The Guide to Interactive Branding

In a world where sub-0 click-thru rates are an advertising norm, how can your brand stand out? Interactive branding slashes through traditional boundaries for a level of unseen engagement to immerse, inspire, and enthrall.

If you’re curious about interactive marketing but aren’t sure exactly what the capabilities are, get ready to be amazed.

What Is Interactive Branding?

In the past, branding was one-dimensional. Companies created content through a social media platform, email marketing, content marketing, TV spots, billboards, and other forms of direct marketing to build brand awareness.

Did it get the job done? Somewhat.

But there were limitations. There wasn’t much dialogue between a brand and their customers. It was basically just the brand pushing out promotional content, and there was no real two-way conversational marketing going on.

Fast forward to today and interactive branding, which focuses on building genuine customer relationships through two-way communication and creating an emotional connection. It becoming an increasingly popular option. And a damn good one if we say so.

Interactive marketing usurps traditional marketing efforts and takes customer engagement to a new level through interactive storytelling and personalized content while encouraging active participation from potential customers.

By using cutting-edge digital marketing techniques like games, playable ads, highly interactive websites, and AR/VR, marketers can dramatically improve consumer buying while strengthening brand loyalty.

For perspective, marketers that use interactive video generate 18% more leads, get 25% more conversion rates, and see 14% more sales.

How Interactive Branding Drives Engagement

There are a plethora of reasons to choose interactive content over traditional static content. But the biggest advantage can be boiled down into just one word — brand engagement.

By default, the active participation that interactive content warrants along with the personalized experience and the straight-up fun can send engagement through the roof.

Just put yourself in the shoes of a potential customer for a second. Say you were scrolling through your social media feed and you saw all the typical stale, lifeless ads that you’re accustomed to. You’d likely scroll right past them without giving it a second thought.

However, if you came across something like a playable social media ad where you can click, swipe, hover, and have a blast, you’d be almost guaranteed to engage with it and would want to learn more about the brand.

It’s simple. Involvement equals engagement.

By getting your audience involved with an interactive ad, they can’t help but engage. 

But don’t take our word for it. “Interactive content sees 52.6% more engagement than static content, with buyers spending an average of 8.5 minutes viewing static content and 13 minutes on interactive content items.”

Also, 87% of marketers agree that interactive content captures viewer attention better than static content. So it’s a no-brainer as a digital marketing tactic.

Interactive Branding Examples

When done correctly, an interactive marketing campaign outshines traditional static content. Not only does it crank up engagement and conversions, it’s got the extra oomph that can truly get customers excited.

What we really love about interactive marketing is how creative you can get with it. A brand can use everything from interactive emails to interactive infographics to interactive user generated content to hyper-immersive AR/VR.

There’s virtually no limit to where you can take it, and at NeoPangea, we get a rush out of the ground-breaking, mind-melting techniques at our disposal.

But let’s not talk theoretical. Here are seven real-life interactive marketing examples that illustrate just how far you can take the interactive brand experience.

1. Catch the Snitch Contest

Harry Potter: The Exhibition is a touring experience that gives diehard fans the chance to get behind-the-scenes looks at set recreations, real film props, and costumes. It’s crazy interactive and offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to nerd out with the franchise and grab tons of social photo ops. Muggles need not attend.

One premiere of The Exhibition was in Philadelphia, where it was our job to promote the interactive experience by being equally interactive. Our approach?

We created Seek the Golden Snitch™, featuring an augmented reality experience where users attempted to catch the highly sought-after Golden Snitch — a ball used in the game of Quidditch™ — just as Harry Potter does.

After successfully catching the Golden Snitch, they could enter to win to be the very first guests to attend the premiere of the exhibition in Philadelphia.

To participate, multiple Harry Potter-themed photo-op installations were spread throughout Philly in iconic locations. Fans simply scanned a QR code at the advertising pop ups using their mobile device without having to download an app, and voila…they could jump right into the interactive game.

Fans of the franchise reveled in the immersiveness of the contest. And we had equally as much fun brainstorming and executing it.

By blurring the lines between reality and fantasy with this interactive content marketing strategy, we were able to capture the imagination of customers, and it set the tone for the amazing, hands-on exhibition that the winners got to enjoy.

2. Hide and Peak Super Bowl Sweepstakes

The average cost of a Super Bowl ticket in 2024 is $8,600. However, last-minute tickets can go for as high as $37,000! Unless you’re pulling in Elon Musk’s salary, that’s just not something your average person can afford.

But with our collaboration with Paramount+, we gave away 58 free tickets for Superbowl LVIII in the “Hide & Peak” Sweepstakes.

The concept was simple. We created a cross-platform “scavenger hunt” sweepstakes where Paramount+ subscribers and fans could enter to win a trip to Vegas and see the big game.

To enter, viewers had to hunt for QR codes while watching Paramount+ streaming content. Once they found a QR code, they scanned it and were taken to a custom website where they could enter.

This interactive campaign was a smash hit because it was easy to participate in, visually driven, and tapped into the ubiquitous human love of treasure hunting.

It encouraged Paramount+ users to view more of their favorite streaming shows. And you can bet there were plenty of euphoric rushes when viewers found the coveted QR codes.

3. Metallic Menace Web-Augmented Reality

In 2024, 1.63 million middle and high school students used e-cigarettes. With the potential for serious health risks like lung damage and heart issues and exposure to a myriad of toxic chemicals, it’s a problem that’s received increased attention as of late.

And it’s something that our partners at The Real Cost and Fandom tackled head-on in their mission to educate young people about the dangers of vaping and motivate them to ditch the habit before it’s too late.

