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AI-powered Advertising
December 29, 2024
The days of passive content are over. Say goodbye to your static posts and paragraph-riddled web pages. Your audience wants to be entertained. They want to participate. And they want to feel connected to the brands they support. And interactive content is the way to provide that highly sought-after user experience.
Before we get into the “why” we’re gonna break down the “what.” There are tons of different versions of interactive content out there, each of them serving unique purposes. So we gathered up a few of the most popular styles based on what layer of the sales funnel they can help the most with. Top of the funnel – generating awareness, middle of the funnel – nurturing leads, and bottom of the funnel – informing and converting those leads. Let’s get into it.
Have you noticed the surge of infographics on visual platforms like Instagram recently? That’s not a coincidence. Both creatively flexible and visually pleasing, popping some infographics onto your website or to be used on your socials is a relatively simple way to apply interactive content.
If Buzzfeed has proven anything, it’s that there is nothing that can’t be put into quiz form. Honestly, nothing. And people LOVE them. From finding out what kind of bread you are to predicting your future based on your ice cream preferences, there are seemingly no creative limitations.
Branded and strategic quizzes like this can live on your site, be sent out to your email list, or posted on your social platforms. It’s a fun way to engage with your audience, keep them entertained, and learn a bit about them in the process.
Similar to quizzes, people want to voice their opinions and feel heard. And polls and surveys are great ways to make that happen. Not to mention a valuable market research tool that gives your audience the power to tell you directly how they feel or what they want. Aka, the holy grail of marketing.
Social stories are a great way to implement these tools. Along with email marketing or adding them to your website.
There’s a general thrill that naturally comes with counting down the arrival of, honestly, anything. New Year’s Eve, rocket launches, last days of school. Take advantage of that thrill to generate excitement and interest in any of your brand’s upcoming launches, product drops, etc.
Countdowns are a great way to remind your audience of upcoming events and make them feel like they’re witnessing the very beginning of something important and exciting! No matter how minor the release is.
Turning your long-form content or insights into interactive eBooks is a great way to really allow your audience to dive into a topic if they’re interested. You can make it as long or short as you like and insert graphics and photos to make it visually pleasing.
It’s content that looks highly professional and impressive and can live on your site, be shared with potential clients, or used as lead magnets to maximize your email marketing efforts.
If you sell a product, more likely than not, users are going to have questions about it before buying. How to use it, what’s it made of, how to get the most out of it. The list goes on. This curiosity allows for the perfect opportunity to develop an interactive product walkthrough. Yes, you’re answering their questions, but you’re also providing them with more of an experience. And that’s something they’re not going to forget.
Numbers and analytics don’t have to put your audience to sleep! Is generating an exciting and interactive report with visuals and infographics more complicated than just slapping words onto a 20+ page doc and calling it a day. Sure.
That’s because boring people with facts is easy. It’s entertaining people with facts that present a challenge. But when done well, it’s an effort that won’t go unnoticed and can be utilized for years to come.
Your pricing page can easily make or break a customer’s decision to buy. There’s definitely a strategy to presenting the price of your product or services, upselling a more expensive product, and adding in any deals or incentives. The last thing you want is for a customer to make it all the way through your funnel only to be turned off by the pricing page. So keep it interactive and as enjoyable as possible to avoid last-minute customer drop-offs.
Outlining your brand’s previous successes and showing how your product or service has helped others in the past is one of the best ways to get potential customers to convert. It’s another opportunity to find creative ways to make facts and figures as engaging and enjoyable as possible.
Your website is a great place to showcase all of your interactive case studies. On top of that, it’ll boost your page’s SEO and increase the amount of time a user is likely to spend on your site.
Usually created in conjunction with a strategic campaign, landing pages are simple pages that are separate from your main website. They’re designed to be simple. Employing linear messaging and direct calls to action to avoid audience distraction.
The purpose is to keep the focus on the task at hand to move the user along as quickly as possible before they lose interest. It’s a flexible way to really hammer down on any specific call to action and accurately monitor its success.
The best kind of audience is an engaged audience. And the best way to capture their attention and compel them to engage is by providing entertaining and interactive content. Whether it’s fun quizzes or assessments they can take or infographics they can consume and share. People are just inherently more likely to engage with interactive content over stale and dull content. According to Ceros,
"66% of Marketers agree that overall audience engagement has gone up since implementing interactive content".
Bridging the gap between content creation and user experiences, interactive content transcends the realm of basic content. It provides your audience with an opportunity to actually take part in the content that’s being created. It gives them a voice and makes them feel heard. Forming a stronger connection and making them feel like they’re actually a part of your brand’s community or mission, rather than just watching from the outside.
Despite its popularity and success rates, not many brands take full advantage of interactive content. Like we said earlier, it’s easy to bore people, but entertaining them takes time and creativity. So simply employing a few or all of these tactics into your marketing plan can easily set you apart from your competitors.
On the flip side, if your competitors are already utilizing interactive content, it’s even more imperative that you find a way to keep up. Because when a potential client is choosing between you and another brand, there’s a strong chance they’ll pick the brand that’s more engaging and entertaining. Don’t be the stale brand.
One of the best aspects of interactive content is its tendency to be simple and visually pleasing. Making it the best kind of content for social media and websites. When a customer first explores your brand, you don’t want to overwhelm them with thick paragraphs and swarms of information.
Engaging infographics, countdowns, or landing pages effectively get your message across without bogging down the user with more information than is needed.
