The 7-step guide for better online contests
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| Lead generation cycle |
When running an online competition whether through your own website or social media you need to have a set of predetermined goals to have a clear roadmap to success.Here are 7 tips to help you get the most out of running an online contest:
- Set Goals. What are you looking to get out of the competition? More brand awareness? More sales? More likes on Facebook? Whatever it is you are trying to acquire you must go into the promotion with a clear set of predetermined goals so you can measure your success. You can use a simple excel spreadsheet to set your goals and track them.
- Sales. It is important to understand that you won’t necessarily see sales pouring in from a giveway. You will get a few sales but do not make sales your number one goal when running a contest. Giveaways can never really guarantee sales but rather are fantastic opportunities for lead generation.
- Offer incentives. Providing entrants with a discount to be redeemed for products/services on your site in the future is a sure way to increase sales. Most companies run a contest or just offer a coupon but combining the two is a much more powerful effort.
- Increase interaction. Engage and build a relationship with your fans by creating a two-way communication system.
- Promote. Promote your giveaway to your email list and audience on social media. It also helps to add a graphic to your website highlighting the contest.
- Promote on giveaway directories. Add your contest to directories to bring extra traffic but keep in mind that most non-targeted traffic are only looking for freebies.
- Pay attention to Facebook comments. Use this opportunity to create and continue conversations whilst bringing in more people.