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Saturday, September 11, 2010

Barcode Hero Addictive Shopping Game

Including games into arduous or boring tasks is a good idea, but in a few examples I have seen, has not worked well. Just starting to take a look at this example, Barcode Hero, a smartphone App, which links shopping and games. Strongly connected to Facebook. Skeptical, but I am taking a closer look at it now.

Barcode Hero Attacks In-Store Shopping With An Addictive Social Game
by MG Siegler on Aug 16, 2010
You’re likely aware of Foursquare, the location-based service that turns checking-in to venues into a game of sorts. You may also be aware of StickyBits, an app that turns barcodes into message boards. What do you get when you combine them? Barcode Hero, a new product by Kima Labs, a startup founded by two Amazon veterans.

The main idea behind the service is an app that attempts to make shopping more social. A user takes their phone into a store, launches the app, and starts scanning the barcodes of items they’re interested in. Doing so unlocks points and rewards such as dukedoms and kingships — yes, the Foursquare idea, but here it’s for product categories. More importantly, this scanning allows Barcode Hero to build up a database of information and will help them to personalize your shopping experience.

“We want to attack in-store shopping,” co-founder Blake Scholl tells us. ... "

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