Jumpstart Your Web Development Efforts with Interactive Features

Over the last few years, we’ve seen a dramatic industry shift away from static, text-heavy web pages and towards more user-friendly interactive pages. While it certainly takes more creativity and effort to develop the latter, the increased engagement that results from interactive web pages is well worth the upfront investment.

3 Types of Interactive Features to Consider

The value of interactive features is that they actually create additional value for the end user, which keeps them coming back for more. As opposed to a text-heavy page that merely presents information, an interactive page gives the user a role in the information consumption.

While there’s a lot of flexibility when it comes to developing interactive features for a website, a few different types are currently more popular than others. Let’s take a look:

1. Service and Cost Calculators

One of the most popular and valuable interactive features is the service or cost calculator. These are tools that companies use to guide customers in the decision making process. Let’s analyze a couple of examples:

Guardhouse Security: This tool by Guardhouse Security gives customers the ability to plan and build their own security system straight from the company website. Users simply input information such as square footage, doors, windows, and stairwells – in addition to the security options they want – and the tool provides optional plans and prices.

Salesforce: This is a fantastic example of a cost calculator from Salesforce. It asks companies to fill out information related to salespeople, average deal size, and profit margins, and the tool tells companies how much annual increase in revenue they can expect.

Cost calculators are great for educating and persuading customers. They can take some time to tweak and perfect, but they almost always deliver additional value. The great news is that adoption rates are still quite low. This means you can differentiate your website from the competition by adding one.

2. Data Visualization and Interactive Infographics

Data visualizations are another popular and effective interactive feature. Understanding that the human brain processes visual information much better than text, many websites are investing in interactive infographics and dynamic data displays to influence customers and enhance engagement.

Setosa: This is an extremely functional data visualization tool that takes information, which otherwise would be extremely boring in a spreadsheet or table, and makes it interactive and enjoyable.

FiveThirtyEight: Data giant FiveThirtyEight is one of the leaders in data visualizations, and this feature about the history of the NFL is one of the better examples of how data visualizations can enhance static content.

Next time you present data, consider reporting it in a digestible and aesthetically pleasing way. It’ll hold its value for much longer.

3. Quizzes and Surveys

The third major category of interactive features is quizzes and surveys. Thanks to the shareability of quizzes and surveys on social media, their popularity has increased over recent years.

BuzzFeed: No website does a better job of creating share-worthy quizzes than Buzzfeed. They develop simple quizzes on a variety of topics and have successfully enhanced their visibility as a result. This one about what city you should live in is one of the most popular.

Quibblo: While BuzzFeed’s quizzes are all pretty intricate, you can still have success with a simpler survey, like this one found on Quibblo. There are a number of plugins that allow you to create quizzes without much effort.

If you’re looking for a light-hearted approach to interactive content, a relevant quiz or survey could be just the trick.

Invest in Interactive Features Today

You don’t have to completely overhaul your existing website in order to make things interactive. A few well-placed features here and there can fundamentally change the feel and functionality of any website. Over time, the more interactive features you’re able to incorporate into your site’s content, the more traffic and conversions you’ll acquire. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to thrive.