Research by marketing communications consultancy Hidden has found that after exposure to interactive advertising and augmented reality schemes, consumers are more likely to purchase products, and at higher price points. Perhaps then, the recent success of engagement-orientated floor projection solutions is of little surprise.

Interactive media developer enVu's digital floor projection product enSpire, for instance, blends marketing content – like animated advertisements and scannable QR codes – with live content like news, sport and weather reports. First installed in designated market areas (DMAs) in the USA, enSpire's 'immersive gestural interactive projection' technologies lets the feet of 1.5bn annual consumers push graphics around projection spaces, according to enVu. "The product has proven stopping power where most other video displays are passive," says the company. "Eventually, we will be seen not only in malls, but in other key consumer environments."

And, from enVu's perspective, increased adoption of interactive floor displays isn't a thing of the distant future. In the past year, enVu has signed deals with property investment trust General Growth Properties and US shopping centre portfolio owner CBL and Associates Properties to bring interactive floor projections to a host of their DMAs.

Outside of formal retail environments and DMAs, the appeal of interactive displays is being leveraged for corporate brand strengthening. Recently, digital out-of-home display company EyeClick installed its EyeTouch and EyeWall technologies on eleven floors of cosmetics company Avon's new Manhattan headquarters to engage visitors and inform them of seasonal changes to the Avon brand. The interactive monitors offer flexible and customisable motion-activated content options, where the on-screen graphics scatter, flip, materialise and follow passersby.

Applications of digital interactive projections are not limited to the serious either. In the same way that gaming systems like Nintendo's Wii, Sony PlayStation's Move and Microsoft's Xbox Kinect are gaining market traction with their attempts to physicalise user interfaces for video games, EyeClick's digital interactive floor displays have been making waves on Viking Line cruise ships in the on-board kid zones. Because the gaming interface works by projecting images straight onto the floor and those projections are responsive to movement, the system is tamper-proof and provides a safe environment where loose parts would normally shift due to motion at sea. The EyePlay gaming experience offers a changeable variety of games, including small-format football and pop the balloon. "We have had such a great response from passengers that we have plans to add an interactive floor to the lobby to welcome, inform and amuse guests of all ages," says Viking Line producer Tom L?gval.

Other companies like social immersive media developer Snibbe Interactive have expanded their interactive projection offerings to healthcare, higher education, museums, and fine art since their technologies appeared in event displays at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

As with most technologies, service providers and technology developers of digital interactive floor projections are working to streamline delivery and downsize hardware. Interactive advertising developers Projection Advertising recently brought to market a new freestanding, plug-and-play floor-projection system it says can be set up in 15 minutes. The product, called AdFloor Lite, offers content scheduling, remote updating and geo-specific communications and supports multiple people interacting with its floor graphics simultaneously.

"Once you've had a go, it's very hard to walk away from," says managing director of Projection Advertising Tom Burch. "It's perfect for captivating people in retail outlets, trade shows, exhibitions or media events."

Today's media landscape is one in which digital video recorders let us pause traditional television programming and fast-forward through adverts, e-book software lets readers highlight, underline and type notes as they read along, and news stories are being re-written based on corrections and insights provided by readers in comment spaces. It seems people can't get enough of talking back to the media they once passively consumed. And as media flattens onto screens and projections of nearly limitless shapes and sizes, consumers increasingly expect the option to talk back, should they have to time or inclination.

Further, as technologies get simpler, smaller and cheaper and as commercial media producers become more attuned to the possibilities that arise from two-way-communicable platforms, sophistication in the design of bespoke interactive displays will grow. Look out for more innovative uses of interactive floor projection in retail and other public spaces near you. They're a kick.