Constitutional Law

Scaling the Beanstockd Game

By Sandra Ekong

When we developed the Beanstockd concept we created it with a specific target demographic in mind: college students and young professionals with a taste for trends, technology, and some passing knowledge of the green movement. These were our friends on campus and fresh out of school- intelligent young adults who were aware of the environmental crisis, but were busy! As such, they did not have enough incentive or structure to enable them to "go green" in their everyday lives. Beanstockd was initially tailored to this specific population, and as we built out the game and shared the idea with fellow entrepreneurs we received some interesting ideas and feedback that led us to consider other verticals.

The first new vertical was elementary schools, a venue that may prove to be a successful launch site for the game. Schools nationwide are not only integrating technology into their curriculum but environmental education as well; at the same time children are increasingly tech-savvy and are becoming adept gamers and social networkers. Pairing the Beanstockd Game with this user group could be a perfect fit, which is why we began storyboarding a children's version of the game this September.

One of our advisers suggested that the Beanstockd Game may in fact work ideally within an office setting. He pointed out that a growing number of Global 2000 companies are dedicating large portions of their budgets to improving green policies internally. At the same time, these companies invest a good deal of time into relationship development among their employees. In the corporate environment, the Beanstockd game may not only serve to improve green practices at the employee level, but will also serve as a innovative team building tool.

We're excited to test the Beanstockd game in these three very different verticals (universities, schools, and businesses), and our ultimate goal is to see this played on the city level where residents collaborate to reduce their neighborhood's environmental footprint.

We're interested to see how each population reacts to the game. Who will adopt the game most quickly? Who will stay engaged longest? Where will the most tangible change take place?

Full post as published by MediaShift Idea Lab on October 20, 2008 (boomark / email).