Savoring a month’s worth of meals from Blue Apron, cruising the trails on a custom etched longboard from Ghost Longboards and taking a family vacation to Disney World.
What do these things have in common?
Aside from being a great way to spend some free time, these are all things that Social5 contest winners have enjoyed this year… and there’s still more to come! In addition to making our prize winners VERY happy, the buzz our contests generate have lasting impact, giving our customers a marketing boost and tangible leads to target.
Based on our experience, here are five things you should know about contesting:
1. Focus on the giveaway and keep it fun
Facebook is swimming in brands trying to get you to click on their links. You usually scroll by, unless something happens to make a real connection or really stand out. Big premium prizes do just that. We want to put people in the moment — to hemp them picture themselves snorkeling before white sand beaches or sitting near the court ruled by King James. The engaging posts we create surrounding our contests dispel with the minutiae and save the legalese for the lawyers. It’s about getting people to click, comment, and share so we focus on the fun!
2. Clean, creative graphics give your brand credibility
Most small businesses have little time and budget to construct engaging social media campaigns with professionally designed graphics and landing pages. Yet brands that have such contests sharply stand out. Offering such a professional look and feel, anchored by a premium prize, makes an impression on customers. Your brand looks big. Your Facebook page looks sophisticated. You’ve immediately distinguished yourself from competitors. Better yet, when you offer these contests quarterly you don’t look like a one-trick pony but a social marketing thoroughbred!
3. Leverage your Facebook contest into long-term marketing
So what good are all these contest entrants if there’s only one winner? Social5 asked the same question then built a contest app that captures the emails of every entrant in every contest to send them your way. Consider the value now! Short term, these contests offer levity and escapism. Long after the prize is awarded, you can target the new leads on your contact list for email marketing, drip campaigns, or any other conversion tactics you can choose at your convenience.
4. It’s yours, brag about it
Let’s say you have a really clever post you’re sure will get response but then you forget to tag anyone and you wonder why it fell flat. Nobody knew it was there because you basically didn’t tell them. Same principle holds true, maybe even more, with contesting. This is your baby. It’s on your page. You’re proud of it. You need to rally the troops to see it. After all, they could win! It stands to reason then that the most successful contest campaigns are hosted by businesses who spread the word. It’s open to friends and family so get it out on all your social media and all email lists. Don’t be shy, it’s marketing. Plus who doesn’t like to win?
5. Diverse prizes create a diversity of leads
Live sports, travel, amusement parks, theater? What piques some people’s interest turns others off. So instead of trying to crack some magical marketing code or select the perfect prize, successful contest models offer variety. In our experience, different demographics respond to different giveaways. While more men may jump at the chance to win a flat screen TV, the opposite may be true for a trip to Hawaii or Disneyland or Cozumel. And that’s the point. By rotating a wide range of contest choices you will ensure a healthy mix of interest and a bigger breadth of leads.
Contests are a great way to build brand credibility, collect leads and increase engagement on social media. Plus, contesting captures participants’ email addresses, which enters them automatically in the email marketing portion of your service. If you want to learn more about how to opt into Social5′s contesting program, reach out to our team at [email protected]!
