Boost Audience Engagement With These 21 Types of Interactive Content
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When it comes to the world of content marketing, your number one priority is always going to be engagement. Engagement is what separates the successes from the failures, the brilliant ideas from the thundering duds. And when it comes to engagement, interactive content is the boss! In this blog, we will walk you through 21 types of interactive content that will boost your engagement through the roof! So, stay tuned.
But First, What Is Interactive Content?
Imagine you’re a store owner and you have customers lined up at your store. It’s a good day, except that they try to find something and leave empty-handed. What’s the point of having 20 clients lined up only to end up having zero sales?
This is exactly what static content does. Static content offers pages upon pages of material that may scare people away. Moreover, decision paralysis is real. And so, what you need is interactive content! The different interactive content types help your prospects find the information suited to their unique needs. It ensures two-way communication, thus removing the barriers that arise due to the absence of physical contact.
At any given point, 3 bn people are scrolling through the internet to find something of value. Therefore, incorporating different types of interactive content in your content marketing strategies is a surefire way to stand out in the crowd!
Interactive Content and Buyer’s Journey
A lot has been said about the marketing funnel. But, what’s important to note here is how interactive content can be your friend, guide, and savior in this journey.
Awareness Stage
This is the stage where your prospect is faced with a pain point. They are still understanding their problem and are probably unaware of you, and your offerings. But believe it or not, 70% of the buyer’s journey is complete before a buyer even reaches out to sales. And so, tapping them at this stage can fetch you some brownie points.
Use interactive ad campaigns and interactive blog posts to target a particular audience that resembles your buyer persona.
For example, an early-stage interactive quiz for the owner of a SaaS company could be – “How healthy is your SaaS business?”
Interactive content types in this stage include :-
- Interactive Blogs
- Ebooks
- Interactive Emails/Newsletters
- Personality assessment/quizzes
- Giveaways and contests
Consideration Stage
Now that they have identified the problem, customers usually would now start finding and analyzing different ways to solve this problem. This is the stage where you can ensure your name shows up in the prospect’s “shortlist” by using interactive content.
Here are some interactive content types to look into –
1. Videos
2. Webinars
3. Calculators
4. Recommendation Quizzes
5. Infographics
A suitable consideration stage interactive content idea for someone looking to build a website could be – “Which tool is perfect for you?”
Decision Stage
The prospect is now a step away from finalizing a product. This is a crucial stage and here they are looking for assurances, reviews, performance-related content; something that can build trust to ensure a longer-term engagement.
The prospect who is now considering your tool can be presented with “tutorial videos” or “testimonial videos”. Moreover, using an interactive calculator like “What is your ROI on using this SaaS software?” is a great idea.
Other interactive content types that can be used in this stage include –
1. Case Study blogs
2. Competitor comparison quizzes
3. ROI/ Cost/ Savings calculators
Thus, interactive content optimizes the buyer’s journey and provides insights into their personas. This can then be used to personalize future interactions with these prospects.
Interactive Content Statistics
Let’s have a look at the stats now, shall we?
1. 60% of marketers have adopted interactive content so far, its popularity has begun to rapidly spread.
2. 93% of marketers already believe that interactive content is more effective than static content at educating potential buyers about a product or service.
3. Interactive content has been shown to generate twice as much conversion as static content does.
4. It generates 5 times more page views than ordinary content.
No content marketer can afford to ignore numbers like that.
We are guessing you are one of them.
So, here go 21 types of interactive content that your brand can explore to engage with audiences in a new way!
Interactive Content Types
1. Quizzes
Of course, we would start our list of interactive content types with Quizzes! Any millennial who came of age in the mid-2000s remembers the inescapable popularity of teen-oriented quizzes, thanks to the explosive rise of social media and aggregator sites like Buzzfeed.
Studies show that almost 96% of users who start a Buzzfeed quiz finish them. Beyond how popular they are, quizzes are also a great way to gather information on your audience or to educate them on particular aspects of your product/service. And that’s not it, they also provide an easier and more efficient way of market research and increase your chances of lead generation.
