Categories
Netflix

How Social Games Keep Customers Coming Back

One of the most popular features of social media sites is the various social games.  Some reports show that millions of people are actively playing various games every day and the number of new players continues to climb at a breakneck pace.  How is this type of growth possible in such a short amount of time?  The answer is glaringly simple.

Reward Customers for the Right Actions

The various makers of 3D games have used different reward systems to get people interested in not just playing but in continued repeat visits to the site.  For instance, some rewards are free giveaways to people just for showing up at the site.  Other rewards are based on a time limit.  Some of the time limits involve tasks that can be completed in a matter of minutes.  Other tasks take hours or even a full day to accomplish.  This keeps people interested in coming back at a later date to check on the status of their efforts.

Give Customers the Controls

Another feature that is such a drawing point for newcomers is the control people have within the game.  Regardless of whether the player is building a farm, operating an automobile shop or designing a city, the player can make numerous changes and modifications with simple clicks.  These clicks are interactive and allow the players to feel that they are immersed in this new world even though their actions are limited mouse movements.

Promote Across Brands

A popular marketing tactic that has been around for years is the cross promotion of sister products.  A large corporation that manufactures floor cleaner may send out coupons for a new mop.  Snack manufacturers have been bought by soft drink companies so that each product could refer customers to the other product.  The same is being done with social games.  Some of the bigger players in the social game industry are playing to their strengths by promoting their new games to their existing base of customers.  This draws in new people based on the familiarity of the existing brand name.

Viral Has its Advantages

Besides the rewards system and the interaction with players, another tool used by social games is the viral component.  People on social sites see new updates about a friend’s progress in a game through the chat feed.  This encourages people that have not tried the game to investigate and see what all of the buzz is about.

Categories
Netflix XBOX 360

Netflix and XBOX 360 Offer Movies Instantly to Homes

Netflix and XBOX 360 Offer Movies Instantly to Homes

In a press release earlier this month, Netflix announced that 1 million XBOX Live Gold users have activated Netflix on the XBOX systems. This occurred over the past three months since XBOX Live became available in November of 2008. The service allows these members to instantly watch movies and television episodes directly through their video game devices.

Netflix New Releases
Netflix New Releases (Photo credit: stevegarfield)

Thousands of Titles and More Coming

So far 1.5 billion minutes of content has been downloaded and watched through the XBOX 360 Netflix agreement. Netflix is offering over 12,000 movies and tv episodes for immediate viewing through download. The number of titles available is expected to group along with the number of high definition (HD) titles offered.