But let’s be honest. How effective has a campaign of adults crusading to tell kids they shouldn’t do something worked in the past? Not very well.

For this interactive marketing campaign, we had our work cut out for us. How could we get important messaging across in a way that middle and high schoolers would actually be receptive to?

The solution we came up with was Web-AR interactive content through the “Metallic Menace” game. It’s a lot like a first-person shooter, but instead of mindlessly slaying villains, the mission is to protect your lungs.

In the game, 3D shards of metal vapor are shot at players, mimicking the tiny metal scraps that infiltrate the lungs when vaping.

We went all out to ensure this game was fun and frictionless to play and incorporated web-AR technology developed by our partners, the makers of the ultra-successful Pokemon Go game, which was one of the pioneers of the AR experience.

Rather than taking the antiquated, marginally effective “you shouldn’t do this” adult approach, we made vaping prevention fun and entertaining through interactive content.

4. Quiksilver Interactive Animated Story-Driven Website

It’s estimated that eight million tons of plastic bottles wind up in our oceans every year. Not to get all earthy, hippie on you, but that’s a lot!

To combat this problem, NeoPangea along with Quiksilver, one of the world’s top surf and snowboard clothing brands, created the Recycled for Radness experience.

In it, we taught Quiksilver customers about the eco-friendly process the brand uses to transform Earth-polluting litter into boardshorts that don’t just look and feel great but are having a legitimate impact.

Rather than taking the “doomer” ecological route, we opted for a fun, playful approach using animations that walk customers through “the transcendental journey from trash to thrash.”

With quirky design, this cartoon tale shows customers firsthand how Quiksilver kills two birds with one stone by turning plastic bottles into a totally rad end product.

It’s clever and hits in just the right way so viewers don't just get educated but thoroughly entertained with interactive content marketing.

Once the adventure is over, customers can seamlessly buy boardshorts for a silky smooth transition, helping the brand boost sales even more, all while using marketing automation.

5. Global, Live Game of Bingo

Nat Geo WILD is the go-network for everything wildlife and natural history. One of their most innovative platforms was Safari Live, which puts viewers front and center as they experience live-streamed African safaris in real time.

To increase viewership, we needed to come up with a fun, interactive way to get people in on the already interactive platform. The end result?

A global game of safari-inspired bingo that viewers could play in realtime while watching a live POV safari.

Those who win earn a chance to enter a contest to go on a real safari in Africa.

This interactive marketing example worked well because 1) it was simple, featuring a game most people know and love, and 2) the heavy interactive element took viewing Safari Live to new heights.

While viewers already felt like they were part of the show with a Q&A chat with the hosts and the ability to hear their questions answered on live TV, Safari Bingo brought it to a different level using innovative technology to get viewers in on the action even more.

And while we personally would be a little reluctant to get up close and personal with a lion or hippo in the wild, we’re sure the winner had an epic time on their real-life African safari.

6. ‘90s Trivia Machine

Put on your flannel shirt, grab your Pogs, and pump up your Reeboks, we’re blasting back to the ‘90s!

With our Rule the ‘90s Trivia Machine, we gave Gen Xers a chance to relive their glory days and younger generations a chance to see what it was like in the day before the internet was “a thing.”

Dripping with all the flair and totally radical vibes you’d expect, we created the ultimate multi-week online trivia game that challenged the knowledge of viewers of National Geographic Channel’s The ‘90s: The Last Great Decade?.

In it, players were thoroughly tested on ‘90s music, movies, pop culture, and more to see how “fetch” they really are through an interactive mobile web game.

Viewers attempted to climb the leaderboard for a chance to win top-of-the-line nostalgic swag to transport them back to the last century.

Complete with a Pog-themed page of “remember THAT!?” moments, this interactive marketing strategy hit all the right notes that made viewers want to reach for their pagers to tell their friends all about it.

Now if we can just figure out who stole our Green Day CD.

7. Social Lens

Howdy partner. The last of our interactive marketing examples is the social lens we created for a couple of our favorite TV series.

First, to promote 1883, the Paramount+ Western series that’s a prequel to Yellowstone, we made this here old-timey image filter that lets viewers take their own vintage tin-type selfies using their smartphone (instead of a daguerreotype).

This gave viewers a chance to tap into their inner gunslinger while fantasizing about enjoying a shot of whiskey at an old saloon. Just watch out for those man-eating jackrabbits and those killer cacti. Yippie-Ki-Yay!

For the other interactive marketing example, we partnered with Hulu and @goldengirls to promote one of the all-time TV classics, The Golden Girls opening a show-themed restaurant in New York by creating this amazing Instagram filter.

With it, Hulu viewers can get their mug situated next to Blanche, Dorothy, Rose, and the gang. All the while, they’re reminded that they can watch all their favorite Golden Girls episodes by streaming them on Hulu.

Users can also easily tag their ‘travel down the road and back again’ friends to share the filter for built-in virality. Now pass the cheesecake!

Ready to Get Your Audience in on the Action?

From Instagram filters to trivia games to immersive AR, these interactive marketing examples show that it’s a multi-faceted, cutting-edge strategy that can drive huge engagement. Not to mention this type of content creation is flat-out fun.

If you’re ready to make interactive content a staple part of your digital marketing strategy, we’re here to help!

At NeoPangea, we’re industry innovators, and nothing gets us more excited than creating a mind-blowing interactive experience that pulls in new customers like a magnet. We’ve partnered with A+ brands like The History Channel, Disney, Paramount+, and Hulu.

And we’d love to work with your brand too. Get in touch today!