For a streetwear company, an interesting interactive content idea could be “Which T-Shirt Brand Are You?”, to illustrate the different styles they keep in stock.
Interactive Content Case Study –
Futrli is a company that helps small businesses make decisions about their future. In this Outcome quiz by Outgrow, Futrli helps the user decide which kind of product would be best for them. The quiz is fun, well-made, and has precise questions. In fact, this experience delivered a conversion rate of almost 85%.
2. Calculators
Calculators are a powerful interactive content type. They provide solutions based on the data provided by a customer. They are highly personalized and are suitable for almost every stage of the buyer’s journey. Moreover, calculators are super engaging and have a high-value offering. In fact, interactive calculators have a conversion rate of over 40% as compared to just 2-12% for landing pages.
With an interactive calculator, you save the customers their time and effort. And with that, you generate goodwill and trust. Moreover in that process, you secure leads and recurring clients. When you give your customers access to a calculator, you are providing them a relevant incentive in exchange for their contact information.
Interactive Content Case Study –
SISU, a real estate and mortgage sales dashboard, decided to use Outgrow interactive content as a means to increase conversion. They made this calculator that gives clients a quote depending upon how big or small their team is. Using Outgrow simplified their onboarding process and made it more appealing. In fact, these measures increased their lead generation by 200%.
3. Video
Making your video content interactive has been shown to dramatically boost engagement, viewing time, and conversions.
Interactive video is exceptionally powerful at giving potential buyers a sense of control – and by extension, a sense of connection to your brand. Whether it’s a linear story with branching paths (think Netflix’s interactive videos) or a hotspot-enabled clip that allows viewers to highlight certain on-screen products, your interactive video will keep audiences engaged.
Source: Screenrant
Through interactive videos, you can link your videos to exclusive content and drive traffic to your desired pages. Including a call-to-action button is always a good idea in a video.
Interactive Content Marketing Example –
Shoppable IGTV videos are all the rage as Instagram brings innovative ways to create a versatile experience on their platform. This is a great tool for influencers and marketers alike and if leveraged well, can be a legitimate source of recurring revenue.
Source: GoDataFeed
4. Infographics
What if your dull and static charts can be brought to life using interactive infographics? Yes, your potential buyers can now sift through statistics at their convenience with axes that they can control. Infographics bring hard data to life by incorporating interactive touchpoints and animation. You can use an infographic maker to ensure your post stands out and reaches specific audiences. With its engaging visuals and sleek, easy-to-use design, it is the ideal way to capture attention and emphasize the attractive aesthetics of your vacation rental property. Design templates ensure a consistent and professional look, making your listings stand out effortlessly.
Moreover, this interactive content type enhances your SEO. You can fit a large amount of information in a smaller space. It is easy to share and increases your visibility on social platforms.
Interactive Content Example –
Music map is a platform that provides the ultimate genealogy of popular music genres. It created an interactive infographic where clicking on different color bags provides you information about different genres and periods of music. This made their website more appealing and interactive to their audience.
5. Polls
What separates interactive content from static content is the degree to which it allows the audience to have their opinion heard. With polls, a potential buyer can make one simple click and watch it generate an impact in real-time. Poll forms are discreet, low-key, ultra-intuitive, and encourage engagement in a non-pushy way.
Interactive Content Marketing Example –
Let’s take a look at this case study. Unicorn Politics made this “Should The Government Control The Internet?” poll using Outgrow. The poll asks a single question, about whether the government should be the primary service provider for the internet. This poll received a lot of visits and a conversion rate of almost 75%!
6. Chatbots
This interactive content type is fun, engaging, and informative. With an Avatar on the side, it almost feels like you’re talking to a human!
Most websites have begun to use chatbots as a part of their customer support and it has only made lives easier. Chatbots are fun, engaging, and informative. Moreover, they not only save your time but also increase your customer base and provide greater customer satisfaction.
