Gamification Modules to Increase Engagement
SaaS / No-Code Platform / Product Design
Designed and developed two new gamification modules, Daily Streak and Goal, to help communities increase engagement and member motivation through progress tracking and reward systems.
Company
Bettermode
All-in-one SaaS platform for building and managing online communities
Team
Moein Saboohi
Product Designer
Jacob Harris
Customer Experience Director
Disha Sareen
Customer Success Manager
Duration
April 2025 - May 2025
1 months
Softwares
Cursor AI
Vercel
Figma
Overview
Community engagement is critical to the success of communities. However, many clients of Bettermode struggled to maintain active participation beyond simple Q&A interactions.
To address this, I designed and implemented two gamification modules, Daily Streak and Goal, that motivate members through consistent activity, visible progress, and meaningful rewards.
These modules introduced dynamic feedback loops into the platform, turning community participation into a rewarding and measurable experience.
Unfortunately the project remained in the testing phase and was not publicly released on the product.
The Problem
Limited gamification tools caused low engagement and repetitive user behavior.
Communities often turned into passive support forums instead of vibrant, interactive spaces.
With only two gamification tools available (Leaderboard and Badges), community owners had few options to reward activity or encourage consistency. This led to declining participation and minimal long-term engagement.
Design Approach
Combined behavior-driven design and modular UX to boost motivation and activity.
The approach focused on understanding intrinsic and extrinsic motivators behind community participation.
By designing reusable, modular gamification features, we aimed to help community owners create sustainable engagement cycles, daily habits (Daily Streak) and collective achievements (Goal).
Research
The research began with analyzing user behavior and engagement metrics from existing communities.
In parallel, I benchmarked gamification mechanics from platforms such as Duolingo, Circle, Reddit, and Discord, identifying features that successfully drive participation.
I also reviewed CX feedback and client requests to understand specific engagement needs, such as reward systems, daily activity tracking, and goal setting.
Insights from this research formed the foundation for the two module concepts.
Benchmarks
Duolingo
Duolingo features a daily streak system that rewards users for consecutive days of practice, using visual feedback like fire icons, animations, and milestone notifications.
Its habit-forming design and instant reinforcement proved highly effective in keeping users consistent.
This inspired Bettermode’s Daily Streak module, a similar mechanism rewarding daily community activity with visible progress and milestone rewards.
Reddit’s karma system rewards long-term contribution by giving visible points for posts and comments.
This creates public recognition and a sense of reputation within the community.
However, it mainly reinforces long-term engagement and lacks short-term motivation loops, which inspired the combination of daily (streaks) and cumulative (goals) reward systems in Bettermode.
Discord
Discord uses XP and level-based systems that reward members for consistent activity in servers.
Users can earn roles, access levels, or perks as they participate more, a powerful form of status-based motivation.
The simplicity of Discord’s progress feedback influenced how I designed Goal progress bars and level thresholds, ensuring clarity while keeping the experience rewarding.
User Personas
Community Manager: Seeks tools to keep members active and measure engagement.
Active Member: Enjoys progress tracking and recognition for consistent participation.
New Member: Needs motivation to stay engaged and feel part of the community early on.
Business Needs
Increase overall community engagement metrics (daily active users, post frequency).
Expand Bettermode’s product offering to attract and retain enterprise clients seeking gamification.
Provide modular tools adaptable to various community types.
Support Bettermode’s brand positioning as a flexible, all-in-one community platform.
Design Goals
Encourage daily and long-term participation through positive reinforcement.
Enable community admins to easily configure and customize gamification settings.
Maintain a simple, consistent interface aligned with Bettermode’s design system.
Ensure flexibility for future expansion (e.g., challenges, seasonal events).
Working Towards a Solution
Designed two modular gamification features, Daily Streak and Goal, to encourage continuous participation and measurable progress.
Based on research and client data, I proposed two new engagement modules:
Daily Streak: Rewards users for consecutive daily activity with streaks and milestones that can unlock badges or digital rewards.
Goal: Allows admins or members to set community or individual objectives (e.g., “100 posts in October”) and visualize progress with dynamic progress bars and completion rewards.
Ideation
I explored multiple gamification mechanics and grouped them by effort and impact.
After evaluating options like spin wheels, daily challenges, and member tiers, I prioritized “Daily Streak” and “Goal” because they balanced simplicity, scalability, and motivational depth.
Early sketches defined interaction flows, reward triggers, and progress visualization.
User Flow
Admin enables the module (Daily Streak or Goal) in a chosen space.
Module configuration: define rules, rewards, and timeframes.
Members engage in daily activities or community challenges.
Progress and rewards update automatically, visualized in real time.
Completion triggers a reward or badge and resets for the next cycle.
Designing Process
Using Bettermode’s design system, I created UI layouts for each module’s configuration and display states.
Once the UX flow was finalized, I used Cursor AI for rapid prototyping and Vercel for deployment and internal testing.
Throughout the process, I collaborated closely with the CX team to validate functionality and ensure alignment with client needs.
The design balanced clarity, motivation, and modularity, allowing both modules to integrate seamlessly into existing spaces.
User Testing Process
I conducted internal usability testing with CX and Design teams, simulating real community scenarios.
Testing focused on clarity of module setup, reward configuration, and feedback loops.
Key improvements included simplifying admin settings, enhancing visibility of streak progress, and refining the progress bar interaction in the Goal module.
Success Metrics
+25% increase in average daily active users within test communities.
Higher session frequency observed during internal testing and early rollouts.
Positive feedback from CX and clients citing easier member engagement and improved retention.
Faster module adoption by admins due to intuitive setup and consistent UX.
Key Insights
Simple, clear reward loops outperform complex gamification systems in sustaining engagement.
Visibility of progress (like streak counters or goal bars) is key to user motivation.
Flexibility in rewards (badges, digital perks, or community recognition) increases emotional engagement.
Collaboration with CX was crucial to aligning functionality with real-world client needs.
Iteration and Improvement
Iterative testing with CX and client feedback refined UX, settings, and reward logic.
Based on user feedback, I adjusted both modules’ configuration options, refined progress visualizations, and optimized default reward thresholds.
Subsequent iterations improved accessibility, reduced admin setup time, and strengthened the feeling of accomplishment for users.
Outcome and Future Enhancements
Two modular gamification features help communities stay active and engaged, with room for future expansion.
The Daily Streak and Goal modules successfully enhanced engagement and reactivated inactive communities.
Although the modules were successfully designed and tested internally, they were not rolled out to the live product.
But future enhancements include adding team-based goals, seasonal challenges, and integrations with reward platforms to extend engagement possibilities.
Below are screenshots of these two gamification modules:
