From being written in ink on scrolls to being completely digital and supporting dynamic data and media, the transformation of how we read information has been phenomenal. The use of eBooks has dramatically increased in the field of education and publishing. Interactive eBooks are a reformed way of sharing the content that has overhauled banal monologues. They engage the reader and keep them glued to the content, better.
You can experiment with different ways to make your eBook engaging and interactive, and one of them is the use of eBook widgets.
Widgets are applications and features you can add to your eBook that let readers perform certain actions, enhancing the overall reading experience. Interactive eBooks with compelling visuals and captivating widgets can go a long way in grabbing the reader’s attention. As a matter of fact, interactive content generates twice as much engagement as static content!
Nobody is a stranger to the fact that eBook widgets have taken our reading experiences up a notch by providing relevant dynamic information from the Internet as you read or watch a relevant video, without leaving your eBook.
In this blog, we are going to look at nine such widgets that you must use in your next eBook.
1. Image Carousel
The Image Carousel widget lets you present pictures in a slideshow with a movable dial. The eBook widget lets readers click between images with ease, making visual content more appealing. Clicking on specific areas on the image in an image carousel can provide more information to the reader. The images can either reveal text or maybe a hyperlink to another resource. The carousel can even be set on autoplay. This is a perfect widget for educational eBooks that require pictorial representation that needs labeling.
2. Questionnaire
Questions encourage dialogue. With a quiz widget, you can easily test your readers’ knowledge and understanding of the topic.
You can build gripping quizzes with multiple alternatives, image dragging, and more. This widget lets you get immediate responses from your readers. The questionnaire widget is a great addition to eBooks for courses and other content where you require leads to market your other products.
3. Feedback
An eBook can only be successful when it is liked by its readers. Through this widget, you can take the opinion of your readers about the eBook. This helps you understand what they like or dislike about the eBook, and you can, if possible, take actions to implement the feedback and make changes.
You can place the feedback widget at the end of the eBook or after every chapter. This widget works well if you want your eBook to grow your mailing list or work as a snippet for your product release. The feedback can be in the form of a poll, a star rating, or a question.
4. Split Whiteboard & Worksheet
These widgets work great for educational eBooks as they make analytical exercises simpler with split-screen access. In a split whiteboard widget, on one side you would find scrollable, rich text, while the other side lets the user edit and draw.
Similarly, in the split worksheet widget, one of the sides can support rich text, while the other can have questions and fields to fill in answers based on the text. These widgets are perfect for reading comprehension exercises in educational eBooks. With this eBook widget, readers don’t need to flip through pages to find the text they need and can access the information from one place.
5. Hotspot Image
In an otherwise static image, you enliven a picture with the hotspot image widget. With a single click on a picture, readers can bring out information in a pop-up that can be in the form of text, audio, or even video. You can add visual data and infographics to an image. These are often used in kids’ eBooks to make the experience more interactive and engaging.
6. 3D Model
The 3D widget lets you breathe life into a picture. This eBook widget lets your readers get a real-life experience of an object through a book. Readers can rotate/zoom the object as well to have a better look at the finer details. There are many solutions available online that can help you make powerful and persuasive 3D objects for your eBook. Using the 3D model widget is a great addition to digital catalogs and portfolios, to allow readers to view a 3D model of your product or artwork.
7. Interactive Calculator
An excellent source of lead generation, interactive calculator widgets are reader-centric and work great for corporate product eBooks. They give numerical solutions to user questions such as an ROI calculator, savings calculator, and more. Adding an interactive calculator widget to eBooks with statistical and math-related content is a great way to keep your readers engaged without having to click out of your eBook to use the calculator.
8. Checklist Widget
A checklist widget works well to present a guide or explain processes, one step at a time. You can also use this eBook widget to give your readers a space to check items off the list and share the results. Checklist widgets are the best match for step-by-step guides, user manuals and recipe books.
9. Third-Party Plugin Widgets
Interactive content from third-party sources can further enrich your eBook. If you’re unable to embed them directly to the eBook, you can add them using widgets. For example, you can add YouTube & Vimeo videos, Wikipedia pages, Google Maps, and more. Third-party plugins allow you to add virtually anything on the Internet, right inside your eBook!
The Path Ahead
Today, with fierce competition in the market, it’s imperative to deliver quality and immersive content that keeps readers engaged. eBook widgets transform the whole reading experience for the user as they prioritize visuals over text, which are more enticing. There are various ways you can make your eBook interactive –
- Animations
- Pop-ups
- Embedded videos
- Social media links
These are some of the well-used widgets in interactive eBooks by publishers. Many widget makers online also let you try out and create your own eBook widgets that suit your use case.
You can create engaging eBooks with interactive eBook widgets using KITABOO. KITABOO can be your very own e-publishing solution that delivers everything that an interactive eBook needs. As a truly customizable platform, KITABOO provides you with an all-round solution to publishing eBooks.
Discover How An Ebook Conversion, Publishing & Distribution Platform Can Help You Kitaboo is a cloud-based content platform to create-publish & securely distribute interactive mobile-ready ebooks. You May Also Like
Mike Harman
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