Vidyard’s recent article about today’s interactive content provides readers with helpful information on how content recently evolved from traditional to interactive.
To understand where interactive content came from, you have to understand where content marketing came from. A few years ago, marketers began shifting strategies by providing content to their clients that would make them a trusted source of information.
But content is starting to become white noise to users because there is so much of it and companies need to find new ways to separate themselves from the pack. The big problem with traditional content, like blog posts, is that the user can still ignore them. The idea with interactive content is to produce something so compelling that its impossible not to engage with it.
The issue with content marketing is that people don’t want to read walls of text, no matter how compelling and well organized they are. Interactive content makes the subject matter more interesting to consume and it is a way to gather early customer data in a non-scummy way.
Interactive Tools
SnapApp recently identified ten types of content, including interactive video, that are categorized as either visual or personalized.
The visual category encompasses things like infographics and image galleries and the personalized category is designed to make customers truly live the benefits of a solution. Items like ROI calculators make things personal since customers can use their own numbers to stimulate the potential return on investment while using a company’s product.
Interactive content provides a brand with customer input that it previously did not have access to. Marketers have found it 60% better than traditional methods at generating leads and 40% better at nurturing existing leads.
Interactive Content Leads to an Increase in Sales
Using interactive tools such as ROI calculators, dynamic animations, interactive videos, and interactive quizzes provides brands with the opportunity to significantly increase engagement and increase sales.
If you are planning on upgrading your marketing tools by integrating interactive content, you should be working with a payment processor who will be flexible with your increase in sales. Some payment providers cap your processing limit and when you have a higher sales month, the last thing you want is for your account to be frozen.
You can also use interactive tools to collect important data about your customers in order to better position your brand online to reach the individuals who are truly interested in the products you are offering. The unique experience offered with interactive content improves the customer’s buying experience and increases the chance of your product being purchased.