Gamification in Advertising

Our firm has partnered with a number of local and international organizations on marketing communications-driven consultancy projects in Ghana—one of Africa’s largest and fastest-growing mobile markets, with over 40.4 million subscribers and a penetration rate of 121.4%. Our work spans concept development, campaign execution, and audience engagement across diverse sectors.

As part of our integrated approach to advertising and communications consulting, we identified a need to make the pre-testing of advertising campaigns more participatory and data-driven. This was particularly critical for projects involving international partner organizations who valued real-time feedback and user engagement as part of the production process.
Beyond pre-tests, we also wanted to enhance the effectiveness of internal staff presentations and strategy sessions, encouraging more interaction and enthusiasm.

To bring this idea to life, we introduced a gamified experience using the Kahoot app—a digital platform known for its interactive quiz format. Here’s how we applied it:
– During pre-test sessions for TV and digital commercials, participants logged into the Kahoot app using their mobile phones or tablets.
– A series of questions related to the advertising concept (such as message clarity, appeal, and aided/unaided recall) were posed.
– Participants responded in real-time, with their scores and answers displayed on a large screen, creating a fun and competitive environment.
– The same tool was used in internal strategy meetings and staff presentations to stimulate engagement and encourage open feedback.
This innovative approach transformed routine evaluation processes into high-energy, immersive experiences that boosted insight quality and team morale.

– High Participant Engagement: Real-time scoring and public leaderboards increased attentiveness and enthusiasm during ad concept pre-tests. 
– Positive Emotional Connection: The gamified process, combined with incentives for top performers, fostered positive emotions and higher survey participation rates. 
– Enhanced Staff Involvement: In internal sessions, Kahoot encouraged more interaction and open dialogue, especially among junior staff, boosting cross-level engagement. 
– Improved Data Quality: Participants were more invested in the process, resulting in more thoughtful and reliable feedback for client campaigns.
By integrating a fun, mobile-first tool like Kahoot into both client and internal workflows, we turned feedback into an experience—making our campaigns sharper and our teams stronger.- High Participant Engagement: Real-time scoring and public leaderboards increased attentiveness and enthusiasm during ad concept pre-tests. 
– Positive Emotional Connection: The gamified process, combined with incentives for top performers, fostered positive emotions and higher survey participation rates. 
– Enhanced Staff Involvement: In internal sessions, Kahoot encouraged more interaction and open dialogue, especially among junior staff, boosting cross-level engagement. 
– Improved Data Quality: Participants were more invested in the process, resulting in more thoughtful and reliable feedback for client campaigns.
By integrating a fun, mobile-first tool like Kahoot into both client and internal workflows, we turned feedback into an experience—making our campaigns sharper and our teams stronger.