Conversion rates of up to 700%? No way.

But believe it or not, the achievement has been accomplished!

It’s all about gamification.

One of the most effective methods for guaranteeing the success of an app is the use of gaming components. Given that the global gamification market is already worth $11.94 billion, many developers and business owners have begun shifting into the industry to reap the benefits it promises. 

But how can gamification benefit a banking app? 8allocate is here to share some valuable insights with you as we have rich experience in implementing top-notch gamification features.

In this post, you’ll learn how gamification in fintech apps simplifies the management of finances and gives your users an exciting interactive experience.

What Is Gamification In Finance and Why Is It Important?

Gamification in finance involves incorporating game elements into an application to improve user interaction and make the product’s user experience more enjoyable and engaging.

Gamification in banking positively impacts the following:

• Customer acquisition and retention
• Client loyalty and satisfaction
• Onboarding process
• Product discoverability 
• Product referrals and positive feedback
• In-app conversion 

How Fintech Applications Can Benefit From Gamification

Gamifying your financial app will significantly increase your profitability, which is one of the most attractive benefits of doing so. Below are other advantages you could experience when implementing fintech gamification:

Improves customer retention

Gamification in fintech apps doesn’t merely serve to attract customers to your products; it also helps retain them in the long run. 

Gamification is incredibly effective because humans have a psychological propensity toward playing games. As a result, if your fintech application has many gamified elements, users will interact with your app more frequently to “win the game.”

Numerous case studies and methodologies demonstrate how gamification has raised retention rates for several fintech products.

One of the best gamification examples is the budget-tracking game-cum-app Fortune City. Rather than adding game elements to the app, Fortune City turned its entire application into a game. This unique platform brings fun to the budget settings as it features a simulation game where customers can build a virtual town by recording their expenses and income. 

Fortune City’s town-building aspect emphasizes user diligence, creating an addictive feedback cycle that boosts the user’s financial responsibility and the app’s customer retention rates.

Enhances customer satisfaction

Many fintech applications aim to assist users in solving problems by increasing their wealth or enabling them to save their money. Gamification helps to serve this objective.

A significant drop in customer satisfaction occurs when fintech companies don’t keep their promises.

When you gamify your app and create a system of rewards, users will be more likely to stay within the app and continue using it. The result is enhanced customer satisfaction because you’re providing value, and they’re receiving it. 

An excellent example of an application of this concept is the referral system employed by the budgeting software Lunch Money. It has a tiered incentives structure that offers customers more lucrative benefits as they recommend more friends, eventually leading to a free subscription.

Increases conversion rates

According to a Finances Online survey, businesses that added gamification components to their product’s fintech applications saw their conversion rates rise to 700%.
Increasing customer engagement will directly improve your revenue. In other words, there’s a direct correlation between customer engagement and profitability. That’s how happy users are 5X times more likely to renew a subscription than disengaged ones.

Reduces customer churn

Financial institutions can reduce customer churn by using gamification elements to offer incentives to customers and to make otherwise boring tasks like saving and budget-setting more fun and engaging.

According to analytics, customer churn in the banking industry can go as high as 30%. One of the main reasons for this high rate is that the services offered are diverse, so customers are motivated to move to another bank if they think they can get a better deal.

By gamifying your fintech app and awarding points, badges, and other prizes to customers for using the app frequently, they’ll be less likely to churn and will continue using your app instead of switching to a competitor.

Helps collect useful customer insights

Gamification offers benefits beyond simply assisting clients. It can reinforce your business by providing a mechanism for user data collection, including information on behavior, usage patterns, and user preferences.

But why is this crucial? 

Knowing what drives your customers’ behavior will help you improve your software and offer more useful features. As a result, the user experience may be enhanced, and engagement and retention may increase. 

For example, you see that customers only use the app for a specific purpose, e.g., for budget tracking or saving. In that case, you can develop new gamification features related to that activity. Establishing in-app rewards will entice users to reach their saving goals and become more financially responsible.

