By Anastasiia Lushyna
A good ad draws attention, but the best ad also drives engagement. Instead of providing your audience with a passive experience, offer some interactivity – this will help you make the most of your advertising campaigns.
But what exactly is interactive advertising? Which forms can it take? What are the key benefits and challenges? In this guide, we answer these and other questions, so read on to discover how to maximize performance and increase conversions.
Key Takeaways:
Interactive ads enable marketers to deliver immersive experiences and increase engagement.
Interactive advertising comes in a variety of formats, which makes it suitable for virtually any business objective.
Users interacting with interactive ads tend to have stronger purchase intent.
Creating interactive ads takes more time and money. However, you can reuse certain creative assets.
What is interactive advertising?
Interactive advertising can be defined as a digital advertising approach that actively involves users by encouraging them to participate in the ad experience. Instead of simply viewing a message, users can interact through a variety of actions: clicking, swiping, answering polls, playing mini-games, exploring product features within the ad itself, and so on. This two-way interaction turns advertising into an immersive experience.
Traditional ads rely mainly on reach and frequency, while interactive ones prioritize engagement. Users choose how and when to interact, which leads to deeper involvement, longer time spent with the ad, and higher recall.
Shorter attention spans and widespread ad fatigue also contribute to the growing popularity of interactive advertisements. Another factor to consider is the continuous evolution of technology. Rich media, AI, augmented and virtual reality – these and other advancements make it easier for brands to ensure effective interactivity at scale.
How interactive digital advertising works
Now, let’s dive deeper into the principles of work.
Role of user input and engagement
Actions are initiated by users, and each action triggers a response within the ad. For instance, this can be providing more information, personalizing the message, or moving to the next stage of the experience. This active participation increases attention, improves message retention, and implies intent in comparison with traditional ads.
Technologies powering interactive ads
Interactivity relies on an entire range of technologies and tools. For instance, AR and VR enable you to create a highly immersive experience (however, these technologies are not widely applied in advertising yet). AI and ML allow for greater personalization and more effective optimization. Data platforms help you tailor experiences to different audience segments. Programmatic solutions are the way to reach users at scale and automate the process of media buying.
Interactive ads in the marketing funnel
Interactive advertising can be helpful at every stage of the marketing funnel. For example, at the awareness stage, formats like quizzes, polls, and playable ads help draw attention. In the consideration phase, interactive videos help users explore product features and benefits. At the conversion stage, shoppable ads or lead forms can encourage immediate action. Post-conversion, interactive content can also drive retention and loyalty through feedback, surveys, and personalized follow-ups.
Types of interactive advertising
There are various types of interactive ads to experiment with. Take a look at some of them:
Interactive display ads
Interactive display advertising goes beyond static banners by allowing users to engage directly with the creative. Actions such as hovering, clicking, or swiping can reveal additional content, animations, or product information.
Expandable and reach media banners
Expandable and rich media banners expand when triggered by a user action (e.g., a click or hover). They can include videos, image galleries, carousels, forms, or product showcases. This format offers more storytelling space without immediately disrupting the experience.
Interactive video advertising
Interactive video ads allow viewers to actively engage while watching – for example, by choosing story paths or accessing additional information. This transforms video from a linear format into a highly personalized experience.
Shoppable and clickable video ads
Such ads enable users to click on products featured in the video to learn more about them or even purchase instantly. This format shortens the path from discovery to conversion, which can be especially helpful in e-commerce.
Gamified advertising
Gamified ads rely on game mechanics, for example, points, challenges, rewards, or leaderboards. This way, they encourage interaction and longer engagement, which can help you build brand awareness effectively.
Playable ads and mini-games
This format is especially popular in mobile app advertising. Playable ads and mini-games allow users to try a simplified version of a product or service before taking the next step.
Interactive social media ads
These ads leverage native platform features: polls, reactions, stories, etc. Such formats blend seamlessly into social feeds and encourage interactions – they are a good choice for mobile-first audiences.
Polls, quizzes, and swipe-based ads
Polls, quizzes, and swipe-based ads invite users to answer questions, express preferences, or make choices. These formats not only drive engagement – they also generate valuable data that you can use for personalization and optimization.
Interactive native advertising
Last but not least, interactive native ads match the look and feel of surrounding content while being equipped with elements like sliders, expandable sections, or embedded videos. They feel less intrusive and often deliver higher engagement.
Benefits of interactive advertising
You already know that interactive ads can help you make your campaign more engaging. However, this is not the only benefit, so let’s review the key advantages in detail.
Higher user engagement rates
Interactive ads are obviously more engaging than static ones. Instead of just viewing the content, users can take part in the experience, which increases the interaction time.