Thanks to technology, chatbots can even help monitor customer data and track purchasing patterns and consumer behaviors, providing crucial insights.
Interactive Content Example –
Amtrak created a virtual assistant chatbot named Julie. Julie helps customers find information on train reservations, stations, and route information. Also, it provides information about the rewards programs that Amtrak provides.
Since the implementation of Julie, Amtrak has seen an increase in bookings by 25%, saving $1 million in customer service email costs. That is besides a 50% growth in user engagement and an increase in the per booking revenue by 30%. Now, those are some impressive numbers!
7. E-Commerce Recommendations
Who doesn’t want to have their own personalized Amazon on the go?
An e-commerce recommendation system allows you to ask questions to filter a wide set of products and services and offer advanced recommendations. The e-commerce boom has made the online environment more competitive and recommendation systems have been a great help.
Interactive Content Example –
Check out a super cool idea for this interactive content type – “Which sunglasses suit your face the best?”. Try it out yourself!
8. Giveaways
This interactive content type has proven to be a great marketing technique. Through giveaways, you can give rewards in the form of free products and services. You can even activate leads by asking people to share your content. This provides an incentive to your customers in exchange for sharing their contact details.
A super cool example of this interactive content type – A Black Friday Giveaway!
9. Assessments
Assessments are a great interactive content type to help users assess and grade themselves. By providing scores based on some questions, they allow the participants to know where they stand vis-a-vis other participants. In addition, assessments can also help you with increased lead generation and customer engagement.
Interactive Content Case Study –
GPYP used this assessment quiz made by Outgrow to increase their customer engagement and traffic. This quiz had 9 questions. It provided a quantifiable score on where the listing stands. GPYP also placed a lead generation form before its results. The company saw an increase in the conversion rate by over 40% due to this type of interactive content.
10. Surveys
This interactive content type is used for evaluation. It is a low-cost, and convenient method of gathering large volumes of data. Surveys also allow you to collect objective feedback and preferences from your customers. They even help in customer targeting and building buyer personas.
Interactive Content Marketing Example –
These are COVID times and a Work From Home Check-in Survey is all you need to ensure your employees are coping well!
11. Interactive Annual Report
Annual reports are 20-30 page reports disclosing the financial performance of a company. These are number-intensive and often peppered with jargon.
However, they don’t necessarily have to be a string of numbers and words written in tiny fonts. Adding interactivity can make the process of studying these statements a lot less burdensome and sometimes even fun!
Check out this beautiful interactive annual report by MailChimp!
Source: Mailchimp
12. Interactive Flipbooks
Flipbooks are interactive e-books that allow users to flip through them as if reading a physical magazine. These fall under the category of interactive content types as they include clickable links, videos, images, and CTA buttons such as “add to cart.”
Above all, flipbooks can be optimized for search engines, leading to a boost in your content marketing efforts.
Interactive Content Marketing Example –
Take this example of a Flipbook by the popular magazine, Cosmopolitan.
13. Interactive Ebooks
Businesses are adopting interactive ebooks at an exponential speed for their marketing needs. In fact, gated interactive ebooks in blogs are an amazing way to provide quality content in exchange for the prospect’s information. If you offer enough value, chances are that your prospects will travel their way down the buyer funnel!
Moreover, ebooks are a great way of repurposing content that has done well in the past.
You can even make it interactive by adding clickable links for better readability and make it engaging by adding multimedia, images, maps, and much more.
And finally, interactive ebooks are SEO-friendly. So, whenever someone looks for a related ebook, you can ensure that yours pops-up!
This interactive ebook by NASDAQ is an apt example of how you can create engaging content.
14. Marketing games
Marketing games are a type of interactive content that give you a sure-shot at engagement in today’s stay-at-home times. Don’t believe us? See how your favorite brands used gamification to up their engagement.
Interactive Content Example
Let’s take an example from Domino’s. It’s for us to sulk if the pizza is even a minute late, but imagine having to make one under a minute? Ergo, Domino’s created a gamified course called Grab and Go to teach their employees how to make a pizza within 45 seconds!
