Why Gamified Rewards Work for Holiday Marketing

Published: 19 September 2025

Why Gamified Rewards Work for Holiday Marketing

Holiday marketing campaigns face three challenges: competition, attention, and retention. Gamification helps tackle all three.
Here’s why gamified rewards work so well during Black Week promotions and Christmas campaigns:

Attention in the clutter → Games break through crowded inboxes, loyalty apps, and social channels. Instead of another banner, you’re inviting people to play.

Engagement that lasts → Customers spend minutes actively playing, not seconds passively scrolling. The interaction is deeper, stickier, and more memorable.

Conversion through urgency → Time-limited coupons and instant rewards make customers act quickly, especially powerful during Black Friday and Christmas sales periods.

Loyalty beyond the season → Players often come back daily or weekly for another chance to win, turning seasonal shoppers into repeat customers.

This mix of engagement and urgency is exactly why gamification has become one of the most effective holiday marketing ideas for brands looking to boost sales and loyalty.

Case Study: Klarna’s Holiday Game “Gift Factory”

One of the best examples of gamified holiday marketing comes from Klarna. Instead of relying on traditional coupon emails during Christmas, Klarna launched a branded game activation called the Gift Factory, built in Flarie Studio.

How Klarna’s Holiday Game Worked

The setup was simple but powerful:
1. CRM Email Link → Customers received a straightforward “Play Now” link in Klarna’s CRM emails.
2. The Challenge → The task was clear: Score 350 points in the game to unlock $15 off a $30+ purchase.
3. Instant Reward → Coupon codes were distributed directly inside the game once the challenge was completed.
4. Urgency Built-In → Coupons were redeemable within 7 days, encouraging fast action and new purchases.
5. Effortless Execution → The entire flow — from game setup to coupon delivery — ran seamlessly through Flarie Studio, with minimal effort from Klarna’s team.

The Results
The campaign outperformed expectations by a wide margin:
- 40% conversion rate to new purchases (vs. 5–10% benchmark)
- 96% completion rate across all players
- 5 minutes average playtime per customer

This wasn’t just a fun Christmas marketing campaign. It was a proven gamification strategy that drove both engagement and sales.

Holiday Marketing Ideas with Gamification
Looking for fresh Black Week marketing ideas or creative twists on your Christmas campaigns? Here are three gamification strategies that deliver results:

🎮 Instant Win Discounts

Scratch cards, spin the wheel, or smash the piñata - instant win mechanics add excitement and anticipation. Customers love the feeling of unlocking a reward on the spot.When you tie instant win games to short validity periods, you create urgency and boost redemption rates. This makes instant win campaigns ideal for Black Friday flash deals.

🔁 Loyalty Boosters

Most holiday campaigns focus on one-off transactions. But gamification makes it possible to encourage repeat engagement.

By rewarding customers who come back and play again, with bonus entries, exclusive offers or tiered prizes, you stretch one-off holiday buyers into repeat customers.
This approach is perfect for turning seasonal shoppers into long-term fans.

🏆 Game Center: Beyond the Christmas Calendar
Almost every brand runs a Christmas calendar. But when everyone is doing the same thing, it’s hard to stand out.
A more original approach is to launch a Branded Game Center. Think of it as a digital arcade, a hub filled with multiple holiday games and rewards. Customers return not just once a day, but repeatedly across the entire season.
A Game Center delivers variety, fun and stickiness and makes it one of the most powerful Christmas gamification ideas for brands.

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Holiday Gamification = First-Party Data + Conversions

Final Thoughts

The holiday season is the most competitive time of the year for marketers. Shoppers are bombarded with discounts. But while most brands send static coupons, you can deliver a memorable experience.

Gamification transforms Black Week promotions and Christmas marketing campaigns into playful, engaging journeys that drive urgency, loyalty and sales.

Klarna’s Gift Factory proved it: 40% of players converted into purchases.

So this year, the question is simple: will your holiday campaign be another coupon in the inbox  or the one customers actually enjoy playing?

👉 Want to explore gamified holiday marketing ideas for your brand? 

Book a playful session with our team
Be Playful,
The Flarie Team 🎮✨ 

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