In addition, you can use the data collected from gamification to segment your customers and target them with personalized campaigns, which leads to increased conversion rates.

Fascinating Gamification Examples in the FinTech Industry

These fintech companies have employed gamification in their apps in a super exciting way:

eToro

The social investing aspects of eToro set it apart from rival platforms. Their powerful gamification techniques, such as News Feed, make use of peer competition and social behavior. News Feed allows users to share their thoughts, trading methods, and stock picks. This is a teaching tool and a source of inspiration because it spurs other customers to compete against the winners.

The CopyTrader function on eToro fuels the spirit of competition. It’s excellent for newcomers who wish to take advantage of other’s experiences to make money. The website also awards the users who others copy.

Monobank

The charming cat that serves as Monobank’s mascot all through the application makes it clear that they have a friendly approach to users. This mascot quickly debunks the myth that finance is dull and establishes a new perspective as soon as consumers launch the app.

Additionally, the mascot makes achievement badges — the ultimate gamification component of the Monobank app — possible. Users must do different banking activities to acquire rewards. These include making purchases from specific categories, carrying out transactions abroad, or dividing expenses with a friend. 

Monobank implemented the gamification feature truly brilliantly!

FinTech Gamification Use Cases

Improving the customers’ financial literacy

You can implement gamification in your fintech app to improve your customer’s financial literacy. For example, simple gamification ideas such as demo videos can concisely and entertainingly convey complex financial concepts like credit, budgeting, investing, and saving.

Improving the user’s financial health

Gamification may significantly boost consumers’ ability to manage their finances. 

For instance, if an in-app game mechanism enables consumers to monitor their finances, acknowledge small victories, and receive rewards, they can accomplish aspirations like paying off credit card debt or setting savings for a significant purchase or investment faster. 

In other words, app gamification can encourage people to take on challenging activities and advance more quickly toward their goals.

Promoting sustainability

Businesses that want to promote themselves as ethical and sustainable can, for instance, send donations to charities when a customer achieves a given objective or completes a specific action.

Encouraging savings

Saving is among the most straightforward concepts to gamify. Your app can let users choose to round up or cap each transaction and have the difference sent to a savings account or to create savings objectives and reward them for achieving them.

Top Gamification Features For Fintech Applications

Let’s consider various gamification features that you can implement in your fintech application:

Leaderboards

Leaderboards are a list of top scores that allows your customers to compete with one another. They impact the users and raise participation through social comparison. Extraverted people, in particular, have a better engagement with leaderboards.

Every company should consider leaderboards as a gamification component while developing a fintech application. This is because they foster a sense of camaraderie among peers, satisfying humans’ fundamental need for social connection.

Including competitive game components and enabling customers to see their results will definitely improve user engagement.

Progress bars

Another well-liked fintech gamification technique that allows financial service organizations to motivate consumers is the usage of progress bars. 

Users see a bar approaching the target as they accomplish tasks, e.g., forming wise spending habits, setting and fulfilling goals daily, and saving money. This results in higher customer retention and engagement. 

Gamified educational content

You must use gamified education to increase client awareness of financial services, products, and issues. 

Organizations can use various strategies towards this goal, including puzzles, tests, films, and games, to raise financial literacy while increasing participation.

Goals and challenges

Setting goals and challenges is a fantastic motivator that helps boost customer satisfaction and loyalty. This method is used by gamification finance applications to improve users’ financial health. 

Software solutions, for instance, can make it possible for users to make personal financial goals, keep track of their spending, and set up and adhere to budgets.

Implement The Best Gamification Solutions For Your Fintech App

Financial firms must focus on the needs of their customers to retain their current clientele and draw in new ones, as the market is highly competitive. By implementing gamification functionality, startups can attract new customers and significantly increase conversion rates. 

Additionally, gamification makes it easier to attract new users and boost profits, as devoted customers are likelier to use the app and suggest it to others. 

Do you want to stay ahead of your competitors? Contact our development experts today to create an exceptional fintech app that is a pleasure to interact with!

