Do you feel like your brand’s marketing efforts are akin to talking to a brick wall? No matter how much time and money goes into crafting a compelling message, user response invariably remains radio silence.

What gives? Why don’t you receive the comments, likes, reposts, and retweets that you feel your marketing efforts deserve?

For one, you’re likely ignoring interactive marketing examples. These examples point to the single most captivating way to engage with customers today, interactive marketing.

Why does it work, and how do you take advantage of its power and value? Here’s everything you need to know about interactive marketing so that you can start harnessing its power in marketing materials.

Traditional Marketing Versus Interactive Marketing Examples

Not so long ago, just getting your company’s name out there was enough. Traditional content marketing extolled the virtues of providing customers with information, LOTS of it. You complied without question.

Yet, as you published more and more content based on the best practices of traditional methods, you had a sinking feeling something was wrong. Why? Because your user engagement stayed low. 

While this lack of reader involvement has probably deeply disappointed you and perhaps even jaded you a bit, is it all that surprising?

After all, traditional marketing represents a one-way street. One where you talk to and at your customers. In other words, there’s been little opportunity or motivation for users to interact in a back-and-forth conversation.

Fortunately, no matter how much overall marketing experience you do or don’t have, it’s never too late to harness the opportunities available to you through interactive marketing. 

Why Interactive Marketing Works

Today’s customers are digitally savvy. They’re also mobile device users who expect convenience and personalized experiences from their devices, including voice-assisted technology.

As a result, they value responsiveness (and expect it) now more than ever before. These user expectations continue to reshape the digital marketing landscape and how we need to do business moving forward. 

In essence, users have altered the rules of the marketing game. The question is, are you ready to abide by the new ones? If not, your content marketing campaigns will continue to suffer from a lack of engagement. 

Instead of relegating yourself to producing content that’s outdated and fails to capture reader imagination, why not change it up? 

You’ll not only be amazed by the results you see, but your customer engagement will go through the roof if you do it right. How do you ensure you create a winning campaign?

By taking a different, more influential, and responsive approach to forging connections with customers. Not sure where to start? Check out these interactive marketing examples to get the ball rolling.

Why Interactive Marketing Works

Although today’s reliance on interactive marketing represents a new development, and one you need to get on board with, some of its most effective tactics have been around the block more than a couple of times.

Yet, they continue to work like a charm. These include techniques known as event- or trigger-based marketing strategies. These tactics provide available actions to customers, crafting campaigns around those actions. 

Put another way, user triggers lead to specific, pre-determined marketing outcomes. These outcomes prove both highly relevant and shareable. 

Think of it in terms of action and reaction. For every action a user takes, your brand has in place an equal reaction. This simple yet effective premise lets you tear down the brick wall that currently stands between you and your customers. 

It supports and encourages two-way communication between your brand and your target audience. 

Examples of Interactive Marketing Campaigns that Attract Leads 

Now that you’ve got a better understanding of the premise behind interactive marketing and why it works, let’s take a look at some real-world examples.

After all, interactive marketing content can vary greatly. Types of content include interactive:

• Storytelling
• Infographics
• Video
• Quizzes
• Emails
• Calculators

What sets these examples apart from more traditional marketing methods? First and foremost, their emphasis on getting customers to take action. 

Interactive Storytelling

As a kid, do you remember reading Choose Your Own Adventure books? If so, you’re not alone. There’s a reason this form of storytelling created page-turners. 

Whether set in the redwood forests of the Northwest, the jungles of South America, or underwater in the Pacific, these stories put readers in the driver’s seat, allowing them to choose the next step.

How do you translate this into a successful marketing strategy? Take the interactive website at Tully Luxury Travel, for example. It includes an interactive microsite where customers can make choices based on their exploration style and interests. 

Then, the microsite redirects them to a list of ideal destinations with corresponding content. The result? A highly personalized experience. One that makes each reader feel invested in the content as they encounter it. 

Interactive Infographics

You’re, no doubt, familiar with infographics. These popular visuals are all living testaments to the adage, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

Already a highly valued type of content, why not add an interactive twist?

What might this look like? It includes the standard elements that make infographics so beloved, namely lots of images and less text. But they go a step further through custom-tailored content.

For example, consider the approach taken by Marriott in Scottsdale, Arizona. To get travelers more interested in and familiar with what the Southwest has to offer in terms of destination-related activities, they’ve developed an interactive infographic.

Based on how users answer questions, the website generates a dream vacation chart, introducing readers to a unique visual breakdown of activities available in the Southwestern United States.

Interactive Video

Did you know that you can even turn videos into an interactive medium? Maybelline New York has done a fantastic job of this with a video created by Rapt Media. It features fashion designer Kelly Framel offering an overview of current makeup trends.

Then, viewers get to choose which one they’d like to explore further through a variety of tutorials showcasing looks that cover the spectrum from professional to evening glam. Users just click on their preferred button.

