#SXSWi Saturday Keynote: Seth Priebatsch of scvngr

My computer battery has died, so no live blogging. But here are my raw session notes for this keynote.Seth is founder and CEO of scvngr, which has 1 million users."The Game Layer on Top of the World"(I think Seth's favorite color is orange: computer, sunglasses and computer.)Last decade was the decade of social: network has been built as Facebook.Next decade is the decade of games and will traffic in influence. Seeks to act on individual motivation. Has the opportunity to have more influence.Game Layer Can Influence1. School2. Customer acquisition3. Loyalty4. Moving location based programs into the mainstream5. Global warming1. School is a game.But engagement and cheating are a problem. Game mechanics can fix these problems.Grading doesn't motivate engagement; grades are failing as rewards. Instead, approach it as a progression, focusing on the end result. You don't lose, you just don't get as many points.Cheating is currently being fought with a game mechanic of disincentives. But you only get punished if you get caught. So people find a work around to keep from getting caught. To get people not to cheat, you change the game. Princeton keeps people from cheating by integrating an honor code and allowing the students to be the enforcers.2. Customer AcquisitionDissecting Groupon:Free lunchCommunal gameplayCountdownFree LunchToo good to be true? We are naturally skeptical, but we see the catch: a certain number of people must buy. 95% of Groupons tip by 8 AM.Communal GameplayBased on the idea that you can give someone a complex problem and through the community, anyone can solve the problem.CountdownCreates a spike in activity the closer it gets to zero.All of these elements, plus an email list = Groupon.3. LoyaltyAll about status. American Express does a great job with this through their color-coded card."The Level-Up" means you get more for less the more you use the service. Scvngr just launched a beta using this principle.Exclusive ownership is like playing the game Risk. Inclusive ownership flips this on it's head and creates a society among all the people that have checked into the same place (Whrll trying this).4. Moving LBS MainstreamLocation-based services are not mainstream, but everyone is trying and pouring a ton of money into it.The strict rule of LBS is that you have to be at a place to play. If we ease this rule, will we get more people engaged?Rewards schedules idea: what do I get for doing this? This is why we have seen all LBS introduce a rewards system. Rewards spike engagement and activity. However, after getting the reward, people stop checking in when there is no reward availability. All LBS are considering this problem now.5. Global WarmingTaking impossible problems and make them at least possible through a game. Priebatsch now going to demonstrate with an audience game.Very good game has a prize. If the audience wins, scvngr will donate $10,000 to the National Wildlife Federation.Problem: colored cards are scattered through the audience. Audience has to trade to get one color per row in 180 seconds. The audience won. The power of communal gameplay can overcome:Lack of communicationTrading patternsRestricted movement (couldn't stand up)Decentralized resourcesWealth (some people had multiple cards)CountdownJoint goalThe results:Part of something bugger than yourself (epic meaning).Game dynamics are powerful.