Is content still king? Yes, but only on the condition that it is also interactive. Here's why.
Content marketing is on everyone's lips. But as more and more companies rely on engaging content in the marketing mix, it's getting harder and harder to stand out with it, generate leads, and drive conversions. Is content still king? Yes, but only on the condition that it is also interactive.
Due to the abundance of content marketing tools such as webinars, whitepapers, eBooks and infographics, users are becoming more selective about what kind of content they disclose information about themselves for. There are now several infographics and whitepapers on the web for almost every topic. Conversion rates for this content, which tends to be more passive, are stagnating or falling. Therefore, these tools are not yet ineffective. Nevertheless, things are improving in the meantime.
As is often the case, the U.S. is leading the way when it comes to establishing new trends: companies there are increasingly relying on interactive content to boost their awareness, interaction rates, traffic and conversions. This development is also being driven by young companies that provide marketers with tools for creating interactive content.
Everyone knows from their own experience that people process information better when they have actively dealt with it. This is the first great strength of interactive content: Users experience information in their very own, personalized way. Not only does this make the information more memorable, it also emotionalizes the brand that provided the content. By being more involved in interactive content, users also spend more time with it. Engagement (66%) and information transfer (63%) are thus also high on the list of things content marketers hope to achieve from interactive content, according to the Content Marketing Institute. But interactive content offers another important advantage over static content, which often requires users to register first: rich interaction data.
Interactive content also increases the quality of service. For one of our customers, a provider of due diligence services, we implemented a digital decision support tool. The company offers subscription packages to its customers, usually large, multinational companies, in which individual checks of people and companies are carried out. The company approached us with the following problem: some customers are spread across so many locations and subsidiaries that many are unaware that they have access to this service. In addition to a strategy to increase awareness of the service itself, we also designed a decision support tool that customers can then use to choose the right service from the subscription for them. On the one hand, they receive information about the services offered. But the core element is a virtual questionnaire, at the end of which the right service for the respective requirements is issued. This can then be booked directly from the interactive content.
The due diligence service provider also receives information about the needs of its customers from the interaction data. He can use this knowledge to further design his services in the future. Users benefit from services that are tailored precisely to their problems.
If users feel involved and entertained or receive some other kind of added value, they are happy to disclose information about themselves. This works equally well in B2C and B2B. Other content that generates valuable interaction data are configurators, cost calculators or rating tools. They provide information that goes deeper than is possible with online forms. This includes data on users' needs, interests and preferences. These insights can be used to optimize product development and planned marketing campaigns. At the same time, this content also generates leads by offering to send users more in-depth information via email.
Another advantage of interactive content is that it spreads better because users prefer to share it. They are more likely to recommend content to their contacts that is entertaining and informative AND free to access than content that is restricted.
The benefits of interactive content at a glance:
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