Interactive Design in the Modern Age: What Can it Do for Your Website?

An interactive website or application can help your brand tell a story. When a visitor lands on your page for the first time, do they know intuitively how to navigate? Is there any confusion? What can interactive elements do for your website to help guide the user through the process and help your brand tell their story? 

Interactive Website Elements

Your website speaks volumes about your brand. With the opportunity to increase the amount of time a user spends on your site, including interactive elements should be a top priority. 

The possibilities are numerous. Consider animations, infographics, videos, calculators, chat, quizzes, games, dynamic scrolling, and so much more. 

Adding animations to an existing website can help create focus, provide a notification, reaction, or help users navigate your site by drawing attention to a specific part of the page. For example, you may have a photo gallery which you would like to draw attention to. By adding animation to your gallery tab and making it pop, your user will be inclined to click and view. Or you may want to notify the user that an action they began is complete. By adding a micro-animation such as a toggle, users can be certain an answer was submitted. Consider this Google site, which uses animations effectively to help the user understand the goal of the site. 

Beyond animations, infographics offer another way for users to engage with content. Including interactive elements with infographics can be a great way to immerse viewers while presenting information. This interactive infographic from the United Nations website is a perfect example of using maps and graphs to show viewers exactly where and what is occurring so visitors can absorb the information clearly. 

Video is gaining popularity as a marketing tool and adding an interactive element to your videos can increase engagement even more. According to a Wyzowl report, over 90% of businesses use video for marketing purposes and even more believe that it is the most important aspect of their marketing strategy. Interactive video differs from traditional by adding elements such as the ability to answer questions and includes hotspots. Hotspots are clickable areas on the screen which can trigger actions thereby increasing engagement. 

Including calculators, chat, quizzes and games can not only boost engagement but also provides valuable data so you can understand your audience better. A chat bot and calculators are tools that prove to your customers that their needs and concerns are important. A chat bot can offer answers when your customer service center is closed and a calculator can give estimates on costs and savings and help the user feel more in control. Games give the entertainment factor that appeals to a younger generation of gamers and even provides an opportunity to reward users. Typeform and Survey Monkey are a good place to investigate these tools and features.    

Finally, dynamic scrolling is another feature that helps guide the user and creates interest and engagement. Scrolling offers many features such as vertical, zooming in and out, and even three-dimensional access. By breaking up content with scrolling, users are more likely to spend more time on your site. Check out some of the possibilities here.     

While interactive designs have many advantages, it is possible to overdo them. The last thing you want to do is overstimulate your user causing them to exit your site. Test your changes before implementing and make sure your interactive features are complimenting your goals. 

Draw your audience in by including interactive design elements on your website. The results will engage and satisfy your customer, building trust and loyalty.