2022 was a difficult year for everyone. Rising global inflation, millions of lives taken by COVID in China, supply chain issues, Iranians revolting against a dictatorship, etc. For Ukrainians, last year was the most challenging in the country’s history due to the brutal and illegal invasion from Russia. And despite all the horrors caused by Russia, 2022 brought out the best of Ukrainian society as the world witnessed their strength, bravery, resilience, and ingenuity not only on the battlefield but in the world of IT as well.

We’re proud that our team took the initiative and made efforts to help Ukraine during these challenging times. 8allocate donated thousands of dollars to the Ukrainian army and volunteer organizations to help Ukraine fight for its freedom. We’re proud to support our Ukrainian colleagues and the people of Ukraine during these trying times.

As we look towards a brighter future in 2023, we are excited for the journey ahead. We believe that the lessons we’ve learned and the experiences we gained in 2022 have made us stronger and better prepared for whatever comes our way.

8allocate’s Achievement

Despite all the global uncertainty, 8allocate managed to double in size this past year thanks to an influx of new clients who were drawn to our high-caliber software development services. We have adapted to the challenging circumstances and proven to be a solid and successful company.

We continued focusing on growing our expertise in FinTech and EdTech to meet the rising demands of these sectors, and we have seen success in onboarding new clients from the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Singapore, and South Africa.

Talking about prominent achievements and global recognition, we are proud to have been recognized by Clutch, who included 8allocate in its official Top 100 Leaders For Fast Growth report in 2022.

Repercussions of War: How We Tackled It and Supported Our Team

In the aftermath of Russia’s unprovoked war with Ukraine, we immediately realized the need for a foolproof crisis response strategy. 8allocate undertook the following responsibilities to support its team:

• We efficiently relocated our employees to a safe and protected place in the western parts of Ukraine and even assisted our employees in relocating to the EU, US, Canada, and Latin America.
• We aided our employees’ families in finding temporary housing within Ukraine and abroad. 
• Instead of the usual crisis layoffs, we mobilized and nearly doubled our team size for maximum efficiency and a much more streamlined workflow.
• 8allocate developed it’s global infrastructure that allows everyone to work from any place in the world effectively.

Team-Strengthening Activities

8allocate believes that team-building activities important gateways to cooperation and co-existence. 

• A portion of our Ukraine-based team completed Save a Life courses, and became proficient in applying tourniquets and communicating during injuries, bleeding, or other emergencies.
• We know that prioritizing mental health is indispensable, especially during turbulent times; thus, 8allocate compensates the services of psychologists for the employees needing them. Moreover, Mindly has made finding a specialist easy for everyone.

Support Ukraine

Our “Hire Ukrainian Tech Talents” initiative has proved to be very successful in 2022 and helped many technical and non-technical specialists to find jobs in IT. We truly believe in its value and are committed to continuing in 2023.

8allocate’s Initiative to Hire Ukrainian Tech Talents

As Ukraine sees more and more people returning to the country, President Zelensky encourages entrepreneurs to continue working and even initiate new projects. At 8allocate, we stand in solidarity with the President’s words and are excited to offer our support through our “Support Ukraine” initiative. Our goal is to provide more IT professionals with the opportunity to work on exciting projects, contribute to our country’s economy, and make a positive impact. The universal flexibility of the IT world allows professionals to work remotely from anywhere, and we’re here to offer free expertise, advice, and consulting support to anyone considering hiring Ukrainian IT specialists.  

Here are the top 3 reasons why Ukrainian developers are the best when it comes to productivity and high-quality output:

Insights from our Clutch Testimonials

Our specialty is to help clients at every stage of the product development process, from presenting a prototype to deploying and growing, among others.

The latest client reviews on Clutch states:

8allocate Making a Mark at Global Events

Money 20/20

In October 2022, our team attended Money20/20 in Las Vegas, arguably the most prominent global fintech event that advocates innovation in financial services for a strengthened commercial nexus.

