Why Interactive Marketing is the Way Forward for Businesses
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Published:
September 7, 2023
Reading Time:
7 minutes
Interactive bilateral exchange is always better than passive one-way communication.
Indeed, customers are likely to have a more satisfactory experience if they engage with brands through interactive experience instead of passively receiving information from them.
In a report by the Content Marketing Institute, 81 percent of a surveyâs respondents agreed that interactive content is âmore effectiveâ than static content in attracting the audienceâs attention.
This preference is a key factor that encourages many companies to shift from traditional to interactive marketing.
So what is interactive marketing? The definition of interactive marketing may vary, but basically, it is about establishing an effective two-way exchange with consumers through various formats. They may include videos, audio, quizzes, visuals, infographics, social media, blogs, and even games.
Indeed, customers are likely to have a more satisfactory experience if they engage with brands through interactive experience instead of passively receiving information from them.
In a report by the Content Marketing Institute, 81 percent of a surveyâs respondents agreed that interactive content is âmore effectiveâ than static content in attracting the audienceâs attention.
This preference is a key factor that encourages many companies to shift from traditional to interactive marketing.
So what is interactive marketing? The definition of interactive marketing may vary, but basically, it is about establishing an effective two-way exchange with consumers through various formats. They may include videos, audio, quizzes, visuals, infographics, social media, blogs, and even games.
Why Interactive Marketing?
Interactive marketing has risen to become one of the most important concepts in todayâs corporate world. Now letâs take a closer look at key driving forces that push the development of interactive marketing.
In the old good days of traditional marketing, brands often marketed their products on print, billboards, TV, and radio, or cold calling and handouts.
Time has changed and so has marketing tactics. Nowadays, a variety of social media platforms have been made available and Artificial Intelligence has been increasingly used in content creation. Modern audiences now prefer engaging, interactive, and personalized content and are too busy for generic advertisements.
With this changing preference and rise of technologies, companies canât be an outlier in the race to use interactive marketing.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Virtual Reality (VR) along with Augmented Reality (AR) are among examples of advanced technologies.
Another notable technology is the Big Data system. This enables marketers to implement personalized marketing activities, especially in recommending content for the audience.With very strong advantages, new technologies have encouraged the development of interactive marketing.
It is also very interesting to see that interactivity is one of the most visible characteristics of social media itself. Apps like Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter make users feel the great need to engage by like, sharing, or tagging a friend for particular products. This pushes interactive marketers to flow with the trend to accommodate the needs of tech-savvy customers.
Traditional marketing no longer works
Decades ago, traditional advertising was a common practice for brands to promote their products and expand branding awareness.In the old good days of traditional marketing, brands often marketed their products on print, billboards, TV, and radio, or cold calling and handouts.
Time has changed and so has marketing tactics. Nowadays, a variety of social media platforms have been made available and Artificial Intelligence has been increasingly used in content creation. Modern audiences now prefer engaging, interactive, and personalized content and are too busy for generic advertisements.
With this changing preference and rise of technologies, companies canât be an outlier in the race to use interactive marketing.
New technologies emerge
Itâs not exaggerating to say the Internet and technologies have shaken the marketing world to its core. In the last few decades, there has been a massive expansion of interactive marketing thanks to the availability of powerful tools enabled by technological advancements.Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Virtual Reality (VR) along with Augmented Reality (AR) are among examples of advanced technologies.
Another notable technology is the Big Data system. This enables marketers to implement personalized marketing activities, especially in recommending content for the audience.With very strong advantages, new technologies have encouraged the development of interactive marketing.
