Interactive content is any type of content that encourages users to consume it actively instead of passively. It’s an excellent way of generating traffic for your ecommerce business. It also helps promote brand loyalty since interactive elements keep customers coming back to your site. The more they interact with your site, the stronger their allegiance to your brand.
The result of all this? Interactive content yields double the conversions of passive content. So, if you’re not using it to your advantage, you’re missing out.
Running out of interactive content ideas for your eCommerce business? Check out our list:
1. Calculators
An interactive calculator is an online tool that uses data provided by customers to guide them toward the bottom of the sales funnel. The data is used to create a personalized experience for each potential customer who visits your website.
Websites such as Involve and Outgrow have a wide range of useful templates to help you create an interactive calculator. However, before you get started with a template, you must clearly define the specific purpose of your calculator.
For an eCommerce business, for instance, it could help customers identify the product that’s within their budget. Discount calculators are also very useful. They show customers how much they can save if they buy a product. Check out the example below.
When customers see they can save a lot if they buy the product, they are more likely to make the purchase.
If you’re unsure about what type of calculator will provide the most value to your customers, you can send them email or mail surveys and ask them directly.
2. Chatbots
Chatbots use technological advancements like artificial intelligence to talk to customers. They are often used to complement customer service reps, who can, in turn, answer the more complex customer questions.
Here’s an example of a chatbot. With this Starbucks app chatbot, customers can easily place orders through voice commands or text messages.
There are tools you can use to create your chatbot if you don’t know how to code. Tidio, Freshchat and Chat Fuel are just some tools you might want to check out. However you decide to create your chatbot, you’ll need to design the chatbot conversation.
Artificial intelligence tools can help you here if you don’t know what to write. A generative AI guide can help you maximize use of these tools for the best conversation flow.
Ultimately, chatbots enhance the customer experience, which makes them quite profitable. Studies show that chatbots increase sales by 67%. One of the biggest reasons for this is that they allow businesses to provide quick customer service 24/7.
The thing is, that excellent customer service doesn’t have to be given by just the chatbot. Chatbots get crucial customer data, and this includes their issues related to your brand. This is data you can use to improve your overall customer offerings.
So, if you find through your chatbot that many people complain about not knowing how to use that washing machine they bought from you, you can immediately address their concerns by writing a long-form article or blog post addressing the issue.
Just make sure you use relevant keywords to enhance your content’s visibility in SERPs. You might want to incorporate competitor keywords, too, to increase your chances of organic traffic growth.
By providing detailed solutions, you give customers peace of mind while also enhancing your content marketing efforts.
3. Interactive quizzes
Interactive quizzes engage customers since they test your customers’ knowledge on a certain subject and help them learn more about themselves.
But that’s not all.
Interactive quizzes can also provide useful information for businesses, which you can use for your customer campaigns.
For instance, you can gather the email addresses of potential customers through these quizzes. Then, use this information to nurture leads and prospects through email marketing. If you do it right, you can generate conversions. The average conversion rate for email marketing campaigns based on click throughs is a whopping 15.22%.
You can also gather data to give the right product recommendations to potential buyers and, therefore, increase your chances of sales. Product recommendation quizzes can help your website visitors overcome any potential choice overload issues they may be experiencing.
For example, as shown below, Sephora uses a “Skin Care Quiz” to help customers find the right skin care products for their individual needs and preferences.
After answering a few of these questions, customers are provided with a narrowed down list of recommended products:
What happens if they don’t make a purchase immediately? You can still use the quiz data to create personalized recommendations for that same visitor on your site.
You can easily create quizzes with tools such as ConvertFlow, Quiz Kit and Typeform.
4. Interactive videos
It is well-documented that modern-day consumers have limited attention spans. Believe it or not, the average user attention span is just eight seconds!
However, with the immersive experience it provides, interactive video content can help you get around this. “Shoppable videos,” for instance, are an excellent way to engage your customers. Customers can feel like they’re in a physical store as they browse and purchase directly from the video.
They can just click on a product they like and add it to their cart. Because of how they’re built, shoppable videos can increase conversion rates by 30%.
Ikea is a great example of an ecommerce business that uses shoppable videos. As shown in the video below, each product featured in the video can be examined then and there, without the user opening another tab.
Customers can also go straight back to the video after checkout of a product.
You can include your shoppable videos on your own site or on social media. If you’re using Instagram, though, you’ll have to make sure the shoppable video feature is available in your region. Then follow this guide to set up your Instagram Shopping.
5. Polls
Polls are an effective way, not just of generating engagement, but also brand loyalty. Customers feel appreciated when you let them voice out their opinions. It makes them feel like they’re being heard.
Polls can be created online and distributed through websites such as SurveyMonkey. However, using social platforms would allow you to reach your target audience easily. Besides, when you post engaging social media polls, you can generate more Instagram followers, boost Facebook shares, and increase retweets.
Instagram polls, like the ones on Instagram Story, are easy to create. Just follow these steps:
- Create an Instagram Story.
- Choose the Poll icon to adhere the Poll Sticker to the Story.
- Fill out the question and answer fields.
- Customize your poll by tapping on the color palette icon.
- Share your poll.
When followers view your story they can answer by tapping their preferred option.
To maximize your use of polls, make sure you don’t just ask random questions. Ask questions that can help you know your target audience better. This is then data you can use to connect better with them in your next campaigns.
For instance, you can find out the type of content your social media followers would like to see::
Or you can learn more about their product preferences. With the poll below, for instance, you could discover a desire for a new type of product or product variation.
But you shouldn’t just receive this information from your audience. You have to make sure you act on the data, if it’s valid, as well.
Bonus tip: Leverage user-generated content
User-generated content can enhance your content marketing strategy. Put simply, it is original, brand-specific content created by other people who are not directly affiliated with your brand. UGC is consumed passively but involves your audience in the content production process.
So, although in the modern sense of the word, it isn’t interactive like calculators and polls, it’s still worth it to include in your eCommerce content marketing.
Zappos, a fashion retailer, for instance, allows customers to share their outfits. Customers just click the “Share Your Outfit” button and upload pictures.
These photos are added to a gallery on the product page as shown below. So, once a visitor clicks on a product they’re interested in, they see how other users wore the product on the “How It Was Worn” section:
In other words, customers don’t just get involved by sharing their outfits. They can discover outfit ideas, too.
You can encourage customers to create UGC through your social media posts. If you want more effective results, seek assistance from an influencer in your niche. Ask them to create the content and encourage their audience to create similar material.
In both instances, don’t forget to ask them to incorporate your chosen hashtags when they post their content. This way, it will be easy for you to find this UGC and share it on your marketing channels.
In closing
Interactive content is an effective tool for ecommerce business growth. When appropriately used, interactive content can help you generate leads and increase conversion rates.
You learned some interactive content ideas from this article. These include calculators, interactive videos, polls and surveys, interactive quizzes, and chatbots. You can leverage more than one type of interactive content, depending on your audience interactions.
So, go ahead and start using these types of interactive content. See how your ecommerce business stands out.