Gamification in the Most Delightful Way
The simple & fun way Robinhood gives out free shares of stock
Not only does Robinhood have one of the nicest designs I’ve seen in a while, it also does a fantastic job of delighting users when they receive free stock.
First, you choose between three golden tickets. My guess is that you’d probably get the same stock if you chose any of the tickets. But that doesn’t matter, because while you’re doing it, it feels like you’re making a real decision. Like the outcome will be different if you choose the one in the middle rather the one on the right or vice versa.
After you’ve made your selection, you then get to “scrub” the ticket. Think of it like a scratch-off lottery ticket, but in a digital format. You get that same feeling of excitement while performing this action.
Once you’re done scrubbing, the stock you’re rewarded with is revealed as you get showered with confetti and a congratulatory message. The entire process only takes about 15-seconds but it’s one of those experiences that stick with you.
Now compare that experience with how most apps reward you. Usually a pop-up message once you’ve logged in saying something like, “Congratulations, here’s your thing. Have fun.” Sure, it does the job but where’s the joy?
What the team at Robinhood created is what we strive for as designers. We want the experiences we create to be memorable. We want other designers to dissect and analyze it. We want users to want to go thru it again for no reason other than it was fun to do.
I encourage you to try it out for yourself, and who knows, maybe you’ll get lucky and get a free share of Apple stock (and if you’re going to do it, you might as well use this link so I get another chance at it 🙌).
