Member Avatar for MktgRob

It is being reported on Mashable that 11 million facebook users are playing Farmville on a daily basis. As we all look for ways to grow our communities and keep them engaged, this is interesting. Who would offer a game on their community if it meant more people engaged and in the community on a regular basis?

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The thread surfaces the core trade-offs of adding social games to a community. As observed, well‑designed games can drive repeat visits; as noted, novelty can fade; and as pointed out, peer networks often spread adoption. Games succeed when they create durable social hooks (shared goals, visible progress, predictable rewards) and when their mechanics match the site’s purpose and moderation capacity. For background on the genre see social network game.

Practical checklist for community owners:

  • Define the objective first: engagement, retention, monetization, or acquisition.
  • Instrument baseline metrics and targets: DAU/MAU, retention (D1/D7/D30), average session time, ARPU, and viral coefficient (K).
  • Pilot with a small cohort and A/B test game vs lighter gamified features (badges, quests, leaderboards). See gamification as an alternative when a full game is overkill.
  • Treat third‑party games as partnerships: confirm data access, moderation tools, costs, and legal terms.

Platform and policy cautions: platform rules and privacy settings change and can affect invite/notification mechanics, so review current developer policies (for example, Facebook Platform Policy). Plan a content roadmap (events, fresh mechanics) and clear moderation rules before scaling. Align any game with community norms to avoid short spikes that harm long‑term trust.

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Member Avatar for InsightsDigital

I never played Farmville but I have played other games. But after a while, its novelty wears off and then other games pop up. Like two years ago, I was constantly getting invites for Zombies. Yes, so these games do keep people engaged for a while, it can be a month or even years. But then those games start losing its luster because then there are less people to play with.

Member Avatar for MktgRob

I never played Farmville but I have played other games. But after a while, its novelty wears off and then other games pop up. Like two years ago, I was constantly getting invites for Zombies. Yes, so these games do keep people engaged for a while, it can be a month or even years. But then those games start losing its luster because then there are less people to play with.

But every now and then there is the game that is so addictive its popularity has a long shelf life and Farmville appears to be one of those.

Member Avatar for InsightsDigital

Until you brought it up, I never heard or played Farmville. Perhaps it does not attract my demographics and friends. Also, I have seen so many of my Facebook friends have Mob Wars or Mafia Wars that I feel I am part of a few capos.

Member Avatar for MktgRob

I learned about Farmville from my daughter and her friends. In retrospect, I am glad they are trying to get me to become a vistual farmer rather than a virtual Tony Soprano!

Member Avatar for shelleyfox

I have learned farmville from my friends and many of my firends are engaged on it.. Social games on the other hand i think are just for fun..

Member Avatar for MktgRob

I have learned farmville from my friends and many of my firends are engaged on it.. Social games on the other hand i think are just for fun..

Absolutely, but when something draws that big of an audience/following, marketers are never far behind trying to see how they can ride the wave.

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