Changes to you Gamification Strategy

Hey  ​@Jacob 
Thanks for asking!

On rank system - we recently actually did make a change in our community very recently. We ensured that we communicated that to our members here - you can find the details here. 

We do have an exclusive VIP area which consists of our top users, although it’s a very new area that we have launched. Our point system changed quite a bit during this and we've introduced sub levels for each rank as well. It's been working well so far for us, although we might revisit it later again just to fine-tune it.
 

I’m also gonna loop in some helpful friends off the top of my head, who’ve also done some solid stuff around super users - ​@DannyPancratz ​@Johnk ​@revote ​@Lena H. ​@bjoern_schulze ​ ​@Alistair FIeld 

For me, this only really impacts our super users. I recently reworked that program in Oct/Nov. It was the second time I’ve reworked it. We were moving from a superuser program to 

Here’s the approach I took. 

For current superusers

1. Share the new requirements with superusers - ask for feedback
2. Wait; I gave it at least 3 weeks. (Also, be sure to give them an ETA for when it goes into effect in #1)
3. Incorporate feedback, if applicable
4. Confirm the new requirements with the superusers, pointing out any feedback you incorporated or details you’ve refined.
   1. Do your best to make this new version as clear as possible.
5. Give the existing superusers extra time.
   1. Our terms last one year; when I made the changes, I reset the terms for all existing superusers to start anew when the new requirements went into effect. AND I gave them an extra month to meet the requirements during this first term. 
   2. Message you’re sending: “I know this is different than before, but I’m giving you a fresh clock and also extra time this first time around. You have some extra time to adjust and to factor the new requirements into your planning, assuming you want to maintain this status. ”
   3. Applying new requirements retroactively isn’t really fair IMO. 
6. Develop tools for them to track their progress and/or reinforce the new requirements with friendly reminders during the first few months

For others

1. Forecast that changes are coming.
   1. I did this in a monthly update blog in the six weeks leading up to it.
   2. I also commented on the article that outlined the existing state and mentioned that it was coming.
2. Make the updates and announce the changes.
3. Grandfather in anyone who may be in progress to earning xyz status under the old criteria (but with the new expectations if/when they achieve that status).
   1. You can put a deadline on it. 
   2. Or if the new criteria is more beneficial for them, point that out.
   3. A private message or email to relevant users is a best practice here imo. 
4. Remind them of the changes in subsequent touchpoints.
   1. Update blogs or newsletters or whatever. 

Ultimately, the complexity that had developed as our gamification/recognition programs grew was leading to some long articles. So I developed a https://community.unqork.com/p/recognition and another for our superuser program. It’s mostly quicklinks, but they often anchor to specific sections in larger articles. And it allows you to break gamification details into smaller articles. 

For my point of view, communication is the thing. Obviously 😀

Communicate beforehand with the users,  possible issues and ask how they feel and if possible, what they would change and how.

When you have plans for the next consept, share it to your users and ask feedback. Listen, explain, adjust details if needed.

Something like ​@DannyPancratz said above. I dont want open too much publicly but few thoughts still 😊

Thanks so much ​@DannyPancratz and ​@revote. Really helpful insights.