7 Management lessons from the success of Flappy Bird
Flappy Bird is a very, very simple game created by Vietnam-based Dong Nguyen and launched for iOS and Android phones in May 2013. The premise of the game is rather simple, yet frustratingly difficult. Players are required to tap their screens to fly a small bird through openings in pipes…without touching the pipes. If the bird touches the pipe, the bird dies. Simple. Right? But the success of the game is unfathomable - it is a smash hit world-wide and pulls in roughly US $50,000 a day through advertisements alone.
So what management lessons can one learn from the success of the Flappy Bird?
1. Keep it Simple Stupid
To be highly successful, you don’t need to create the most complex products. As long as your products and services serve to cure the itch that they were made for, people will use them. And will pay money either directly or indirectly to get hold of your product.
2. Give them a challenge they can’t refuse
One of the key reasons why Flappy Bird is so wildly successful is the fact that people just can’t overcome the feeling that something so simple could end up challenging their intellect to simply tap on screens to fly the bird. And its un-put-down-able for them. It is important that your product or service includes elements that call for inclusion and active participation, while giving your customers a real challenge on how to tackle the situation.
On the usual run of the mill games, if the user doesn’t tap the screen the central character in a similar game the character may slowly reach the bottom. Not with Flappy Bird. If users stop poking, the bird just plummets to its death. Users just can’t afford taking their eyes off. They’re hooked. Keep the action going until the very last mile and include your customers in the thick of it.
So what management lessons can one learn from the success of the Flappy Bird?
1. Keep it Simple Stupid
To be highly successful, you don’t need to create the most complex products. As long as your products and services serve to cure the itch that they were made for, people will use them. And will pay money either directly or indirectly to get hold of your product.
2. Give them a challenge they can’t refuse
One of the key reasons why Flappy Bird is so wildly successful is the fact that people just can’t overcome the feeling that something so simple could end up challenging their intellect to simply tap on screens to fly the bird. And its un-put-down-able for them. It is important that your product or service includes elements that call for inclusion and active participation, while giving your customers a real challenge on how to tackle the situation.
3. Use tried and tested artefacts
The game itself may be quite simple but the elements used to construct the game feel oddly familiar to console games of the bygone era. Think simple bird game in a Super Mario like interface in all its pixellated glory. Dong could easily have made Flappy Bird super high-res but instead went for pixellated, colourful backgrounds that called on arcade game style sounds every time you tap on the screen. If you have successful tried and tested artefacts from the past, use them.
The game itself may be quite simple but the elements used to construct the game feel oddly familiar to console games of the bygone era. Think simple bird game in a Super Mario like interface in all its pixellated glory. Dong could easily have made Flappy Bird super high-res but instead went for pixellated, colourful backgrounds that called on arcade game style sounds every time you tap on the screen. If you have successful tried and tested artefacts from the past, use them.
4. Keep keeping it simple
Flappy Bird launched in May 2013. In its succeeding months, Dong could have pushed out a bunch of updates improving the functionality of the game or may be even tweaking it slightly for difficulty settings. But he stayed focussed and his users kept coming back- day after day. Don’t touch the core of your product especially when things are going well. It’s akin to Hara Kiri.
Flappy Bird launched in May 2013. In its succeeding months, Dong could have pushed out a bunch of updates improving the functionality of the game or may be even tweaking it slightly for difficulty settings. But he stayed focussed and his users kept coming back- day after day. Don’t touch the core of your product especially when things are going well. It’s akin to Hara Kiri.
5. Don’t give ‘em time to think
If people want to think deeply while playing casual games on their mobile phones, they’re rather play something like Sims or something. With Flappy Bird, its full on action from the word go. You start tapping and are immediately confronted by the green steel pipes that’ll kill your bird at even the slightest touch. Thats it. When negotiating a deal, get to the point quickly and allow your clients just the sufficient amount of time to make a decision.
If people want to think deeply while playing casual games on their mobile phones, they’re rather play something like Sims or something. With Flappy Bird, its full on action from the word go. You start tapping and are immediately confronted by the green steel pipes that’ll kill your bird at even the slightest touch. Thats it. When negotiating a deal, get to the point quickly and allow your clients just the sufficient amount of time to make a decision.
6. Ask them to act, NOW!
On the usual run of the mill games, if the user doesn’t tap the screen the central character in a similar game the character may slowly reach the bottom. Not with Flappy Bird. If users stop poking, the bird just plummets to its death. Users just can’t afford taking their eyes off. They’re hooked. Keep the action going until the very last mile and include your customers in the thick of it.
7. Don’t be afraid to ask for commitment
Just as Flappy Bird asks for the unequivocal attention and commitment of its players at all times, don’ be afraid to ask for commitment. The moment you start giving your customers time and flexibility to treat you as they please, you start losing their commitment.
Sadly, Dong has posted on his twitter account that he’s going to pull the app down as he just “cant handle the situation” at hand. A sad end to a brilliant and simple game!
Just as Flappy Bird asks for the unequivocal attention and commitment of its players at all times, don’ be afraid to ask for commitment. The moment you start giving your customers time and flexibility to treat you as they please, you start losing their commitment.
Sadly, Dong has posted on his twitter account that he’s going to pull the app down as he just “cant handle the situation” at hand. A sad end to a brilliant and simple game!