Friday Finds: 4 Reasons Pokemon Go Will Make You Want To Pull Your Hair Out

A game unlike any other: Pokémon Go players span from kids to adults who have watched the well-loved animé series. The ingenuity of the game lies in its ability to integrate everyday life with technology — a glimpse of where the world is headed. The game uses augmented reality to blend locations and sculptures found in the real world as markers in the game where users can collect items and find more Pokémon.

Since the game’s launch, it has been making headlines in almost every publication. Some examples?

1. Nintendo shares soared up to 70% since the game’s release.
2. Niantic Labs, Pokémon Go’s developer, promises to fix a coding error wherein the app requests a full access to the gamer’s Google email — potentially compromising email security. The app creator stated they only require basic Google account information.
3. Shocking news — a teenage girl who was trying to catch a water Pokémon in a Wyoming river found a dead body of an adult male.
4. Caught armed robbers in Missouri were believed to have used the geolocation feature in the Pokémon Go app to track and lure victims.

So how does this relate to you as a business owner? The answer is two-fold.

First: Cafés and restaurants have been buying ‘Lure Modules’ to place over Pokémon stops around their institution. The result? Floods of people entering into their cafés for a coffee to catch more Pokémon. It’s a great way for businesses to get themselves on the grid and attract customers that wouldn’t have known about them.

Second: The aim of the game was to get more people outside. Have you been around Hyde Park, Opera House, and other popular tourist destinations lately? You will most definitely see crowds of people sitting on their phones catching Pokémon. It’s a community-driven phenomenon that Australia hasn’t seen since the Lindt Café Seige in 2014.

The game gives us a glimpse of the power and the rate of adoption that can happen when the community gets engaged. People gravitate towards businesses that can integrate with their everyday life seamlessly. Add in a competitive element, social-proof, and a fresh take on something dull, the adoption rate will excel.

So how can you make something fresher in your industry? And can you think of any innovative ways for you to attract more customers?

P.S Want some ideas? Why don’t you check out our post on disruption, it might give you some insights on how you can be using technology to disrupt your industry.