Interaction is key to a site’s success these days as there is no better way to engage your target audience. Since engaging the target audience is always one of the prime goals for any website, the importance of interactive elements cannot be overstated. So, how should you go about integrating those interaction points on your own site? Here are three tips to help you do just that.
Gamify Your Website
Gamification has a rather complex definition, but we can simplify it. Consider gamification to be the act of strategically implementing small games/gameplay elements as interaction points within the content of your website. For example, people across all age groups and interest groups have a fondness for word games. You can make use of this common interest point to improve traffic flow and engagement rate at your website. Word puzzles, sudoku, crossword puzzles, etc., are not just popular, but they are also easy to integrate as points of engagement on a website.
Don’t leave them hanging without solutions though, as that will frustrate your visitors in the long run. Use the online word unscrambler and create a tool to help people with their favorite game. Not only will the site receive more exposure because of the integrated games, but your visitors will also grow fond of the comprehensive experience, creating a positive association with your website. After all, they can also use the same interactive tool to find solutions for word games in general as well.
Frequently Add Actionable Polls
Polls are popular tools to create engagement on their own, but actionable polls will keep your visitors hooked for much longer. If you are not familiar with the term, consider actionable website polls to be similar to regular polls with just one crucial difference. The subject of an actionable poll is always something that is related to the website directly and that the site can take immediate action on, as per the poll’s results.
For example, a bookstore can set up a poll question to decide which genres will be included in their next big sale. It’s an actionable poll because the online bookstore can actually take heed of the poll’s results during their next sale. This is the kind of interaction which benefits all parties and creates true engagement because:
- The bookstore now knows what their potential customers are interested in reading the most.
- By providing the promised discount in accordance with the poll’s results, they are far more likely to improve sales.
- By giving true credence to their visitors’ opinions, the site gains respect and subscribers for future polls and sales as well.
- The customers get exactly what they wanted while voting on the poll, which empowers them as customers.
Utilize User Generated Content
This time around, let’s take a cue from popular podcasting, blogging, and vlogging websites. The very idea behind sites like YouTube, Reddit, and Spotify is/was to create a self-sustaining economy with little to separate content creators from aspiring subscribers. Not that every website out there has a format to support such extensive business models, but these do help us better understand how interactive elements can work wonders with user generated content.
Now that we know it can be done, almost any website can do so, albeit in varying degrees. Hold competitions with the true promise of featuring and promoting user generated content on your website temporarily/permanently. This provides encouragement and incentive to your users, which in turn facilitates natural engagement.
Besides, you might be surprised by how good user generated content can be at times. If relevant, you may even find a few talented users that can actually boost business for your website.
Caroline is doing her graduation in IT from the University of South California but keens to work as a freelance blogger. She loves to write on the latest information about IoT, technology, and business. She has innovative ideas and shares her experience with her readers.
