12 Types of Interactive Content … And Why They Will Improve Your Website
Do you provide your users with interactive content? You should! Why? Because good content that your readers can interact with not only increases the time they spend on your site but also has other positive benefits. Find out what they are.
Do you provide your users with interactive content? You should! Why? Because good content that your readers can interact with not only increases the time they spend on your site but also has other positive benefits. And the choice of formats with an interactive component is now so great that even content producers with limited resources can find formats to produce rapid results at low costs. Even if it does generate additional costs, interactive content is a worthwhile investment.
Why use interactive content?
Interactive content is content which addresses your users proactively. The goal of interactive content is to employ or entertain your reader – or ideally, do both at the same time. More and more sites are opting to use calculators, converters, or quizzes, and according to a Content Marketing Institute survey, such content continues to be on the rise. There are good reasons for this:
1. Interactive content conveys information better
As studies repeatedly show, we are generally programmed to learn more easily through active participation. If learners intensively engage with a topic in various ways, while using several senses, the material becomes more deeply embedded and is more easily recalled.
In addition, interactive content can provide information directly and more intuitively than static content. With a configurator or a calculator, a reader can gain a wealth of information at a glance and therefore configure his dream car or calculate a future retirement income at the touch of a button.
2. Interactive content inspires the reader to use it
Interactive content can challenge the user and arouse his curiosity or playful nature. Since we all seek reassurance or reward, well-created interactive content can seem inspiring. Whether it’s via the correct answer to a quiz question or clicking on a “Top 10” list, you can activate users with the right content.
We continually find other motivations behind the use of interactive content so that users who get involved with interactive media will start to feel part of a community. Surveys or petitions often do this, for example, by enabling their participating readers to feel they belong to an expert group or express their moral opinions. Ideally, the participants will then not only identify with the content offered but also with the company or organization that has set up the poll. Through his actions, the participant comes to believe that he can become involved and make a difference.
3. Interactive content can make a content marketing strategy more successful
It’s not just for your readers – interactive content can be worth its weight in gold for you too. Though creating interactive content may initially be a little more expensive, once it is published it can positively influence some of the most important marketing department KPIs:
- Dwell time increase: Visitors will stay longer on your site when they engage with your content. Interactive content means your readers will not appear and then rapidly disappear – which sends an important signal to Google and Co.
- Increase customer loyalty: Properly designed interactive content can be among the most entertaining and helpful kinds of content. If you manage to match and address the needs of your target audience with the right topic, your customers will be very grateful and will retain a positive impression of your company.
- Brand awareness and increased coverage: Really good content can spread across the Internet – often at breakneck speed. Being mostly useful and/or entertaining, interactive content can thus be particularly eye-catching. In a CMI study, 81% of respondents felt that, used in the right context with content matched to the brand, interactive content not only spreads virally but also increases brand awareness.
- Generate authority: Brand awareness, reach, and, above all, quality content represent a sound platform for the establishment of opinion leadership. Many interactive content formats – such as interactive e-books, white papers, or calculators – can emphasize expertise and help to create the perception of authoritative content.
- Generate Leads: Interactive content is a great way to identify new contact addresses because readers are generally willing to provide their contact details in return for useful and interesting content.
- Increase sales: Configurators are particularly good at helping to generate more sales. To some extent, they replace in-store fitting and/or advisory services in addition to strengthening customer loyalty and trust.
- General information about the targeted audience: Some interactive content formats are designed to learn more about their own users. A great deal of important data can be gleaned from surveys, webinars, configurators, wizards, or videos, building a much clearer picture of your target audience. Furthermore, this data can then in turn be used to produce new content.
As with any type of content, interactive content must always pay careful attention to its target audience. Your content will only be accepted as authentic if it matches your brand or product and is precisely tailored to your target customers and users.
What interactive content formats are available?
Today, anyone planning to present interactive content has a broad choice. Some formats can be easily and inexpensively self-produced, and some content providers offer helpful external tools – which are mostly free. However, other formats can be rather expensive and considerably more complicated. In principle, all interactive content can be used to entertain as well as to inform users.
Conclusion:
Interactive content is sophisticated and interesting for your users, and can help you achieve your business goals. From interactive video through to Augmented Reality, the possibilities are endless, but not every content form is equally affordable, and matching content to your own budget and brand remains a challenge. However, numerous tools and support options are now available to enrich any interactive content strategy. So try it, and you’ll find it’s very worthwhile!
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