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Interactive Content Marketing Toolkit

CHAPTER 8

C H A P T E R  1

Interactive Content Basics

Interactive Basics

New to the ‘Interactive Content’ Concept?

We’ve got you covered. In this chapter, we’re going to take a quick (and we mean REALLY quick) look at what interactive content is, the most common types, and why it’s so effective.

(Pssst… If you already know the basic ins and outs of interactive content, feel free to skip ahead to chapter 2—you won’t miss anything!)

So, let’s get started!

What is Interactive Content?

In a nutshell: Browser-based digital content experiences designed for visitor participation. Interactive content usually includes a feedback loop in which the outcome of the experience is directly impacted by the interaction of the visitor.

These experiences go beyond passive reading or watching—the user might be calculating, configuring, answering a quiz, participating in a contest or clicking around on stats and facts within an infographic, for example.

What Are the Common Types of Interactive Content?

Interactive Infographics

Interactive Infographics

Interactive Infographics

Interactive Infographics

Just like the static type, this content brings interesting stats to life in a visually compelling way and has various elements of interactivity.

Quizzes

Quizzes

Quizzes

Quizzes

If you’ve ever visited Buzzfeed, you’ve seen a quiz before. These are hugely popular and shareable – great for the earlier stages of the funnel in both B2B and B2C.

Assessments

Assessments

Assessments

Assessments

Like quizzes, assessments test a visitor’s knowledge, but are typically more in-depth and include benchmarking or recommendations based on the visitor’s responses.

Solution Builders

Solution Builders

Solution Builders

Solution Builders

Solution builders guide a visitor through assembling their own package or solution to their problem based on their unique and specific buying preferences or scenarios.

Configurators

Configurators

Configurators

Configurators

Like solution builders, but even more specific, configurators enable buyers to match their needs to your existing products, customize a plan and even configure their own quote!

Calculators

Calculators

Calculators

Calculators

Exactly as they sound, calculators help a lead crunch the numbers—whether on costs, ROI or any other metric they might find interesting.

Lookbooks

Lookbooks

Lookbooks

Lookbooks

Like digital catalogues, lookbooks put your products and services on visual display for easy perusal.

Interactive Whitepapers and eBooks

Interactive White Papers and eBooks

Interactive White papers and eBooks

Interactive White Papers and eBooks

These are more in-depth pieces that offer a wealth of information to your leads, educating them on a topic and empowering them to take action. Visitors can navigate to the content most interesting to them, and other interactive elements, such as quizzes or sidebars, can be included to keep the visitor engaged in a meaningful way.

Contests

Contests

Contests

Contests

Awesome for early-stage awareness, contests are highly shareable and great at getting people familiar with your brand in an entertaining way.

Why Interactive Content?

What makes interactive content not simply a nice consideration, but a pressing marketing imperative? Far more certainty about every aspect of content—from leads & sales, to measurement & insights.

Better engagement

Static content provides limited opportunity for audience engagement. Visitors can read, watch, convert and share. But not much more. An interactive experience is inherently participatory—solutions configured, calculations made, quizzes taken, chapters navigated. Visitors naturally interact with the content, becoming immersed in the experience instead of passively reading.

Demonstrable consumption

When content is interacted with, consumption can be tracked and analyzed. While static content is pass/fail (a visitor lands, and then what? They can only leave, share or convert), interactive content provides deep insights into actual content consumption.

Higher conversion rates

An exceptional, relevant content experience drives more leads and sales than static content.

Real differentiation

Interactive content is a proven way to differentiate your brand and offer something more interesting and compelling to your audience. It’s a more conversational way of interacting as opposed to just pushing resources and hoping people respond.

Richer measurement

Virtually everything within an online content experience can be tracked, measured and reported on. Beyond page views, bounce rates and conversion, interactive content provides an opportunity to see the outcomes and patterns of content interactions.

Meaningful sales alignment

Individual content interactions can be surfaced to the sales team in a meaningful context, allowing them to meet their buyers at the point of interest. Unlike static content, which offers very little information about how a lead actually engaged with your content, interactive content can tell you what a lead is most interested in, how much of your content they consumed, what inputs they provided, and much more. From their CRM, salespeople can gain instant, contextual understanding of every piece of interactive content their lead has experienced.

What’s Next?

In the following chapters, we’ll be arming you with the tools you need to get started with interactive content—from assessing your needs and evaluating your options to building a team and following a straightforward process.

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