Cashing In On The Pokémon Go Craze

It has been some time since this phenomenon of a game has been released and many are still as hyped as before with Pokémon Go. A lot of people are now going out more and meeting other enthusiasts while catching virtual reality monsters. So how does an entrepreneur cash in on this fad? The first step to do would be to understand what it is all about.

According to the kids in our house, there are 721 Pokémon in total in the original games, which will increase in November this year. In the current smartphone game, only the first 151 (classified as “Generation 1”) has been introduced, six of which are not yet confirmed to be obtainable. That means, if the trend will be sustained by introducing new features, items, characters, monsters, and most of all, battery-saving features, it could last for quite a while.

Local businesses and even government agencies have started taking advantage of the trend, through their campaigns and ads — some are humorous, engaging, yet informative (kudos, MMDA), while others are the total opposite.

For those who are not quite as young as the crowd such as me who had to undergo a lengthy discussion with a seven-year-old, here are a few terms to get you acquainted with the game:

1. There are two possible goals in the game: To obtain all monsters, and/or to battle and capture “gyms” for your team.

2. Gyms are like territories, that are random real-world establishments or landmarks that have been randomly marked by the developers. This is where players can make their Pokémon fight. They are represented in the game as tall towers, bearing the color of the owning team. Currently, there is no feature that will allow establishments to apply as gyms.

3. There are three teams that players can join when they reach level 5. These teams represent different values and motto.

4. Poké-stops are also random establishments/ landmarks where players can obtain free items, or use an item called a “lure module” which increases the rate of Pokémon appearing for a given amount of time.

5. To obtain a Pokémon, a player can catch randomly appearing monsters, or hatch eggs obtained in Poké-stops, by walking a set distance.

Now that everything has been defined, here are some ideas on how businesses can take advantage of the trend:

Decide. Not all trends are good for the business. The questions you must answer first: “Who are included in the trend and are they my target market?” Clothing stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and cafés can effectively ride the trend. However, for businesses that require fast turn-over for customers, dropping lure modules or making lengthy activities that will make the players crowd your area is not advisable. Pokémon-Go is mostly played by millennials down to Generation Z kids. This means that 4:00 p.m., when classes have ended, and offices are closing, is the time when most people go online to play the game and the earliest time also that you should start your activities.

Timed events. For those who are lucky enough to have their establishments as gyms, you can probably give discounts or freebies to those who currently own the gym. To add more flair, you can announce a given time wherein anyone who holds the gym by that time (and has purchased a product) will receive your reward(s). Watch as people rush through their phones and fight it out (hopefully through the game). You can do this weekly to pull back your current customers.

For Poké-stops, attract young customers to stay by dropping lure modules. These can be bought through an in-app purchase, which costs real money.

Catching and egg-hatching contests. Remember that hatching eggs require you to walk? This would be a great chance for your business, or for non-profit organizations to launch a mini-fun run. First one to hatch a set number of eggs wins! Or, you can have a hunting contest where the player with the most number of captures within the given time limit wins.

There are a lot more of ideas that can be spawned through this trend. Probably, in the near feature, applications to become gyms will be implemented and new features can seed clever marketing activities. The important thing is to understand how the trend works and how to make the trend work for you.

*Originally published by the Manila Bulletin, C-4, Sunday, August 21, 2016. Written by Ruben Anlacan, Jr. (President, BusinessCoach, Inc.) All rights reserved. May not be reproduced or copied without express written permission of the copyright holders.