They also enjoyed the quick and easy setup, and that an internet connection wasn’t constantly required. Overall, MPIOC was able to put on a fun and engaging education and networking event that accomplished everything that they had envisioned.