Digital technology is rapidly evolving, we are so accustomed to viewing information on our screens that we hardly notice that we scroll through (on average) 300 feet of mobile content a day! This means that marketers need to think carefully about the kind of promotional material they use in order to draw in new and existing customers!
One of the most effective ways to engage your audience is through the use of interactive video. The clickable, immersive content grabs the attention of the passive viewer, turning them into an active participant in the video. This drastically reduces user drop off and encourages viewers to click calls-to-action to complete a purchase or visit the brands e-commerce.
How to make interactive video...
Making a video interactive is not as hard as it sounds. Interactive video platforms like Smartzer show brands how to make interactive video and how to tag videos with product links. These could be existing videos or new material specifically created with interactivity in mind. Users can tag videos with hotspots on a clickable overlay with product information via images, text, URL's, product feed and product API's or manually. Customers will then be able to engage with the video by finding out product information, pricing, sizing and more. Clickable call to actions like 'buy now', 'see more', 'add to basket', 'book a test drive' and 'sign up to newsletter' all encourage conversions.
Here's a breakdown of how you can tag videos to make them interactive...
Adding products via Product API
If you have a Product API available, connecting it to your interactive video player is the best, simplest way to add real-time product information to your player. You can search the product you want to tag by ID or name and pull the information directly into the player.
Key Benefits:
Instant import of all fields
Real-time product information direct from product catalogue
Enables quick-buy / add to cart integration
Can pull in from many different markets at once
Manually adding products
Another easy way to add products to your interactive and shoppable video player is to add all the fields manually. If your video does not have too many items to add - this is a flexible method that can be worth the effort.
Key benefits:
Provides flexibility towards any particular field
Requires no setup
Upload via Product Feed
Many interfaces allow brands to upload their product information via a product feed or file. This can allow brands to add a lot of information at once saving time, however it can prove quite difficult to manage in the long run as the product information is not served in real-time.
Key benefits:
Easy upload
Feed can be uploaded elsewhere
The benefits of interactive video
Interactive video engages 3-4 x more than standard video which reduces user drop off. The format informs early on in the purchase funnel, shortening the path to purchase. Click through rates are much higher, often achieving a rate of 27% and conversion rates can be 4x that of standard video.
Interactive video enables each stage of the purchase funnel to be measured. Tracking the initial views and dwell time on the video at the awareness stage, the clicks on the products at the discovery stage, measure clicks at the consideration stage through a call to action and measure conversions through successful purchases or sign ups.
Smartzer X BMW interactive campaign
BMW used Smartzer's interactive platform to create an immersive, clickable experience on social media and stand out from the crowd.
The video promotes the new BMW 4 Series coupé with the style of the content capturing the sleek and stylish athleticism of the vehicle. Viewers could click the video to discover various aspects of the car and click through to the BMW Series 4 landing page.
Interactive features included:
Custom video overlay for interaction
Optimised for mobile devices
Shareable across social media
Interactive player containing all assets placed as action URL in Facebook ads manager
Results:
Video engagement was over 33%
CTR was over 23%
60% of clicks generated were from clicking on the video
For more information on how to make your video interactive visit Smartzer's website here!
Updated: Jan 17, 2023
Social commerce is a rapidly growing industry with most consumers using apps like Instagram as their main tool for product discovery.
However, one app that has taken over the world during the past year, TikTok.
In January 2021 alone, TikTok had over 315 million downloads and overall, it has been downloaded over 2.6 billion times (reported by Sensor Tower in December 2020). As a result, brands have taken to the app to find ways of promoting and selling their products to the masses.
Introducing TikTok: THE platform for virality
TikTok is a video sharing social media platform that has proved itself a phenomenon with GenZ audiences. It is highly likely that you will have seen dance routines or heard a song on the radio that initially went viral on the platform. On TikTok, content can go viral in seconds with the biggest influencers possessing nearly 32.7 million followers and receiving 46 million likes for a 60 second video.
So, how are brands and businesses using the app for streaming commerce? There's the obvious, link in bio to e-commerce sites, tagging product links in the comments etc. But the most effective technique?
Here's how brands are using shoppable video on TikTok to drive sales.
1. Connecting brand TikTok to a Shopify store
Shopify’s partnership with TikTok is likely the first of many integrations with ecommerce platforms. Merchants can connect their TikTok for Business account to Shopify to generate in-feed shoppable posts from videos. Once signed up with TikTok for business brands can create any of the following:
In-feed ads. Native-looking videos that appear in the user’s feed.
