Let’s be honest – most ads today don’t even get a second glance. We scroll by them, skip them, or even worse, forget they were even there. In an online world where attention is the most valuable (and elusive) currency, it is clear that traditional formats no longer work. So what’s working now? Ads that move with you and evolve as you scroll. Ads that tell a story, rather than simply shouting a message. This is where dynamic storytelling in rich media comes in, not as a gimmick, but as a way to connect in a smarter and more human way.
Static Ads are Phasing Out – Here’s Why!
Have you noticed in today’s world people skim more than interact? A static ad may catch a glance but rarely capture attention. On the other hand, interactive content provides experiences that allow for immersive and evolving storylines and narratives. Benchmarks show that interactive content achieves twice the engagement and double the conversion rate as a passive format. In fact, 81% of marketers say that interactive formats are better at capturing attention than static formats.
Encouraging Participation, Not Just ‘Views’
Scroll-based ads aren’t just showy – they encourage active engagement. As users scroll, the story unfolds. Think psychological momentum: our brains want closure. The ad, which has a “main character”, stages the experience- stage by stage, headlined with markers (Act 1 at the top, Act 2 mid-scroll, and resolution at the CTA). It’s engaging, not annoying.
And, while interactive videos are typically scroll based, the dwell times in interactive videos can be up to 47% longer than static, passing video ads, with dwell times 3x longer than regular videos.
Proof in Performance: Why Interaction Wins
● Emarketer’s 2025 Industry Survey indicated 52% of brands expect to use interactive features in at least 26% of their ads, with 70% expecting interactive CTV ads to be the most important ad format in the coming year.
● In-app ads containing interactive aspects garner roughly 50% more engagement than traditional static ads – in addition to in app video formats having CTR rates nearing 7.2%.
Designing for Story, Not Just Exposure
Innovating for innovation’s sake doesn’t land. Dynamic ads should be purposefully choreographed: each micro-interaction should be engaged with the intent of moving the narrative forward. A slow scroll unrolls emotional context; a fast scroll delivers the action. If done well, this responsiveness offers great implied personalization in real time – without requiring deep profiling.
Combating Ad Fatigue
New research from The Trade Desk says that repeated ads are tiring. In one study, 73% of participants cognitively blocked repeated advertising, which can increase fatigue by 90%. However, ads in omnichannel campaigns that can factor sequencing, enhance persuasion by 1.5×, attention by 1.4×, and memorability by 1.7×, compared to siloed content.
Dynamic storytelling provides an antidote of its own, each event essentially reveals something new, limits the repetition of the visuals, and increases the variety.
Narrative, Personalization, Context
The media landscape is changing: with connected TV, mobile, in-app, and interactive formats rapidly expanding, consumers demand narrative-based journeys—not static sales pitches. In rich media ads, the content literally reacts to how someone interacts, where they are, and how quickly they scroll. This is micro-personalization, in flow, giving a unique version of the brand story to every individual.
(Authored by Delphin Varghese, Co-founder & Chief Revenue Officer, AdCounty Media)
