As inbound marketers, content plays an important role in attracting attention and building trust with prospects. Our content can come in many different formats, and the format we choose can speak volumes about the research and ideas within.
Interactive content has become increasingly more popular as brands try to cut through the noise and keep prospects’ attention long enough to deliver a message.
What Is Interactive Content?
Interactive content is a type of content created not just for consumption but also engagement. It’s designed to prompt action and participation from the audience.
The benefit being a higher likelihood of harnessing the audience’s ever-decreasing attention span by publishing stories with interactive elements so they gain an active role in consuming information. By dazzling the audience with an unexpected experience, you can increase engagement, on-site dwell time, and social share rates.
Types of Interactive Content
- Quizzes
- Interactive Video
- Surveys and Polls
- Calculators
- Gamified Content
In theory, any type of content can incorporate interactive elements. Interactive marketing requires ingenuity and innovation, and here are some of the ways interactive content currently shows up on the web:
Quizzes
By their very nature, quizzes are interactive since input is required from the audience in exchange for valuable personalized content.
Interactive Infographics
Unlike static infographics, interactive infographics prompt the audience to take their own journey through the information being presented.
Interactive Video
Video viewing is often a passive activity, but interactive videos can improve engagement and enhance the experience. This is done by adding 360 views, audience controls, or embedded content and interactivity.
Surveys and Polls
If the audience wants macro data on a particular topic, they can be incentivized to take a survey. Then, both the survey (the input) and its results (your output) becomes consumable pieces of content.
Calculators
In many cases, information itself may not be useful for your audience but rather how that information can be applied to their individual situation.
Gamified Content
One of the best ways to turn content into an experience is by making it a game. Examples of this include playable game ads or interactive worlds.
You’re not confined to just these buckets, either. Interactive content is limited only by your imagination.
Interactive Content Examples from Brands
Each industry poses its own obstacles and unique characteristics, but share one common denominator: Interactive content works for all topics and audiences.
1. HubSpot’s Website Grader
This personalized web experience allows users to type in their website and receive a detailed analysis based on different criteria. By pointing out specific pain points and providing actionable tips, the content turns into a lead-generator, getting the conversation between HubSpot and potential users started.
How can you incorporate this into your content marketing? Personalization is key for building relationships with your audience. Pointing out opportunities for improvement and growth in an interactive way increases the trust your readers have that your brand is an expert in this topic and industry, which is easily done through interactivity. Think: “Show, don’t tell.
2. National Geographic
Some of the most inspiring forms of interactive content match the topics they address. This example allows readers to follow the ancient cave paintings as if they are touring a prehistoric cave, with color-coded topics to provide insights.
How can you incorporate this into your content marketing? Making history come to life can be a hard task. Don’t shy away from numbers and important facts, but don’t skimp on the imagery and engagement, either. Leave the canvas clear for creative imagery and video, while the text wraps the visuals but does not interfere.
3. Information is Beautiful
Viewers love trivia about their favorite movies, and this is a visually appealing way to serve it to them. Breaking the movie down into specific scenes clarifies which parts are based on a true story, while color-coding gives readers a broader overview.
How can you incorporate this into your content marketing? For a more holistic reading experience, allow readers to go back-and-forth between the small details and the big picture.
4. Crown Courtroom
This interactive animation aims (and succeeds) at educating readers about a potentially intimidating experience in a friendly, gamified and comprehensible way. Viewers can choose a character to represent them in a mock courtroom and learn about various court-related situations.
How can you incorporate this into your content marketing? Simplify complex topics for readers with a combination of gamification and snackable insights. Animate a relevant scenario and personalize the content by allowing the reader to customize their own “character.”
How to Get Started with Interactive Storytelling
If you’re new to creating digital content, start small with a simple quiz or interactive infographic. These assets perform well at the top of the funnel because they motivate the user to share and see how their peers stack up against their own experience.
When it’s time to build something more sophisticated, consider working with an agency to determine how to build the user experience and interactive elements you’re looking for.
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