5 Reasons Why You Should Take Pokémon Go Seriously

Since it “dropped” about a week and a half ago, I’ve been testing out the Canadian version of Pokémon Go for 2 reasons. First, I think it’s important as a marketer that if there is a chance a platform or app is going to blow up, I need to be on it and understand it to help determine whether it should enter into one of my client’s marketing mix. Second, I grew up playing the game when I was in elementary school, so it was familiar. Throughout the same time span I’ve heard all types of opinions, from the game is childish to it will only be here for a month or two. All may be true, but it hasn’t stopped it from blowing up and landing more active users than Tinder and Twitter in the US. Here are 5 reasons why I think you need to take this app seriously as something that will probably be here for a while.

1. Nostalgia

As I mentioned earlier I grew up playing the game when I was in elementary school. Especially in the winter time when we couldn’t play basketball outdoors, bunches of us would be huddled around with our gameboys and link cables and would be battling each other every day. Nintendo has done a great job creating a game that appeals to the younger generation as it always has, but made a game accessible to those in the 25–30 range who have high end smart phones. Nostalgia is one powerful emotion and it’s one reason why you see so many “older” people playing, it brings them back to a hopefully happier and simpler time in life when catching a Pikachu was one of life’s biggest problems.

2. First Widespread Augmented Reality Implementation

We’ve seen attempts at it but I must say, Nintendo and Niantic has done an incredible job of overlaying this game on top of Google Maps and integrating local art installations, graffiti, churches and landmarks into the game. There are little gems around my offices that I’m finding out about every day that I have walked past blindly for the last few years. The fact you can catch things in your office has my Instagram and Twitter feed’s filled by images from anyone from Directors to students catching Pokémon.

3. Benefit for Businesses

There’s a few companies around my place of employment that have benefitted greatly from setting “lures” up during businesses hours. A “lure” is something you can earn (although sparingly) or purchase for $1.20 for half an hour that attracts nearby Pokémon to that area in that timespan. Those businesses keep one up during the working day, so let’s say 10 hours for a restaurant. 20x $1.20 is $24 for a constant stream of people passing by in front of your store, but more than that, users generally crowd and hangout around lures for long periods of time. If a restaurant sells 3–4 meals per day from those Lures (taking into account cost of goods sold) they make their money back while exposing themselves to new customers every day. Of course, Nintendo plans to make this more expensive moving forward to capitalize on the business aspect of it all. McDonalds struck a custom deal with Niantec and Nintendo and sales jumped 27% in July since the game launched.

4. Community Building

Most people now assume that if your head’s down in your phone while walking on the sidewalk, chances are you’re playing the game. Buzzfeed recently discovered that in New York more than 1/3 of people with their phone on in front of them were playing the game. When the game first released in Toronto, there was a “launch party” where more than 700 people attended. In this Vice video, players bond instantly, based solely on their mutual love of the game. The community aspect of this game is huge and will continue to grow. I’m super excited to see how it affects colleges and universities once schools begin again.

5. Mental Health and Physical Benefits

For years, parents have complained that kids need to get out of the house more. There is now firm evidence that suggests that this game has improved mental health outcomes for some users who have had anxiety and other challenges. An upcoming study is tracking walking increases since the game has been released, and it will likely show a drastic increase in physical activity for Pokémon Go players. This user lost 25 pounds in his successful quest to catch all available Pokemon in Canada. This game is literally changing how people go about their day.