The Rise of Wordle and What Brands Can Learn From It
By Joel Nekooie
Recognise this? I’m sure you do, it would have shown up on your social media feed at some point this year. In fact, you’ve probably been seeing these green and yellow squares popping up everywhere, almost like crop circles or code, constantly… but why? What on earth is this Wordle craze all about?
Wordle is a simple word game which has taken the world by storm and opened up a whole new gate for effective online marketing. If you’re unfamiliar with how it works, the aim of the game is to guess the daily five-letter word in six tries. The green tile signifies that you have a correct letter in the correct place, and the yellow tile signifies that you have a correct letter in the wrong place. The grey tiles mean that letter isn’t in the word at all — nice and easy, right? Well, maybe that’s just the beauty of it. We’ll break down why Wordle has become such a huge success below, and what we as marketers can learn from it.
Simplicity
Pretty much anyone can play Wordle, the concept is very easy and all you really have to do is think of fitting words. So, a game that is open to everyone is already a major bonus, but something else we should highlight is the fact that a new word is available daily.
The reason a daily challenge is beneficial to the product is because it prompts players to weave the game into their daily routines, and therefore keep the trend alive. Solving the Wordle daily develops into a new habit for users, and continuing to follow this routine satisfies the mind; people end up completing Wordle no matter what, whether they’re in bed, at work, even in the bath (is that just me…?). Whilst we’re discussing things from a psychological perspective, British psychologist Lee Chambers actually notes that part of why Wordle is so appealing is because it stimulates both the language and logic-processing areas of our brains, and that, like all games, it also leads to a release of dopamine i.e. pleasure and satisfaction (Source: Insider).
Next, the game is extremely accessible — you only need a web browser to play. This immediately expands the range of users willing to take part in the game as it saves them from having to buy a console or download an app. In this way, despite not being the first game to go viral, Wordle is an inclusive game which allows a dedicated community of players to form and exchange scores or general thoughts.
And that brings us to the next section…
Shareability
Since software engineer and creator of the game, Josh Wardle, implemented the automated sharing feature with the creative output as an emoji-block visual, users have found it incredibly easy to share their scores with friends online. This definitely plays into the game’s functionality and positively impacts the user experience, encouraging players to post their score immediately at the end for all to see.
Over time, this basic process has helped build a community around the game and keep users engaging. Even without taking part in the game, merely seeing one of these posts on their feeds instantly makes users feel involved, which is a powerful impact. Basically, you’re in the game even when you’re not in the game, that is the grasp it has on the internet.
If we analyse this a bit further, it becomes clear that the collective experience also feeds into users’ competitive streaks. Debates surrounding Wordle are usually about how difficult it was today, and people are constantly comparing their stats. This pulls people into hitting the share button, whether bragging or complaining, it’s almost a must.
Brands In Action
As expected, it didn’t take long for brands to start using Wordle as a marketing technique. The amount of hype over this beloved game has left brands, of all industries and sizes, unable to ignore this trend. In fact, in January alone, potential impressions of Tweets mentioning Wordle surpassed 20.3 billion… that’s over 657,000 on average per day! (Source: Sprout Social)
We’ve learnt that brands can get really creative with the Wordle-esque posts, it’s nearly a whole new competition.
It doesn’t even stop there, memes are another massive branch of content to come from the game.
And I wish that was all, but it isn’t just brands that are getting involved. Several spin-offs of the game have been created and are directing users to these new websites, here’s our best shot at naming them:
Nerdle
Heardle
Absurdle
Worldle
Crosswordle
Taylordle (yes, it’s Taylor Swift-related)
Dordle
Quordle
Octordle
And, deep breath, Sedecordle… which is a ridiculous 16 words at once.
What does all this tell us? It means it would be well worth experimenting with the viral Wordle trend and applying it to your content if aiming to grow your online reach..
The Bottom Line
The world of marketing can be tricky, but it can also be really easy if you know the right steps to take. Wordle and the trends encompassing it are a key example of why gamification can be an incredibly effective marketing approach, because rather than simply having a product on display, you are instead inviting users to participate in an activity and show more interest in your brand. Games, or any interactive content for that matter, create a fun distraction to forget about life’s problems, it can be comforting despite being so simple. Not only that, but hopping on to the latest trends helps keep your brand relevant and appear more relatable.
So, what are you waiting for? A game on your social media is a brief moment of fun for users… but it could just as easily lead to a big moment for your brand.