Marketing simulation game facts for kids

Imagine playing a video game where you run a business! Marketing simulation games are like special computer games where you get to pretend you're in charge of a company's marketing. You make decisions about things like what products to sell, how to price them, and how to tell people about them. The game then shows you what happens based on your choices.

These games help you learn about different parts of marketing, such as how to plan a marketing strategy, how to make a product stand out (product positioning), how to set prices, and how to understand what customers want (consumer behaviour). They usually focus on a specific type of business or industry. You'll face different situations and see the results of your decisions, just like in a real business.

You can play these games by yourself or with a team. It's often like a competition or a team effort in a pretend market. You and other players might represent different companies, and you'll make decisions round by round, seeing how your choices affect your business.

Learning with Marketing Games

Many universities use these games to teach students about marketing. In 2004, a study found that over 64% of professors in American universities were using marketing games. Teachers hope that by playing these games, students will understand marketing ideas better and learn how to use their knowledge in real-world situations.

As technology has grown, digital skills have become very important in marketing. This means teachers need to help students learn about digital marketing. Computerized marketing games are a great way to do this because they are fun and help students develop these digital skills.

Research shows that students feel like they learn just as much from marketing simulation games as they do from real marketing projects. Both give them a good sense of what it's like to work in marketing.

From 2008 to 2017, Google even had a competition called the "Google Online Marketing Challenge." University students worked in teams with small businesses or charities. Their goal was to create online marketing campaigns. For students to learn the most, teachers need to make sure they plan, do, and then check their actions. The games help with this by showing students how their decisions worked out.

How Games Are Designed for Learning

Experts are always looking into how these games can be made even better for learning. They study how game data and learning data can give students a more personal experience and keep them more interested. This research often looks at one specific game platform used in a few universities.

How much students accept computer-based games can affect how well they learn. Sometimes, if a game uses technology that students aren't used to, it can be frustrating. This might make learning harder. Also, some students might try to "trick" the game to get high scores without really thinking about their decisions. This can lead to them taking big risks and not learning as much about the actual decision-making process.

Other Uses for Marketing Games

Besides education, marketing simulations can also help businesses make real decisions. They can give companies a better understanding of how their market works. They can even help guide research into new marketing ideas.

See also

• Business simulation
• Serious game