Social media proliferates
Many studies agree that social media has dramatically changed the dynamics of consumer engagement in interactive marketing. With social media, users are now offered multiple shopping options and shoppable posts via external links.It is also very interesting to see that interactivity is one of the most visible characteristics of social media itself. Apps like Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter make users feel the great need to engage by like, sharing, or tagging a friend for particular products. This pushes interactive marketers to flow with the trend to accommodate the needs of tech-savvy customers.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Audiences prefer the bilateral interactive exchange to one-way passive communication
Benefits of Interactive Marketing
Letâs explore three main advantages of interactive marketing that really matter to businesses:
It cited a poll as saying that 81 percent of North American content marketers agreed that interactive content is better than static at capturing the attention of audiences.
Interactive content also has the potential for virality. When users find an experience or content enjoyable or useful, they will share it with their friends, colleagues, and relatives. This helps brands reach a massive amount of audience.
Those questions might include:
Higher conversion rate
With interactive marketing, calls-to-action messages become clearer as well as more compelling. Interactive marketing makes it easy for them to find and click buttons like âAdd to listâ, âBuy nowâ and âSign up for a free trialâ as well as âSubscribe to a newsletterâ. This results in a seamless journey to conversion, avoiding potential customers being stuck at some points before completing a purchase. Therefore, customers are more likely to make a purchase or try a service.Better audience engagement
According to Forbes, interactive content is the best way to captivate millennial and Generation Z audiences for its âideal mix of authenticity and audience participationâ.It cited a poll as saying that 81 percent of North American content marketers agreed that interactive content is better than static at capturing the attention of audiences.
Interactive content also has the potential for virality. When users find an experience or content enjoyable or useful, they will share it with their friends, colleagues, and relatives. This helps brands reach a massive amount of audience.
Real-time feedback
Through a variety of interactive content, such as quizzes and polls, brands can get feedback on how customers feel about the business.Those questions might include:
- At which level of satisfaction do you have with the experience?
- How can brands further improve their products or services?
- What else do customers want to try that you havenât provided them?
Interactive Marketing challenges and solutions
Now that we understand the benefits of interactive marketing, what about challenges? Here are two main challenges interactive marketers may encounter. We also provide suggestions on how they can cope with these difficulties:
Therefore, one might feel it like an uphill battle to seek a full understanding of the audience, who they are, what their preferences are, and how they change over time.
For example, nowadays audiences prefer such video trends as explainer videos, social media videos, and presentation videos. However, who knows they may shift to a completely different direction in the next few months or a few years due to their own preference or external factors?
Suggestion
A great amount of data is now available and this is especially helpful in the marketing world. Good interactive marketers should make the best use of data to gain insights into the target audience.
There are 3 main types of customer data that a professional should consider for their analysis:
This is crucial to developing customer personas. It can be collected through forms that they fill out on the company website, for example, newsletter subscription, contact forms, account sign-up, and purchase.
Identity data gives businesses a clear sense of the people who engage with them. Thanks to this, they can create content, messages, and campaigns that are suitable, compelling as well as relevant to their audience segments.
Companies can develop content and product recommendations as well as offers based on data about customers' interactions and behavior.
This type of data is available on your websiteâs analytics page, marketing, and social media campaigns.
Though interactive marketing has been developing for a few decades now, this is still a relatively new form of marketing and it has been constantly evolving.
Traditional marketers might feel overwhelmed by the diverse range of content types they need to work on. They have to learn to take photos, create quizzes, or produce videos or even make podcasts, among many others.
Suggestion
Working as an interactive marketer, one must continuously update themselves with new skills. They can range from data analysis, content development, and SEO to social media and multimedia skills.
One can find the niche that they want to focus on, for example, SEO, social media, or multimedia. By doing this they can narrow down the learning objectives, select the target audience, and utilize the most relevant resources.
And it's such good news that there are now so many ways to acquire a new skill or hone existing ones. You can either follow an expert, participate in industry workshops, or take online courses or just do all of them.
You can learn a lot from their opinions, mindset, and advice in person, or online (through blogs, interviews, webinars, books, and training courses).
You can also follow them on the platforms that they often share including Blog, Twitter, Linkedin, or Facebook.
On the other hand, they are still able to have access to a structured and systematic approach. They can learn so many things, from skills, and tools to strategies in interactive marketing.
