2016/12/09

An innovative British Columbia interactive marketing company will get its product to market faster and more efficiently with the Government of Canada’s investment of $700,000.

The Honourable Hedy Fry, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre, on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and Minister responsible for Western Economic Diversification Canada, made the announcement today during a visit to Pug Pharm Productions Inc. in Vancouver, B.C.

Pug Pharm Productions, a technology leader in the gamification industry, has developed an online platform called Picnic™. This Canadian technology innovation is the world’s most advanced online platform that supports sophisticated gameplay and “gamification” features to deliver proven engagement models that keep customer communities doing more, staying longer, spending more money – and becoming more loyal over time.

As a marketing tool, Picnic™ attracts users to engage with an organization’s product or service throughgame play design and technologies. The model also works in businesses to engage employees in strategy and planning processes. Gamification strengthens customer loyalty and employee productivity and has gone from novelty to mainstream over the past few decades.

This investment is one of several successful projects to be announced under the Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative. The program provides $100 million in repayable contributions to small- and medium-sized enterprises in Western Canada. Eligible companies can apply for funding to support activities that move ideas to market more quickly.

“Canadian companies like Pug Pharm Productions are working hard to bring the next generation of their innovative services to market. The Government of Canada is proud to support this project that will develop and commercialize enhanced technology for the customer loyalty industry. It is organizations like Pug Pharm that promote economic growth and create high-quality jobs in Canada.”

“I want to thank the Government of Canada for its investment in Pug Pharm and our Picnic platform. Support through WD’s Western Innovation Initiative enables us to continue to be a leader in bringing innovative and cutting-edge community engagement solutions to the world.”