Designed a gamification system for BC Hydro's upcoming consumer app to help turn 5 million customers' one-off actions into lasting energy habits.
Year
2026
company
BC Hydro
Role
Experience Designer, Strategist
Timeline
4 Months
At a Glance
5M+
BC Hydro customers the engagement system is designed to reach
4
Disconnected programs and channels unified into one continuous engagement loop
6
Cross-industry engagement patterns synthesized into the strategy
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This work led to Engine Digital winning a longer engagement with BC Hydro, to become their main design partner for the product’s continued rollout.
Context
BC Hydro needs customers to actively help manage peak electricity demand in order to meet an 800MW+ demand savings target. Unfortunately, any customer engagement they currently have lives inside separate, disconnected programs, resetting the moment each campaign ends.
Goal
To connect BC Hydro's programs (Team Power Smart, Peak Saver, Power smart Shop, Campaigns) into one system, so progress could build over time instead of resetting. We wanted customers to feel like collaborators in their own energy use, not passive responders to scattered one-off reminders.
What I Did
As strategist, I led the competitive research behind the strategy, auditing best in class engagement systems to find what actually pulls people back. I turned those findings into engagement patterns, translated them into BC Hydro's experience principles, and partnered with our principal designer to concept the app around them.
6 Patterns to Power an Engagement Loop
The research informed the creation of 6 patterns or experience principles that we used to create a repeatable behavioural loop.
Make the action small
Reduce every action to the smallest possible step
Make progress visible
Turn invisible energy impact into visible, immediate feedback
Layer multiple time horizons
Build daily and weekly loops that connect BC Hydro's seasonal programs
Create predictable return moments
Build a rhythm customers expect, not one they're reminded of
Use social as reinforcement
Make progress shared, visible, and comparative
Personalize the experience
Turn BC Hydro's existing customer data into relevant, personalized journeys
Everyday Engagement
Challenges are available even in the app's "calm" state. Small everyday actions still earn visible rewards, giving customers a reason to open the app on an ordinary day, not just when BC Hydro needs something from them.
Learning by Doing
The Energy Quiz turns quick "which uses more energy" questions into small wins. It rewards correct answers with bolts and streaks, so customers build energy literacy, especially at a time when energy consumption is rising.
The Peak Challenge
During a period of high usage, customers commit to a reduction target upfront, with real-time proof that hundreds of other homes are doing the same thing at that moment. Incentivizing lowering usage through promised points, and social accountability.
Creating a System
Streaks, reminders, challenge entry points, a rewards wallet, scan-to-earn loyalty card for in-store purchases with partners, etc., are some of many additional experiences that reinforce the engagement loop wherever a customer happens to be, not just on one dedicated screen.
Earning Trust
This was a bonus edition. The outage state breaks from a typical gamification pattern. It’s just a real-time outage map, restoration estimate, and status updates. But not every reason to open the app needs to be a game. Bringing customers into the app and offering support in a moment like this builds trust that’ll reinforce future visits.
Alongside the strategy and concepts, we delivered BC Hydro a 12–18 month roadmap that lays how this system would roll out, which patterns, mechanics, and program connections would ship first, and why.
Please reach out if you’re like a more detailed walkthrough of this work.