Another interesting interactive marketing idea can be – gamifying the shopping experience by using spin the wheel contests to offer discounts and coupon codes during the festive season. Some companies have even started to incorporate a gaming section on their websites!
15. Galleries
A picture speaks 1000 words. So why bother writing 1000 words when images can do the trick?
Galleries are indispensable for companies in the creative or design field where they have to back their claims with portfolios. And so, there’s no better way to do that than by incorporating a gallery section on the website.
Interactive Content example –
Source: gallery.io
16. Brackets
Interactive brackets are used for conducting online tournaments and hosting competitions on websites. So the next time you host an online match for your employees, be sure to use this interactive content type to make the game competitive, yet fun!
Source: Pinterest
17. Webinar
Webinar needs no introduction. Unless you have been living under a digital rock, you know how popular they have become since the pandemic struck. A quick google search will give you around 24,40,00,000 results for “Webinars in the COVID times” and that sums up the potential this tool entails.
But interactivity can take webinars to the next level. You can include elements like giveaways, surveys, and quizzes. This will not just boost engagement, but also help you generate relevant leads.
Source: Slido
Nothing beats the authenticity of human interaction and that is precisely why interactive webinars should be on your checklist. The above picture is from an interactive webinar conducted by Slido. Notice how they smartly placed a quiz while interacting with the viewers, boosting the engagement multifold.
Check out this on-demand Webinar on Interactive Content Marketing for Digital Agencies by Outgrow
18. Interactive 360 Videos
Interactive 360 videos have huge potential. With multimedia, clickable portions, and navigation inside the video, it can be leveraged by travel companies for interactive social media posts, embeds on the website, and interactive digital marketing.
Interactive Content example –
Take a look at how this travel company leveraged interactive 360 videos. Cathay Pacific used 360° video with hotspots to help customers experience the brand firsthand through immersion and interaction. Results? – The airline saw a 29% lift in unaided awareness and a 25% lift in brand favorability.
19. Augmented Reality Overlay
Today, AR filters are the craze. Taken, that you don’t own the stuff but having a picture with it comes close to the experience, isn’t it?
For those who are not aware, AR filters are computer-generated effects that are available across all social media platforms including Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, you name it. They offer digitally augmented real-world experiences and are fun, aspirational, and great for topical marketing.
All our dream brands like Gucci and Prada leveraged this interactive content type and joined the bandwagon by introducing AR filters.
As real as they look, those aren’t real Gucci shoes.
20. Interactive Timelines
Interactive timelines can be a useful interactive content type to communicate project timelines for your internal strategies as well as external clients you are working with. This way you can save hours spent in unnecessary meetings by communicating relevant steps using timeline makers like these.
Interactive Content Marketing Example –
Source: Ford
21. Data Visualization
A fancy term for charts and graphs, data visualization helps bring life into numbers. Leveraging data visualization consulting can optimize this process, enabling clearer insights and more effective presentations of complex data, crucial for making informed decisions. This interactive content type helps you and your clients to make sense of the data and draw conclusions. Data visualization is done in the form of charts, graphs, maps, to name a few.
However, you can get as creative as you want just like how National Geographic does here in this beautiful “Know your Moons” visualization. As you hover on these charts, you will find all the necessary data needed to draw conclusions or to simply gain information.
Source: National Geographic
Finally, there are a variety of tools available for creating interactive charts and graphs that’ll make numbers and stats fun to read and analyze.
Conclusion
That’s it for now folks. Be sure to read and re-read this blog to fully understand the potential of each interactive content type. Remember, these interactive content types are not a cure-all. However, they will elevate your brand to the next level of audience engagement and user experience. So why settle for a static image that viewers can easily scroll by when interactive content can encourage your potential buyers to click and vote for your brand?
These are unprecedented times and using interactive content isn’t an option anymore it’s a necessity. Excited to create your own interactive content? So why not try out these interactive tools for yourself and see the magic? Signup for Outgrow’s 7 days free trial today.