Money 20/20 draws in crowds of over 8000 annually. Tech companies, startups, fintech giants, banks, blockchain, and crypto wizards, all gather under one roof to network, share the latest developments, etc.

Allocate8’s V.P. of Client Solutions, Peter Rakowsky, remarked about his learnings of blockchain technologies and the DeFi space from the Money 20/20. Peter shared, “Learning about blockchain technologies and the DeFi space caught my eye this year. Who will be the first major bank to implement DeFi on a mass scale? How will DeFi change the finance industry and other industries such as travel, retail, etc.? It’s all very fascinating.”

We paid heed to reports from world-class speakers and networked with the cream of the crop in the fintech world of Las Vegas.

FinTech Connect 2022

In November 2022, 8allocate attended the London-based, Fintech Connect, a highly coveted one-of-its-kind event wherein central banks, insurers, capital market firms, and investors make informed buying decisions on the ground-breaking latest innovations.

Andrey Kalyuzhnyy, the CEO, was thrilled to see the support and interest the U.K. and international companies expressed toward the Ukrainian I.T. sector. “We had multiple conversations that will likely lead to new projects next year”, he shared.

TechEx Events

TechEx events offer a platform for companies to share knowledge, exchange ideas, and build relationships with other professionals in the industry.

During the same time, in November 2022, 8allocate showed its presence at the TechEx Event, a highly reputed international conference and expo world series exhibiting up-to-date entrepreneurial tech innovations. 

The 8allocate team was honored to attend the Blockchain Expo event and understood the implications of blockchain in various sectors. Additionally, our team attended the IoT Tech Expo. Over 350 exhibitors showcasing their cutting-edge technologies and 500 veteran speakers were present at the event.

Finally, we joined A.I. & Big Data Expo and learned about the latest trends and developments in the AI and Big Data areas from the leading tech experts.

Take the first step towards digital transformation and let us help you drive your business to success. Contact us today!

Education is roughly a $6.5 trillion market. Though only less than 4% is digitized, holding an untapped potential for EdTech.

The EdTech market is continuously growing. In 2021, the global education technology market size was valued at $183.4 billion. By 2026, it is expected to register an incremental growth of $410.2 billion at a CAGR of 16.0%. Also, the global EdTech expenditure is going to surge to $404 billion by 2025, meaning more businesses, governments, and customers will be willing to invest in learning and upskilling using the latest technology. Thus, the high demand for high-quality EdTech products will be put, opening new opportunities both for startups and established companies.

The market is changing, too. Evolving technology and changing student needs are the driving forces that inspire tectonic changes in the EdTech market. That is why studying the industry and learning the leading trends is essential before you make decisions about the next move. 

So, what technological trends will lead the educational sector in 2023 and satisfy the learners’ demand for a more dynamic environment? We’ve brought them together in this article.

What Was Happening in the EdTech Market in 2022?

The EdTech industry has seen its ups and downs in 2022. 
Fallen wages and growing inflation across Europe and beyond shattered EdTech among other industries. These conditions were not conducive to inducing confidence in investors. As a result, global venture capital (VC) investment slowed down. For the first time since 2014, there was a dramatic year-over-year funding decline to $10 billion in 2022 compared to $20.8 billion in 2021—by half.

The USA dominated EdTech VC investment, though the country had to slash funding to $3.9 billion. Europe held stronger financing patterns investing $2 billion. India seemed to be putting more effort into the development of EdTech funding $3.5 billion within 6 months. The steepest drop was tracked in China—$5 million, which was the result of new regulations.

Despite challenges, many EdTech companies not only managed to survive but also improved their positions. 

Nearly 20 investment companies announced that they would focus on the EdTech industry with their new fund rounds, Sequoia Capital, Owl Ventures, and Agility Ventures were among them. So, even though the segment looked underfunded, there was a promise for a brighter future and more funding flows.

