Starbucks Card Mobile这类手机支付应用已开始崭露头角，新一代手机应用将把电子商务和手机游戏结合在一起，让如今的企业应用体验更加引人入胜，推动移动行业进入一个新纪元。

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手机应用新创意：手机游戏+电子商务

迄今为止，即便是最精心构思的手机企业应用都相对缺乏想象力。是的，能让用户在无聊时的候阅读下手机新闻和娱乐资讯，真的很不错。同时还能了解Facebook粉丝网站上的相关资讯……这些听起来都很棒。还有就是可以随时随地购物？大家应该都很喜欢这样——特别是Target、亚马逊、Crate、Barrel、REI以及如今的星巴克都纷纷推出了新应用，我们只要轻轻一点，就可以买到东西。但游戏邦认为这些应用还无法真正虏获消费者的心，让他们心甘情愿地为这些服务掏腰包。

环顾四周，智能手机用户都在做什么？男男女女，老老少少都是在玩游戏。《愤怒的小鸟》这款下载量已超过1亿次的游戏，自然是用户的首选，同时也有些用户在玩《糖果小怪物》、《宝石迷阵》以及其他富有吸引力的手机游戏。不论是在公交站、银行排队、午餐时间还是电话会议期间，我们都会花几个小时挑战自我、开启游戏内容以及探索新功能。我们通过保存游戏进程，或者同身边的其他手机用户竞争来创建游戏玩家群体，我们所讲的可不仅仅是免费游戏。游戏邦了解到，预计2014年手机游戏行业的15亿美元营收中，有超过13亿美元是付费游戏的贡献。

虽然许多应用已经很受消费者的欢迎，但是在30多万款iPhone应用中，还没有一者是手机游戏和电子商务相结合的典型。营销人员是时候去挖掘手机游戏固有的吸引力和病毒式传播能力，利用玩家对游戏的忠诚度，通过大量的玩家群体顺利创收。

多领域元素融合的优势

迄今为止，移动电子商务、地理定位市场营销和社交游戏都在快速而独立地向前发展，但退一步仔细思考，我们就会发现如果这些元素可以通过手机游戏融为一体，这实在是一个令人兴奋的创意。

手机游戏是企业产品和消费者的完美纽带。还有什么方式比有趣的游戏更容易能让我们自愿登记个人信息？用户渴望在游戏中不断进步，晋升到更高等级。游戏邦认为如果他们愿意为游戏花费0.99美元或者1.99美元来换取虚拟回报，那么假如游戏以现实生活中的真实甜头回馈用户，那对他们来说更是一种富有吸引力的超级体验。如果游戏能够为高级用户，或者通过特殊测试的赢家提供特别的礼物、优惠券或者VIP身份，那么他们就会愿意一直回来玩游戏。现在加入一些电子商务的元素：为什么不能通过iPhone操作一笔交易行为，然后开启新关卡或功能，获得更具黏性的游戏体验？我们可以想象以下这些操作所带来的良性循环：

* 在星巴克店里排队的时候玩游戏，排到柜台时就可以领取一杯免费的拿铁咖啡。

* 你在带儿子去滑雪的路上，让他通过玩游戏换取一张乘坐滑雪缆车的打折券。

* 每次使用手机买东西后，用户可以享受到自己喜爱游戏的优化升级版本。

类似的现实回馈设想还有很多，游戏邦认为大型企业没有理由不在手机游戏中融入电子商务元素，而手机游戏也完全可以通过这种途径获益。有人预测：在不久的将来，产品销量、特价优惠、免运费等活动的执行力度将不再取决于零售商的促销计划，而是消费者在游戏中的表现。

对数字游戏市场营销人员来说，手机功能、高端用户和社交游戏的爆炸式发展，是他们的三个理想推广条件。但游戏和电子商务的结合还只是这种设想的冰山一角，如果再加上地理定位、社交扫描和团购等现实元素，相信手机游戏的未来发展还有无限多种可能。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，转载请注明来源：游戏邦）

Mobile Gaming + E-commerce = a Win for Brands

Mobile-payment apps such as Starbucks Card Mobile are only the beginning. Brace yourself for a new generation of mobile apps that combine e-commerce with mobile gaming to create experiences that make today’s branded apps look about as compelling as Tic-tac-toe and drive a new era of explosive mobile growth.