Plus, there are many options to choose from: free or paid, self-paced or instructor-led, course or program.
You can go for offline or online events, whichever suits you. These events cover many aspects and concepts of interactive marketing. Some of them will wow you, and in some others, you can take away many lessons and apply them to your own company.
Lack of understanding of customersâ behavior
Knowing the audience is very important in marketing. However, we must admit that human behavior is very dynamic. It is shaped mainly by psychological characteristics and at the same time, can vary from person to person.Therefore, one might feel it like an uphill battle to seek a full understanding of the audience, who they are, what their preferences are, and how they change over time.
For example, nowadays audiences prefer such video trends as explainer videos, social media videos, and presentation videos. However, who knows they may shift to a completely different direction in the next few months or a few years due to their own preference or external factors?
Suggestion
A great amount of data is now available and this is especially helpful in the marketing world. Good interactive marketers should make the best use of data to gain insights into the target audience.
There are 3 main types of customer data that a professional should consider for their analysis:
- Identity data
This is crucial to developing customer personas. It can be collected through forms that they fill out on the company website, for example, newsletter subscription, contact forms, account sign-up, and purchase.
Identity data gives businesses a clear sense of the people who engage with them. Thanks to this, they can create content, messages, and campaigns that are suitable, compelling as well as relevant to their audience segments.
- Behavioral data
Companies can develop content and product recommendations as well as offers based on data about customers' interactions and behavior.
- Engagement data
This type of data is available on your websiteâs analytics page, marketing, and social media campaigns.
Insufficient skills in interactive marketing
The second challenge an interactive marketer might have is the lack of skills.Though interactive marketing has been developing for a few decades now, this is still a relatively new form of marketing and it has been constantly evolving.
Traditional marketers might feel overwhelmed by the diverse range of content types they need to work on. They have to learn to take photos, create quizzes, or produce videos or even make podcasts, among many others.
Suggestion
Working as an interactive marketer, one must continuously update themselves with new skills. They can range from data analysis, content development, and SEO to social media and multimedia skills.
One can find the niche that they want to focus on, for example, SEO, social media, or multimedia. By doing this they can narrow down the learning objectives, select the target audience, and utilize the most relevant resources.
And it's such good news that there are now so many ways to acquire a new skill or hone existing ones. You can either follow an expert, participate in industry workshops, or take online courses or just do all of them.
- Learn from experts
You can learn a lot from their opinions, mindset, and advice in person, or online (through blogs, interviews, webinars, books, and training courses).
You can also follow them on the platforms that they often share including Blog, Twitter, Linkedin, or Facebook.
- Take online courses
On the other hand, they are still able to have access to a structured and systematic approach. They can learn so many things, from skills, and tools to strategies in interactive marketing.
Plus, there are many options to choose from: free or paid, self-paced or instructor-led, course or program.
- Attend industry events
You can go for offline or online events, whichever suits you. These events cover many aspects and concepts of interactive marketing. Some of them will wow you, and in some others, you can take away many lessons and apply them to your own company.
Conclusion
In summary, interactive marketing simply is about developing an interactive relationship with consumers through videos, quizzes, visuals, infographics, and social media as well as games, among many others.
A marketer might encounter some challenges as this field is still pretty new and has been constantly evolving. But donât worry, with the suggestions we share above, you will thrive as a professional interactive marketer.
Here at Consultport, we have the expertise of many consultants who can help companies implement inspiring marketing campaigns. If you want to become part of this pool of talents or need consultation from them, donât hesitate to contact us.
A marketer might encounter some challenges as this field is still pretty new and has been constantly evolving. But donât worry, with the suggestions we share above, you will thrive as a professional interactive marketer.
Here at Consultport, we have the expertise of many consultants who can help companies implement inspiring marketing campaigns. If you want to become part of this pool of talents or need consultation from them, donât hesitate to contact us.