ByJu’s, Yuanfudao, and Zuoyebang were recognized to have the highest value among other EdTech unicorns. Their common capital was estimated at $46 billion, while the rest 7 unicorns held a value of $26.85 billion altogether. So, domain leaders strengthened their positions making it harder for new companies to find their place under the sun and attract new funding flows.

What else did 2022 bring to the EdTech industry? Let’s take a quick look:

• The value of public and private EdTech companies has reached $375 billion.
• Six new EdTech unicorns emerged on the market in 2022 like Paper ($1.8 billion value), Multiverse ($1.7 billion value), Domestika ($1.3 billion value), and ClassDojo ($1.25 billion value).
• The main EdTech market players that shaped the market in 2022 were the following: 2U Inc, BoxLight, Byju’s, Blackboard, Udemy, Coursera, Chegg, Duolingo, Udacity, and Unacademy.
• China’s prominent EdTech players Udacity, Coursera, and edX lost their attractiveness in front of investors due to the country’s regulatory headwinds. That gave rise to the interest in India’s EdTech market.
• The switch in the EdTech paradigm as to what consumers really want brought the first seeds in 2022. In the survey, McKinsey reveals that EdTech students seek value-added services (personalized mentoring, assistance during the job search process) and a sense of community. So, some companies started taking a holistic user experience considering the new demand. For instance, upGrad hired recruiting and staffing agents to help their learners advance in their careers. These are the changes many  EdTech companies are yet to embrace in the upcoming years.

How Fast Is EdTech Growing?

Despite the recent setbacks and slowdowns, the EdTech industry is just taking a breath before a powerful re-boost. Based on the forecast provided by Reporter Link, the global education technology market size will grow from $254.80 billion (in 2021) to $605.40 billion by 2027. And this is an absolute growth of more than 130%. The CAGR will also be up by 15.52% during these years.

Let’s look at EdTech growth from a different angle. To be more precise, the quantity of EdTech unicorns. As of July 2020, there were 19 of them. At the beginning of 2023, their number nearly doubled making 28 EdTech unicorn companies worldwide. So, the competition is getting more fierce with every upcoming year. At the same time, the market brims with a myriad of mature product offerings that calls for new players to be more forward-looking to be able to compete.

What Are the Education Technology Trends for 2023?

What trends will drive the EdTech market in 2023? Here are 5 trends we project to be shaping EdTech that you may want to consider as you plan your next move.

Big Data

In 2023, big data will continue paving its way into the EdTech industry. EdTech companies will use big data analytics to personalize the learning experience for students and create innovative approaches toward teaching. 

Big data-driven platforms that let educators create personalized learning experiences will be in demand in 2023. Udemy, an education technology company, is an inspiring example of big data use for tracking course engagement. The instructors can immediately see the number of students who have opened the lecture, how many minutes they spent watching the lecture, and how many dropped watching the lecture within 15 seconds. Then, teachers can make the educational content more relevant for future courses.

Also, the EdTech solutions that enable educational institutions to manage the educational workflow will stay on top of the market demand this year. As an example, let’s refer to Civitas Learning, a student success intelligence platform that provides teachers with real-time data for supporting the student lifecycle and achieving equitable outcomes. It gathers data across the university or institution to help conduct career planning, measure efficacy, or support students in less successful areas.

Virtual and Augmented Reality

The adoption of virtual and augmented reality in EdTech has been not as fast compared to other industries. Nevertheless, these technologies have seen increasing interest from enterprises striving to add them to their EdTech tech stack recently. Just to compare, the global market of AR in education was estimated at $1.5 billion in 2020. By the end of 2023, its value will increase to $5.3 billion. The market is projected to see whopping growth by 2031—$53 billion according to the industry analysis carried out by Fact.MR. As the market grows, it stimulates the emergence of innovative education applications that facilitate training and mirror real-like experiences. 

Mobile-based AR and VR solutions will be leading the industry in 2023. Such as Google Expeditions, a free mobile app, lets students take a trip to Mars, dive under the Sea, or look inside the human body with the use of virtual reality. 

