Nowadays, simply grabbing attention isn’t enough, and you need to deliver an experience that sticks. That’s where experiential marketing campaigns come in. These immersive, emotion-driven interactions go far beyond ads; they invite people to step into your brand world. Think pop-up activations, branded installations, or festivals that let attendees engage with your brand in real time.
Did you know that 100 million individuals view a video online every day? Now, in 2025, one tool has emerged as essential to scaling these experiences: interactive video marketing. This format goes beyond passive viewing. It invites users to choose, respond, and even co-create the content. It converts an event highlight reel into a dynamic, interactive adventure that is both personal and unforgettable.
But making these experiences feel real and delivering them at scale can be tricky.
In this blog, we’ll discover how to effectively use interactive video as a powerful tool for experiential campaigns with examples, tips, and strategies that help your content resonate and deliver results.
The Value of Interactive Video in Experiential Marketing
Interactive video turns viewers into participants. Rather than just pressing play, your audience can explore, choose, and respond. This two-way interaction increases immersion, boosts recall, and strengthens emotional connection. HubSpot’s 2023 research found that interactive content generates twice the engagement of static formats.
In an experiential context, this means:
- Hosting a branded trivia challenge, viewers can play from their phones during or after your live event.
- Creating a virtual walkthrough of your physical activation, where users choose what to explore.
- Embedding product demo hotspots into highlight reels from your brand pop-up or festival booth.
Platforms like BrandLens make it easy to embed these features into UGC-based content. You can collect video from attendees, influencers, or team members and layer in interactivity later.
Example: In a McLaren F1 fan campaign, BrandLens enabled interactive prediction challenges where users submitted score forecasts through video, then shared them socially, extending engagement far beyond the racetrack.
Whether you’re an agency focusing on experiential marketing or event promotion, interactive video lets you extend your impact and keep audiences engaged before, during, and after the event.
Top Benefits of Using Interactive Video in Experiential Marketing
When you pair the power of video with immersive brand experiences, the results can be transformative. Here are some of the top benefits brands unlock when they use interactive video to fuel experiential marketing:
- Captivating Engagement
Interactive video grabs attention faster than almost any other format. With rich visuals and the ability to interact in real time, viewers are pulled directly into your campaign narrative. Instead of passively consuming content, they explore it, leading to deeper emotional involvement. The audience becomes part of the story, not just an observer. - Real Connection
Video has the unique potential to humanize your brand. Whether you’re guiding viewers through a behind-the-scenes tour, showcasing authentic reactions, or spotlighting your team, video builds trust. When tied to experiential campaigns, it helps people form lasting emotional ties by making your brand feel tangible and relatable. - Amplified Reach
Video is inherently shareable, and when it’s interactive and user-driven, it’s even more likely to be passed along. Because it’s also easy to watch and enjoyable to engage with, video content often spreads organically across social platforms. Every share means more eyes on your campaign without extra spend. - Powerful Analytics
Interactive video isn’t just engaging, it’s measurable. You can track who watched, where they clicked, how long they stayed, and where they dropped off. These detailed insights are invaluable for refining future experiential campaigns and understanding what resonates most with your audience. - Creative Flexibility
Video is one of the most versatile content formats. You can use it to educate, entertain, inspire, or all three at once. Whether you’re building an onboarding series, a branded challenge, or a multi-layered event recap, interactive video adapts to your needs and lets your creativity shine.
Together, these benefits highlight why interactive video is more than just a marketing tactic.It’s a foundational tool for brands that want to create memorable, measurable, and meaningful brand experiences.
Incorporating UGC for Authentic Engagement
Authenticity matters more than ever. Today’s audiences can easily detect staged, overproduced marketing content. That’s why user-generated content (UGC) is so important, especially when you want to deliver immersive, emotionally resonant video.
Real voices, real people, real reactions. UGC builds trust, improves social proof, and increases conversion rates.
Examples of UGC that elevate experiential video:
- Attendee testimonials recorded live on-site
- User-shot unboxing or demo clips during the event
- Behind-the-scenes footage from your staff or creators
With BrandLens, collecting and curating this kind of content is easy.
Example: In the UCLA MBA Discovery campaign, students were invited to share video introductions using simple BrandLens prompts. The resulting video gallery brought human warmth and connection to orientation week, and helped classmates feel connected before ever meeting in person.
BrandLens as the Interactive Video Catalyst
Interactive video is powerful, but it requires the right tech stack. BrandLens bridges the gap between raw UGC and polished interactive video by offering an all-in-one platform that supports every stage of the journey.
Here’s how:
- Branded Collection Flows: Invite guests, fans, or staff to participate in a campaign via link or QR code.
- Real-time Moderation: Review content instantly, approve what works, and filter out what doesn’t.
- Interactive Editing Tools: Add overlays, transitions, and clickable moments to shape the final viewer experience.
Let’s say you’re a travel brand launching a campaign. Using BrandLens, you collect travel clips from real customers showcasing their adventures. From there, you build an interactive journey video that lets viewers explore different locations, hear real stories, and click to learn more or book.
It’s storytelling, powered by participation.
For brands in travel & hospitality, retail & eCommerce, or live events, BrandLens simplifies the process of turning raw footage into immersive, on-brand experiences.
Actionable Tips to Maximize Interactive Video Impact
Want to get the most out of interactive video marketing? Here are a few best practices to help you plan, launch, and optimize:
- Start with clear goals
- Are you trying to build awareness? Drive leads? Build a community?
- Tailor your interactive elements accordingly (e.g., quizzes for awareness, shoppable videos for conversion).
- Choose your format wisely
- Quizzes, polls, branching paths, hotspots—different formats serve different goals.
- For example, use “choose your path” storytelling for product education, and polls for live event participation.
- Let real voices lead the story
- Prioritize UGC from real users, employees, or fans. Audiences respond best to content that feels unfiltered.
- Check out our article on “Real is the New Viral” for a deeper dive on the power of unpolished content.
- Empower your audience
- Give them choices, ask for input, and make them feel part of the journey.
- Consider challenges, duet-style interactions, or voting mechanics.
- Use analytics to optimize
- Platforms like BrandLens offer interaction data—see where users click, drop off, or rewatch.
- Use those insights to improve future campaigns.
Authenticity ranks among the top drivers of brand trust. By pairing that trust with interactivity, you create experiences that audiences not only remember but want to share.
Interactive video is no longer just a “nice-to-have.” It’s a critical component of successful experiential marketing campaigns. It amplifies immersion, increases emotional connection, and extends the life of your in-person activations.
But without real, relatable content, even the most high-tech video can fall flat. That’s where UGC comes in and that’s where BrandLens shines.
From collection to curation to interaction, BrandLens provides the end-to-end solution for brands that want to scale interactive brand experiences with impact.
Book a demo today to see how BrandLens can power your next experiential campaign.
