Let’s continue with our series on how you can use Pokemon Go to boost your business. In part one, we talked about how to find out if you happen to be near one of the game’s Pokespots or gyms. We also talked about how to take advantage of the Pokespots by purchasing and using lures within the game. Here we’ve got a few suggestions on how you can take advantage of being close to a gym area, and things you can do if you’re not close to either.
Get In On The Action Near Gyms
If you happen to be near a gym, you should see a fairly good amount of Pokemon Go player traffic around the clock. The gyms are where players meet up to battle and fight for control of game areas.
The best way to take advantage of this traffic is to get in on the action. Creativity in marketing will be a big factor here.
Selling special Pokemon items is, of course, a popular way to get people to spend a few dollars. You can also have gym badges made up to sell and display. Do a quick search on Google for “pokemon gym badge” and you’ll see what they are. You should have a few ideas on how you can use them to your advantage within a few minutes.
Keeping score in the battles and offering special giveaways or discounts to teams currently in control is another great way to get players interacting with your business. You can follow the action yourself or just ask players what’s been happening and update signage accordingly. You can even make posts and upload pictures on social media, making use of relevant hashtags of course, to generate more buzz.
Outside The Gyms And Pokestops
The gyms and Pokestops are special areas, but Pokemon can be found pretty much anywhere. If you download the app and experiment yourself, you’re sure to find several in the area around you.
You can promote the Pokemon in the area around your business on social media to generate more foot traffic. Reddit users have created a chart listing which Pokemon are the most rare and hard to find. If any of the more rare characters are near you, advertising them will definitely generate some interest.
If it fits with your particular business, you can also take things on the road and go to where the Pokemon are. If you’ve got a food business, sending a rep out with some free samples or inexpensive snacks can be a great way to take advantage of an open area that is attracting players, such as a park, or even a street corner. Other businesses might be able to sell small items or, at the very least, hand out flyers advertising specials or deals that players might find attractive.
Another option is to offer users an incentive to promote you on their social network accounts. You could offer discounts or free items to players who provide proof they’ve uploaded photos showing a rare Pokemon capture at your location, for example. Ask them to tag you in any posts they share and you could find yourself in the middle of a free and lucrative viral marketing campaign.
Put Yourself In The Pokemon Path
As you can see, a little bit of creativity is what’s going to work best for taking advantage of the Pokemon Go craze. Perhaps the key thing to remember here is that the game has players of all ages moving to and from more or less predefined locations. It’s not hard to figure out where those locations are.
You can download the app and experiment a bit to find out where people are likely to be going. You’ll see the same information everyone else does. Once you’ve established a few places that should prove popular, figure out how to put yourself in players’ paths and you’ve got a pretty well guaranteed source of foot traffic. The game is already hyper-social. It’s a great way to create engagement with potential customers. Use your imagination and take advantage of it while it lasts!
