Audience Engagement: Designing for Intrinsic Motivations

Robert Pratten CEO & Founder, Transmedia Storyteller Ltd

@robpratten

The Need to Engage

• If we are to engage audiences – especially over an extended period of time – we have to design experiences that satisfy core human needs

• Or to phrase another way, design experiences that appeal to intrinsic motivations

What is engagement?

• Being engaged means being “in the moment” of an experience

• Being “in the moment” is sometimes referred to as “being present” e.g. one’s mind is not elsewhere but focused to the exclusion of all else

Immersion (Rigby & Ryan)

• Physical presence – player feels physically transported to

game environment

• Emotional presence – player feels as they might in real life to

real world events

• Narrative presence – player feels able to affect the story

http://www.amazon.com/Glued-Games-Spellbound-Directions-ebook/dp/B004NYAH66/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1352200740&sr=8-1

Emotion leads to immersion

Immersion Intrinsic

Motivational Needs

http://www.amazon.com/Glued-Games-Spellbound-Directions-ebook/dp/B004NYAH66/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1352200740&sr=8-1

• Physical presence

• Emotional presence

• Narrative presence

• Competency

• Autonomy

• Relatedness

In games, satisfying intrinsic motivational needs is important for immersion and more you design to create immersion so the more you’ll satisfy intrinsic motivation needs.

Self-determination Theory

• Competency – To be in control and seek mastery

• Autonomy – Free to act

• Relatedness – To be connected to others

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-determination_theory

http://www.immersyve.com/research-updates/2007/1/27/immersyves-player-experience-of-need-satisfaction-pens-model.html

“People have innate psychological needs that are the basis for self-motivation”

Used as the basis for The Player Experience of Need Satisfaction (PENS) model which seeks to understand player experience.

Human needs

• Significance (special, important, unique)

• Certainty (comfort & control)

• Variety (surprise)

• Connection (love)

• Growth (learning, mastery)

• Contribution (giving back)

Community Significance Contribution

Comfort Growth Learning Surprise

Comfort Growth

Learning Surprise

Fan Fan

Storyworld

Fandom meets human needs

Use transmedia storytelling to match intrinsic motivations

http://www.itc-arts.org/uploaded/documents/Theatre%20handbook.pdf

Audience Experience Framework

http://www.itc-arts.org/uploaded/documents/Theatre%20handbook.pdf

This framework, developed to assess theatre experiences can be used during the design process because it helps relate intrinsic motivations to expected audience satisfaction

Transmedia storytelling

• Note: Our brains don’t differentiate between fictional stories and real life

• Create a mix of “private” and “public” experiences – Understand which human needs these satisfy – Understand which commercial needs these satisfy

• Interaction with fictional characters: – Relatedness & connection – Significance, Importance, Uniqueness

• Game-based stories – Control, mastery, competence, learning

TV show + multi-platform

• TV show – Episodic = Consistency/Habit – Time-shifted & availability on other devices = Control/Autonomy

• Story – Learning, Understanding

• Social media (Twitter, Facebook) – Relatedness, Connection. Maybe significance.

• Missing Engagement? – Competence & Mastery – Significance – Growth – Contribution

Games, UGC, interaction with fictional characters

Branded Entertainment

http://www.slideshare.net/OgilvyWW/making-magic-using-logic-12262018

For brands to engage, they must embrace transmedia storytelling because TS can satisfy intrinsic motivational needs

Com

mer

cial

Goa

ls

Hum

an N

eeds

Transmedia storytelling must weave story, participation & social into single experience

Long-term engagement demands: • Good story • Participation/Interaction • Social aspect – fan-to-fan and/or fan-to-character

The End

Robert Pratten robert@tstoryteller.com

@robpratten USA: +1 415 287 4150

Europe: +44 207 193 4567

Pervasive Entertainment Platform Conducttr