Pre-roll ads. Videos that start when a user opens the app.
Promoted hashtag challenges. Videos encouraging users to submit clips using a custom hashtag. This is best for brand awareness.
Other ad formats include:
TopView
Video first format that puts brand videos in unmissable view of audiences
Using sight, sound and narrative to capture user attention
60 seconds of full-screen and long form video, with autoplay and sound
Distraction-free viewing grabbing 100% user attention
Brand Takeover
Full screen visual ad experience for viewers
Multiple creative formats with static and dynamic display
3 second JPG and 3-5 second video supported
Branded Effects
Tailor made shareable stickers, filters and special effects
Users can create selfie videos with these effects, sharing and promoting brands interaction videos.
2. Using an interactive video platform to create shoppable content on TikTok
Smartzer offers an interactive video platform that gives brands a tool that turns content into shoppable video on TikTok.
Smartzer MINI Shop:
Brands can connect their campaign call-to-action with the Smartzer MINI Shop links. This will connect your ad directly to your product feed. A viewer will click the ad and instantly see all the products in the shoppable video and a direct link to the e-commerce site.
Lightweight, easy to use pages help inform users about products. This can lead to higher conversion rates and a stronger ROI.
This could be through either makeup tutorial videos, fashion videos or recipe videos. Videos will have clickable components to clothing, makeup or ingredients.
Smartzer Interactive Experience
Every interactive experience is optimised for mobile.
It is easy to share the interaction video content across social media platforms.
Users can engage with the interactive content by launching the call-to-action or the URL displayed in the video.
This could be in TikTok work out videos (shoppable fitness gear), travel videos (interactive hotel tour), auto videos (interactive tour of car features).
Here are some great examples of shoppable video on TikTok:
SHEKOU Clothing: Shoppable Ads
New Zealand brand, Shekou, uses TikTok ads to their full extent. The brand takes advantage of viral styles and trends and inputs them into their branding to reach new and existing customers on the app. The clickable 'Shop now' call-to-action encourages viewers to click through to the e-commerce and make a purchase without leaving the app. When the 60 second video finishes, viewers can 'Shop now' or 'Replay' the ad. The 50% off sitewide banner advertises big discounts suited to GenZ audiences.
Pepsi: Branded Hashtag Challenge
Pepsi’s #ThatsWhatILike campaign encouraged consumers to do what they enjoy freely and unapologetically. This could be anything from wearing over-the-top clothing, dancing badly to enjoying an unconventional snack or simply enjoying a Pepsi. The campaign resulted in over 13 billion views and
reflected the TikTok trends by encouraging silly, fun and viral videos that included Pepsi in some way. Through this format of streaming commerce, Pepsi achieved mass, free advertising and world wide brand conversation.
- Mar 30, 2021
Updated: May 24, 2021
Bloomingdale's collaborated with Smartzer to create a shoppable campaign for all of the family.
Using Smartzer's interactive video platform, Bloomingdale's UAE created a shoppable video just in time for Ramadan.
In the immersive, dynamic video, a variety of models demonstrate a variety of products from handbags to clothing to jewellery and more. The exciting, clickable campaign allows viewers to find out more information about several products, engaging them and informing them at the same time.
Execution:
Smartzer's interactive video platform allowed Bloomingdale's to tag their video with products to make them shoppable. Products were added into a clickable overlay via Smartzer's Product Import feature. The video was seamlessly integrated into Bloomingdales campaign landing page and customised to match the brands e-commerce style. By clicking on product hotspots, viewers can find out pricing and product details as well as add the item to their bag to purchase. As a result, Bloomingdale's was able to create a sleek and stylish campaign that supported video interactivity.
Explore the NEW DAWN campaign on Bloomingdale's UAE website here!
Results:
E-commerce placement
Add to bag CTA
Size personalisation
Multiple product links for easy product discovery
Shoppable carousel
Group popups
Conclusion:
As a result, Smartzer and Bloomingdale's generated a shoppable video that featured multiple products for men, women and children. By using video interactivity, Bloomingdale's successfully created a campaign that informed consumers and encouraged them to add products to their baskets without leaving the video. The video's family focus provides something for everyone, encouraging families to celebrate Ramadan traditions and create new ones through fashion.
Find out more on how to create your own interactive video with Smartzer here!