What are they waiting for?

To date, even the most well-intentioned mobile brand initiatives have suffered from a failure of imagination. Yes, being able to fill idle moments with mobile news and entertainment is nice. Being able to “like” things on Facebook fan sites … OK, that sounds good, too. Being able to shop anywhere, anytime? Love it — especially now that Target, Amazon, Crate and Barrel, REI, and now Starbucks have apps that let us buy and ship products with a single touch or swipe. But they still can’t come close to the apps that truly capture consumers’ hearts, thumbs, and coveted wallets.

Look around. What are people really doing with their smartphones? Men and women, young and old — it’s all about gaming. Angry Birds, anyone? With more than 50 million downloads and counting, maybe that should be: Angry Birds, everyone — along with plenty of Cut The Rope, Bejeweled, and other incredibly addictive mobile-gaming apps.

At the bus stop, in line at the bank, over lunch hour, and during conference calls (come on, admit it), we spend hours playing to beat our personal best, unlock content, and access new features. We build communities by saving progress or competing with other mobile users around us. And we’re not just talking about “why not” freebies here; of the $1.5 billion in revenues projected for mobile gaming by 2014, more than $1.3 billion is expected to come from paid gaming.

Yet, as far as I can tell, in spite of this resounding vote from consumers, not a single one of the 300,000 iPhone apps now available bothers to incorporate mobile gaming into e-commerce. It’s time for marketers to tap into the inherently engaging and viral nature of mobile games, leverage the loyalty of the consumers who love them, and cash in on the communities being built.

The verge of convergence

Until now, the rapid pace of development of mobile commerce, location-based marketing, and social gaming has meant that each has moved forward individually, but the real excitement begins when we step back and consider what happens when these capabilities are combined within a single mobile experience.

Mobile gaming can be the perfect introduction between brands and consumers. What better way to get me to register personal information than to entice me with a fantastic new game? Consumers crave the experience of moving forward in games and achieving the ever-higher rank, and if they’re willing to pay $0.99 or $1.99 for games with only virtual rewards, imagine how much more compelling they’ll find a game that can pay off in real-world tangible goodies. Reward high-ranking players and those who win special tests or levels with access to exclusive offers, coupons, and customer recognition and they’ll come back again and again. Now, add in a little e-commerce: how about if that one-swipe purchase I make with my iPhone unlocks new levels or features to make my gaming experience even more engaging? Talk about a virtuous circle. Imagine:

# Spending your time in the Starbucks line playing a game that could win you a free latte by the time you reach the counter.

# Letting your son play for a discounted ski lift ticket on the way to the slopes.

# Having a favorite game that gets bigger and better every time you use your phone to buy groceries.

The possibilities are truly endless. In fact, there’s no reason every large brand can’t have a compelling game with an e-commerce component (or vice versa). Here’s my prediction: In the not so distant future, sales, special offers, and free shipping will no longer be administered by the promotional schedule of the retailer, but by the gaming performance of the consumer. Playing and playing well will pay off in special access, special deals, and special treatment. What better way to build and move up the ladder of a social network than leveling? The more I play the more I get … perfect!

2011: Game on

As you can tell, I’m excited about the junction of mobile functionality, sophisticated users, and the explosion of social gaming — it’s a digital marketer’s dream.

But the combination of gaming and e-commerce is just the tip of the iceberg. Have I mentioned what happens when you add geolocation, social scanning and group buying to the picture? Stay tuned. （source:adage.com）