This example proves particularly potent because it helps the brand harness a whole new group of clientele, Framel’s loyal fans. It also rewards the brand’s loyal followers with highly relevant, educational content that highlights new products.

Interactive Quizzes

Quizzes have come a LONG way since the digital revolution. No longer are they the stuff of high school nightmares. Now, online users enjoy completing them and sharing the results with their friends. 

Quizzes remain among the most popular forms of shared content across social media channels. 

Talk about a 180-degree shift for this time-honored learning tool!

How do interactive quizzes work? The best ones entertain and engage their audience while inspiring them to take a specific action. And take action quiz participants do!

Just consider this stat. Of the individuals who start a quiz on BuzzFeed, a whopping 96 percent of them finish it. 

What’s an example of a quiz that leads to user engagement with a brand? The travel company Orbitz has enjoyed massive user engagement since launching its quirky Vacation Matchmaker Quiz.

A tongue-in-cheek take on the premise of online dating, it matches users with their ideal destinations based on their answers to a series of questions. The quiz also contains social media buttons to share quiz results with users’ followers. 

Interactive Emails

You’re likely already sending autoresponders to your leads. If you’re not seeing the clicks, shares, and other interactions you’d hope to with these campaigns, however, it’s time to incorporate more interactive elements.

An excellent example? A recent campaign by Pret, an organic coffee and food company.

To showcase their summer drink menu, they crafted this simple, engaging, yet straightforward email message to keep their products top of mind. How do you not respond to such a simple yet fun animation? 

Interactive Calculators

After looking at the examples above, are you still uncertain about how to incorporate interactive marketing into your service-oriented brand marketing? No worries, we get it.

Service providers often have the hardest job when it comes to highlighting the value of their brand. After all, how do you show a return on investment (ROI) through a quiz or email animation?

While this question is one worth exploring as you hone your skills with interactive marketing, here’s an easier proposition to get started. Why not take advantage of calculators? 

Not only are calculators highly customizable, but they invite users to input their numbers, thereby seeking answers to their current questions.

For example, why not include a calculator that lets your small business prospects plug in a few numbers to see their total cost of ownership (TCO)?

Or, how about one that lets entrepreneurial leads see their return on investment (ROI) with the click of a button? In both cases, you’ve got tools that small business owners need regularly. 

Do you want them to bookmark your website and return repeatedly? Then, include an interactive marketing calculator or two. 

Check out these best practices and tips for effectively integrating marketing products such as calculators into your brand’s online offerings.

Ramping Up User-Generated Content

Why do the tactics above work so well when it comes to interactive marketing? Because they encourage prospects to create and share user-generated content. There’s no better way to leverage the power of interactive marketing. 

Where does user-generated content have the most impact? When your leads and customers share it via their social media channels. 

You’ll get the most bang for your buck, depending on the channel, when users include a hashtag. So, don’t forget to incorporate hashtags into your interactive content.

From Twitter to Instagram and even LinkedIn, hashtags prove the best way to shine online. They also represent an easy way for users to interact with your brand and spread your message online.

What’s more, user-generated content fits under the larger umbrella of declared data. This term refers to proprietary information voluntarily given by users to a brand.

This information provides critical insights. Your company can use these to engage potential customers moving forward. What’s more, this data doesn’t fall under the same restrictions as third-party data because of its voluntary nature. 

So, you don’t have to worry about GDPR, LGPD, or CCPA privacy law restrictions. Instead, you can utilize this data freely for future marketing efforts. 

Experiential Marketing

When it comes to interactive marketing, what should your brand set its sights on? Ultimately, content so good that it goes viral.

How can you up the likelihood of this happening? By offering users something unique in return for engaging with your content. 

Here’s where experiential marketing comes into play. When executed artfully, this content spreads like wildfire. Now, that’s truly priceless. 

At its core, experiential marketing should provide a memorable and immersive experience. The trick to avoiding the look of a PR stunt? Ensuring your campaign gets framed within a relevant brand context. 

For example, Red Bull has long branded itself on a fast-paced lifestyle. One that’s filled with adventure, thrill-seeking, and plenty of adrenaline. What’s more, the company’s motto “Red Bull gives you wings” contains a reference to flying.

So, it proved a natural hit when the brand decided to align itself with worldwide media coverage of the Stratos Jump event. During the experience, Felix Baumgartner broke the world record for the highest parachute jump.

Red Bull’s effective promotion of this even included relevant supporting content and a microsite with up-to-the-minute news.

The result? The brand gained global recognition. It also garnered plenty of user interaction. 

The Game-Changer Your Brand Needs

The interactive marketing examples above illustrate real-world ways to get more customers to interact with your brand online. Each example represents an exciting new way to engage leads and customers in your content offerings. 

So, stop talking to that brick wall and start interacting with your valued prospects and customers! 

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Or better yet, contact us to set up a demo of Ion Interactive, a content platform proven to boost engagement, leads, and sales.