Improved brand recall and awareness
Besides, thanks to interactivity, you create stronger connections with your audience. This way, after the ad ends, users are more likely to remember your brand, your value proposition, and the key message.
Better conversion and lead quality
Interactive ads imply intentional actions, which usually means clearer interest or purchase intent. Therefore, this results in higher-quality leads and higher conversion rates.
Richer first-party data collection
Every interaction provides you with valuable data. You can use it to optimize both your existing and future campaigns, as well as the overall strategy. Moreover, this data is the most reliable type of information since it comes directly from users.
Stronger user experience and retention
Another significant benefit is that interactive advertising gives users control over how they engage, which makes ads feel more relevant and less intrusive. Such an enhanced experience contributes to positive brand perception and long-term user retention.
Challenges and limitations of digital interactive marketing
Interactive advertising can amplify your marketing efforts; however, there are also certain challenges that you should be aware of. Take a closer look:
Creative and development costs
Interactive ads typically require more advanced design, development, and testing than static formats. Custom animations, game mechanics, video layers, or personalization logic can increase production time and budget. For small brands, investing sufficient resources can be challenging.
Therefore, start with something simple – for instance, polls. Then, after analyzing the performance, you may want to start scaling steadily. Besides, consider reusing some creative assets.
Technical compatibility and load time
Interactive ad formats rely on complex technologies. If not properly optimized, they can lead to slower load times, device compatibility issues, or inconsistent performance across browsers, platforms, and operating systems. All these consequences can negatively impact user experience.
Optimize your ads and test them across different devices, browsers, etc.
Measuring real engagement
While interactive ads generate high engagement metrics, understanding those signals can be challenging. Not every interaction indicates meaningful interest or purchase intent, so you should clearly define what quality engagement means for every specific campaign and align metrics (time spent, completion rates, qualified actions, and others) with business objectives.
Scalability
Scaling interactive campaigns across multiple channels or formats can be difficult. Different platforms have varying technical requirements and creative limitations, which may require multiple versions of the same ad and additional operational effort. Utilizing dynamic creative optimization can be helpful.
Creative fatigue
Yes, interactive ads can help deal with the traditional ad fatigue issue. However, if you go too far, the challenge may come back. If a customer sees the same ad again and again, it will start looking annoying. This may happen even with the best interactive ads. Besides, if an interaction requires too much effort, a viewer may abandon it.
Keep interactions simple, refresh creatives regularly, and conduct A/B tests. Apart from this, set up frequency caps.
Interactive advertising use cases across industries
What is an interactive ad? You already know that such ads offer an immersive experience. However, to provide you with a better understanding of how everything works, we prepared several interactive ad examples. Here is how they can be effective in different industries.
Interactive ads in e-commerce
E-commerce brands use interactive ads to help users explore products before purchasing. Common formats include shoppable videos, swipeable catalogs, and quizzes that recommend items based on preferences. These experiences increase confidence and shorten the path from discovery to checkout.
Interactive advertising in gaming
In the gaming industry, interactive ads often take the form of playable ads and mini-games. Users can try a demo or engage with gameplay mechanics before downloading, which improves install quality and user retention. This approach helps attract users who are genuinely interested in the game.
Interactive advertising in finance and FinTech
In finance and FinTech, interactive ads help simplify complex products. For instance, quizzes and sliders may allow a potential consumer to explore options such as loans, insurance, or investment plans. By educating users through interaction, brands increase trust and generate higher-quality leads.
Interactive ads in education and EdTech
EdTech companies use interactive advertising to demonstrate value before sign-up. Ads may include short lessons, knowledge quizzes, skill assessments, or interactive demos of learning platforms. This approach helps users experience the product and improves lead qualification and enrollment rates.
Conclusion
Even though interactive advertising implies certain challenges, there are loads of benefits proving that this type of marketing is worth trying. When everything is done correctly, interactive advertisements can help you gain a competitive advantage and stand out in the market.
As always, if you decide to launch interactive ads, analyze their performance continuously. In this way, you will be able to detect opportunities and weaknesses on time and adjust your strategy accordingly.
Getting your own ad exchange can help you gain greater control over your advertising operations. Contact us – our range of solutions is able to meet any needs.
FAQ
Interactive ads often have higher production costs due to design, development, and testing. However, they can be more cost-effective in the long run by delivering higher engagement, better lead quality, and stronger performance, which can lower cost per interaction or conversion.
Interactive advertising is supported across major digital platforms, including display and programmatic networks, social media platforms, mobile apps, video and CTV environments, and native advertising platforms. Many DSPs and ad networks now offer built-in support for interactive and rich media formats.
Yes, interactive ads are more engaging, so they can help increase the conversion rate. Formats like shoppable videos, quizzes, and playable ads draw attention and help users move seamlessly from the first interaction toward conversion.