Another way of using virtual reality for educational purposes that are gaining momentum in 2023 is the ability to create and then embed a 3D model into the VR environment. This trend has been successfully implemented in CoSpaces EDU. The platform lets learners create 3D objects and insert them into a 360-degree environment. 

The adult EdTech sector is quickly evolving, too. The corporate e-learning market was valued at $22.5 billion in 2021. By 2028, it is going to reach $44.6 billion. Along with other technologies, VR and AR will be there to help organizations implement mixed reality into their training programs in 2023.

Gamification

Gamification is a great way to make learning more engaging across different industries, including FinTech. In EdTech, this learning and teaching approach is easy to trace, too. 

In 2023, other technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, big data, and IoT will accelerate the adoption of gamification in the EdTech sector. The industry will be also gearing up for using the metaverse, which is already gaining momentum. For example, Minecraft Education Edition is an effective tool for engaging students to explore real-world issues in a digital world. In cooperation with Polygon, Edverse created an educational metaverse for institutions and individuals. The implementation of learn-to-earn with the use of metaverse and crypto is going to be the next big move in gamification. 

Artificial Intelligence

According to Verified Market Research, AI in the education market size will grow from $1.10 billion (in 2021) to $21.52 billion by 2028. Also, Microsoft’s report proves a universal acceptance of AI among educators. 99.4% of respondents said AI would give their institution a competitive advantage within the next years, while 15% think of the new education technology as a game changer. Undoubtedly, these findings pose new opportunities in the EdTech market for new players and established companies that will have a huge pool of consumers to appeal to. 

Many EdTech startups use AI in their products. For instance, Elsa helps English learners hone their speaking. The AI-powered online tutor provides instant feedback on the student’s pronunciation. With Century-Tech, learners experience a high level of personalization as AI algorithms present the right level of material at the right time and fill knowledge gaps.

Face recognition technology is going to be in the scope of interest for many EdTech companies in 2023. In a post-pandemic world, many startups may want to integrate Emotion AI into their platforms. 
The potential of using AI-powered robots for educational purposes is also considered. While they were not very common in the education sector in previous years, 2023 may be the year when more students will meet robots in the classroom.

Mobile Learning

Mobile learning is becoming increasingly ubiquitous. The mobile learning market size is going to reach $155 billion by 2026 as per the report from the Business Mobile Company. 

Emerging interactive technologies such as augmented reality, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence are going to play a crucial role in shaping the mobile learning market in 2023. To illustrate how advanced technologies work for mobile learning, let’s look at Hatch Kids, a platform for teaching coding. It offers students to build AR and 3D games, and interactive VR environments from a smartphone.

Chatbots are increasingly becoming a part of education, shaping the demand for these solutions in mobile learning. For example, Nitin Ramrakhyani, Product Vice President at Novakid, claims that the platform’s development is currently centered around AI and chatbots as a response to the increasing demand for individual learning.

What Is the Future of Education Technology?

In the near future, the EdTech sector will continue to grow. HolonIQ projects that the use of technology will double in the nearest future. This will open up new opportunity pools and let entrepreneurs make moves into new verticals of the EdTech industry easier than ever.

By 2025, the global expenditure on EdTech is going to boost significantly in several key segments. In particular, the spending on augmented and virtual reality will reach $12.6 billion. Companies will be willing to invest $6.1 billion in the adoption of AI-powered EdTech solutions. Robotics and blockchain are going to be coveted technology for educational purposes as well. Therefore, these are the industries EdTech startups may want to tap into by 2025.

Make Technology Work on You in Your EdTech Product

Would you like to keep up with the trends and extend the capabilities of your EdTech platform? Are you determined to enter the market with a fresh product that pushes the boundaries with cutting-edge technology?

An experienced 8allocate team is here to help you, no matter what your tech needs are. Just get in touch with us, and we’ll arrange a call to discuss how our expertise will help you win the place under the sun in a saturated EdTech market.