It’s a Zoo Out There
Interaction with your clients and prospects can help
By: Marina Pino-Unland

Ever think a stuffed tiger could help market your business? It just might.

Interactive media is one of the latest newcomers in marketing, and it’s an effective tool for getting customers and prospects to notice your business. But while traditional marketing media like print, radio and television are familiar to many companies, the mere mention of interactive media can sometimes make eyes glaze over – what exactly is interactive media, and why should it be considered?

It’s simple: Any communication that allows the recipient to actively participate is interactive media. Throughout the course of a day, you are exposed to interactive marketing, some electronic some not. “Non-electronic” examples are pop-up greeting cards or scratch-off coupons. More advanced electronic examples are mobile telephones, electronic literature such as DVDs, computer-driven floor graphics, and video games.

The first place you can easily add interactivity to your existing business communication is through the internet.

If you would like to try interactivity online, add components to your website
like games, quizzes, streaming video, or areas for feedback. If you are already sending email correspondence, add links that allow the reader to download information, register for an event or click through to a special promotion on your website. E-newsletters can also be enhanced with an interactive element, like a click-thru questionnaire that polls readers on a hot topic and reports
results after voting.

Mailing out holiday cards or gifts this year? How about an interactive electronic greeting card (e-card) instead? Better yet, how about allowing your clients to choose their own gift via your e-card?

Take a look at this marketing idea for your electronic greeting card:

On the “cover”: Happy Holidays from the Zoo! (Thanks to technology, your card can include dancing tigers, giraffes or monkeys, along with great sound effects like squawks,
grunts and roars!)

“Inside”: Wishing you a roaring 2007! Click here to choose the zoo’s gift to you.

When customers click, they are taken to their gift choices – a stuffed tiger, monkey or giraffe. But first, they are asked to complete a short form which you can end with a brief pitch for your zoo.

The benefits? Your client and prospect just spent a few fun minutes interacting with your company plus they will receive a gift you know they want. In return, you gathered data, plus you get “top of mind awareness” again when they receive their new, (logo-imprinted) stuffed tiger.

For your business, be creative and customize the interactive media to suit your message.

In comparison to other advertising vehicles, this technology is in its infancy and its potential is far from being realized. It’s much less complex than it may seem, so don’t be hesitant to think about adding an interactive component to your marketing efforts. If executed with thought and purpose, it can be exciting, memorable and very effective, even if you don’t own a zoo.