#1 What Is Interactive Content

That personality quiz you took the other night? Interactive content. The New York Times COVID case charts? Yep, interactive. Super-slick invite to a big industry conference? That’s right, interactive. It’s all interactive.

What Is Interactive Content, Anyway?

Story by

Tom DeVoto

Design by

Alexandra Wozniczka

You know it when you see it, but let’s define it anyway just so we’re clear: Interactive content is material that requires active engagement from its audience. An individual who comes across interactive content is more than just a passive viewer; they are part of a dynamic, two-way experience. In practice, interactive content can take an unlimited number of forms. But some of the most common forms are infographics, case studies, landing pages, quizzes, presentations, product demos, and games, to name a few. The content can follow a mandatory journey with a number of separate, specific steps (like an eBook), or a choose-your-own-adventure type of experience. But no matter what, all those different use cases have one quality necessary for content to be interactive. And that’s active participation— clicking, hovering, engaging in the experience. Interactive content is made possible by snippets of code that allow for enhanced web functionality. You can write that code directly to yield interactive content experiences—what your dev team might call “custom coding”—but that can be expensive and time-consuming. And you know what it's like asking the dev team for favors, right? Luckily, custom coding isn't the only way to produce interactive content, but we'll get to that later.

The best stuff on the Internet almost always includes interactive conten.t. It’s no wonder that interactive content earns two times more engagement than static content, according to DemandGen Report. Here, we’re going to explore what interactive content is, why it makes sense for many companies, and how to implement it in your own organization. Now, to be clear: we’re not saying that taking your company interactive is, or should be, an easy decision. To do it right requires some planning and commitment. Bringing it in-house and then maximizing the benefits of what you create requires some effort, and you’ll need help from other departments at your company. A case will have to be prepared. Costs will need to be anticipated. Assurances will need to be made. So let’s explore together, starting at the very beginning.

At this point, you might have a sense of why interactive content is so effective, but is it right for you and your organization? Do you really need it to create awesome digital content? The short answer is probably, yeah; the long answer is below. Let’s start with the business impact, because that’s where the questions often begin. And here, the numbers are clear: interactive content positively affects key business metrics for content programs up and down the marketing funnel. 81% of content marketers that create interactive content agree that it grabs attention more effectively than static content does. And 79% of them agree that once you grab that attention, interactive content does a better job than static content at holding it and creating repeat visitors.

So Why Do I Need It?

of content marketers agree interactive content grabs attention more effectively

of content marketers agree interactive content holds attention more effectively

Stefan Riches, the director of content marketing at Canadian architecture firm Stantec, says that he creates interactive content because of the impact it has on his engagement metrics. Stantec’s interactive experiences, he says, “outperform our blog posts by two-to-one, on average. And with some items it’s five-to-10 times what an average blog post would do.” And it just looks better, you know? Interactive content reflects positively on organizations that create it. The Web has matured since it debuted over 30 years ago, and digital content can go farther than it did in the early 2000s. In fact, readers are demanding that it go farther. Interactive content functions at a higher level than static content, and it is more satisfying for audiences to consume. With an interactive content platform (the aforementioned alternative to custom coding), graphic designers have more creative freedom to build something fresh and unique. That leads to collateral that’s not only unquestionably yours—that nobody else could have created—but also reflects positively on the tech-savviness of your brand. And who doesn’t want that for their audience?

The best stuff on the Internet almost always includes interactive content.

Consider this story from HDR, an architecture firm headquartered in Nebraska. HDR prides itself on being on the cutting edge. (In fact, pushing the boundaries is one of HDR’s five core values). Troy Parks, a senior communications specialist at the company, says that he uses an interactive content platform because those engaging experiences mesh so well with the way the brand positions itself. There’s a certain way that we talk about ourselves as a future-thinking architecture firm,” Parks said, “and (our content) sure as hell better look like that when somebody lands on our site.” Interactivity is also an increasingly crucial tool for marketing departments, which rely heavily on exceptional content to accomplish goals up and down the funnel. Need more qualified leads? Interactive’s got you covered on the demand gen front. Want to create something special for your newsletter subscribers? You’d be hard-pressed to find more interesting digital content. Promote an upcoming event? Tell the history of your brand? Deliver a knockout pitch to a potential client? Check, check, and check.

architecture firm and our content

sure as hell better look like that

about ourselves as a future-thinking

There’s a certain way that we talk

troy parks, ceros user

“”

when somebody lands on our site.

to Adopt It?

I Get My Company

And How Can

Interactive Content…

What Is

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infographics

case studies

quizzes

Games

landing pages

See Example

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Product demos

See Example

source: Content Marketing Institute

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Build, track, and scale

part 5

Once you start creating interactive content, how can you continue to create it better? How can you give your audience exactly what it’s looking for in an efficient way, and without sacrificing any of the creativity?

Make a business case

part 4

How much would an interactive content tool cost, and how much would it benefit your company? How is it an improvement over the alternative options? What are the alternatives, and what would they cost? Consider the all-in costs of every option, as well as the expenses you’d be saving with every option.

coming soon

Anticipate and account for design needs

part 3

Do you need to hire a designer? Secure a freelancer? Regardless, some creative person, whether they come from in-house or an external source, has to be willing and able to use the platform. This step is equal parts planning, budgeting, and trust-building.

coming soon

Build consensus and establish cross-team trust

part 2

There are probably more people that have to sign off on a new purchase at your company than you think—bosses, financial analysts, even lawyers. But we might recommend that you start with your web team, and in our next piece, we’ll explain why.

coming soon

click a box above for more, or...

Get Interactive: The Complete Series

So we’ve established a definition for interactive content, and we’ve established its value. But we know that purchasing decisions at companies involve more steps than “see valuable thing,” and “buy valuable thing.” So we’ll dig into the behind-the-scenes work required for a company to go interactive. Starting with this piece, we’re launching a series that will aim to explore this very topic. It’ll feature our own in-house knowledge, plus exclusive interviews with a handful of Ceros clients. If you’re interested in bringing interactive content to your company, here are the steps you can expect:

How Do I Implement Interactive Content?

You know it when you see it, but let’s define it anyway just so we’re clear: Interactive content is material that requires active engagement from its audience. An individual who comes across interactive content is more than just a passive viewer; they are part of a dynamic, two-way experience. In practice, interactive content can take an unlimited number of forms. But some of the most common forms are infographics, case studies, landing pages, quizzes, presentations, product demos, and games, to name a few. The content can follow a mandatory journey with a number of separate, specific steps (like an eBook), or a choose-your-own-adventure type of experience (like an assessment). But no matter what, all those different use cases have one quality necessary for content to be interactive. Active participation—clicking, hovering, engaging in the experience. Interactive content is made possible by snippets of code that allow for enhanced web functionality. You can write that code directly to yield interactive content experiences—what your dev team might call “custom coding”—but that can be expensive and time-consuming. And you know what it's like asking the dev team for favors, right?

“

like that when somebody lands on our site.

we talk about ourselves

Interactive

Company

“

Click now to access the full guide.

Admit it. You're ready to Get Interactive.

Click now to find out how Ceros can help.

Start making interactive content.

That personality quiz you took the other night? Interactive content. The New York Times COVID case charts? Yep, interactive. Super- slick invite to a big industry conference? That’s right, interactive. It’s all interactive.

always includes interactive content.

Click now to access the full guide.

Admit it. You're ready to Get Interactive.