playful brands
how brands can harness the power of play
On May 14, 2022, long lines formed outside IKEA at Vienna Westbahnhof. The reason wasn't a sale event, but rather the IKEA Board Game Night, which featured over 100 analog board games and saw more than 500 people sitting at the tables in the IKEA restaurant, just playing. The surprising and overwhelming success of this event is tied to a simple truth that's often overlooked amidst chatbots, self-checkouts, and the metaverse: people enjoy spending time with other people.
The more digital our world becomes, the more we crave genuine, interpersonal experiences. Two years of the pandemic have only intensified this longing. Analog games bring people together around a table and create immersive, shared worlds where we experience adventures, solve puzzles, tackle challenges, negotiate, conspire, or cooperatively save the world—all without silly headsets. Board games, card games, and role-playing games also have long-term positive effects on players. They enhance strategic thinking, decision-making, adaptability, resilience, and cooperation—skills that are more sought after than ever in companies and agencies.
The “Zukunftsinstitut” (Future Institute) has dedicated an entire report to the topic of "Playful Business", making a distinction between "Game" (rule-based play) and "Play" (human play instinct). They recommend blending both to create a playful corporate environment. However, the specifics of this are vaguely described, and the authors often bump into the dilemma that outcome-driven play isn't truly "play". According to Johan Huizinga, all culture originates from play, and seriousness is simply non-play. With this thought foundation, I'd like to highlight three ways brands can harness the creative and connective power of play:
playful minds
Invest in analog games and create temporal and physical spaces to play more within and among your teams. Especially suitable for this are beginner-friendly, cooperative games like Just One, Perfect Match, The Mind, or the starter set of Dungeons & Dragons. Over time, players develop a "Playful Mind", which denotes intellectual, emotional, and organizational flexibility. This is particularly vital for companies undergoing change. They also learn to handle unpredictability and foster a healthy culture of accepting mistakes.
playful business
Provide LEGO® and crafting materials, allowing your teams to invent things, services, solutions, or express ideas and emotions that otherwise wouldn't have a platform. Using LEGO® and Serious Play® is one of the most effective methods to balance seriousness and play or productivity and playful freedom, thus creating true playfulness even in outcome-driven workshops.
playful experiences
Companies should leverage their resources to bring people together playfully and foster creative playfulness. Brands can serve as enablers, creating spaces filled with emotions and playfulness. These can range from massive Board Game Nights, exclusive Dungeons & Dragons sessions, to playrooms brimming with LEGO® bricks. The main thing is that these spaces aren't overly burdened with sales or customer loyalty expectations, but instead generate unforgettable moments, playful creativity, interpersonal connections, and ultimately, brand love.