The newest craze – Pokémon Go – released by Nintendo earlier this week, is getting more people outdoors than ever before. It’s also now the biggest game in U.S. mobile history with 21 million active daily users.
The augmented reality app encourages people to get out into the real world to hunt down Pokémon and complete other tasks. According to Forbes, it’s also become the most popular phone game of all time in just under a week, surpassing other apps like Whatsapp and Snapchat in the amount of time the application users are spending inside the app every day.
For businesses who wish to leverage this new trend and gain new patrons, here are a few ideas of ways to use Pokémon Go in your marketing campaigns.
Open up your Wi-Fi
Most players are reliant on their data plans and open networks for internet connectivity. If you have public Wi-Fi at your business – even if you already offer an open connection – be sure to advertise it as such. Get out and around your business and see how far your signal travels and let people know how far they can go, this will encourage more Pokémon hunters to frequent your business and district.
Some business districts have free Wi-Fi connections set up for local patrons. If you’re in one, remind your customers of this public service and invite them to come charge up, get connected, and take a stroll around your neighborhood.
Advertise nearby PokeStops and Gyms
The great thing about PokeStops is that they refresh about every five minutes, so if Pokémon hunters stay nearby long enough they get added benefits. To find out if you have a PokeStop near your business you’ll need to download the application (it’s free) and then search your location on the map and look for nearby spinning blue icons.
If you don’t have one nearby you can also send a request to the game developers, Niantic, to request a new PokeStop or Gym at your place of business. You can also report other PokeStops or Gyms if they are poorly located or dangerous.
Encourage show-offs
People love to show off – so let them. Give them an added incentive to come in and show off their catches!
An easy way to get people to come into your business is to offer prizes and discounts to customers who come in and show off their collection of monsters.
Host a Pokémon-hunting party
Invite your social followers and patrons to join you at your business for a Pokémon hunting party. Schedule a certain time that people need to show up to take part. Offer attendees incentives for showing up. Consider offering prizes for the best Pokémon caught as well. You might be surprised how many of your customers take you up on the offer.
While you are fully embracing the craze, you can also offer tips and advice to fellow users and share your own conquests as well. You may even want to enlist the help of your graphic designer to get a logo made for your business or Pokémon-hunting party to promote your brand as Pokémon-friendly!
Set up power stations
More than many other app-based games the Pokémon Go sucks up an incredible amount of phone battery juice. If you want to attract players to your business, be sure to advertise and set up charging stations for your Pokémon hunters’ phones.
Advertising this feature only requires a sign in the window promoting your “Pokémon Hunting Power Station” and a few announcements on social media. While they’re busy charging up, which may take a while, they’ll be tempted to patronize your business.
Announce new monsters
Because the digital Pokémon appear randomly, it pays to stay connected to the app so that you can announce when one pops up near your business. Hunters will appreciate the heads up.
In the event that you have a particularly rare Pokémon show up at your place of business you can be sure to have flocks of new potential clients stopping by to capture it. Be sure to get the word out on Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, and however else you regularly connect with your customers.
Set up comfortable rest areas for Pokémon hunters
Because the game is an augmented reality game, and requires quite a bit of walking to find monsters and hatch eggs, you’re bound to find that some players needing rest breaks. Set up a bench in front of your business or invite players inside for a rest. You can even set up water dispensers or hand out bottles of water to weary players.
As the game becomes more popular in the coming weeks and months there are bound to be other ways to leverage the app for your business marketing. Get creative and embrace the craze to make the most of this opportunity to gain new loyal clients and customers.