Viggle is an iOS application that pays users to watch television.
The Viggle application is best described as a TV version of Shazam, the popular mobile application that identifies music by listening and relaying back artist, album and song title to the user.
So what does Viggle do and how does it work?
Well -
- First: As you're sitting down to watch television, open the app and check in to the television program you are tuned into
- Second: To verify that you're actually tuned in to the program you checked in to, Viggle will listen to the audio coming from the television and either confirm or deny your check in
- Third: Set your phone down and forget it. If your program is confirmed (i.e. if you're actually watching the show you checked in to) you will be awarded points for every minute you watch
- Fourth: These points accumulate over time and can eventually be redeemed for gift cards / offers at Best Buy, Burger King and more
Viggle also connects to your social networks, allowing users to share which television programs they're watching to friends & family
At this point in time, there are only a few down sides I see to the Viggle model:
- Fraudulent Viewing: Yes, Viggle will verify that you're tuned into the show you checked in to, but are users actually paying attention the entire time or simply leaving their phones next to the television?
- Measurable Results: At some point, Viggle will need a 2.0 version that allows brands to include more engaging and/or measurable actions for users to take in order to back into more concrete performance metrics
Viggle, and other similar products that pop up, could change the way users engage with traditional and digital content moving forward.
How will your brand utilize tactics like these in the future?
