Social Media
Social Media Contests
Social media contests involve engaging your audience by encouraging them to participate in a challenge, competition, or giveaway on social media platforms. Participants often need to follow your page, like a post, share content, or create and submit their own content to enter the contest. Contests can significantly boost brand awareness, engagement, and user-generated content.
IMPLEMENTATION
Define Goals: Determine what you want to achieve with the contest (e.g., increase followers, generate UGC, boost engagement).
Choose a Platform: Select the social media platform(s) where your target audience is most active.
Create Rules and Guidelines: Clearly define the contest rules, entry requirements, deadlines, and how winners will be chosen.
Design the Contest: Create engaging visuals and copy to promote the contest. Consider using a unique hashtag for tracking entries.
Announce and Promote: Launch the contest with a promotional post and share it across your social media channels. Use ads if necessary to reach a wider audience.
Engage and Monitor: Regularly interact with participants by liking, commenting, and sharing their entries. Monitor the contest to ensure compliance with rules.
Select Winners: Choose the winners based on the criteria set in the rules. Announce the winners publicly and thank all participants.
Follow Up: Share a recap of the contest, showcasing the best entries and highlighting the winners. Consider featuring winners' content on your website or social media.
STRATEGY RATING
SCORE
21
Social media contests are moderately costly and time-consuming but offer very high engagement and interactivity. They require a good understanding of social media marketing and have limited longevity, making them ideal for short-term engagement boosts.
RATING 1-5, 5 BEING THE BEST
3
Expertise
Requires good knowledge of social media marketing and contest management.
3
Cost
Moderate cost, may involve prizes and promotion expenses.
3
Time
Moderate time investment for planning, promoting, and managing the contest.
5
Engagement
High potential for engagement due to the interactive and competitive nature.
2
Longevity
High interactivity through participation and user-generated content.
5
Interactivity
High interactivity through participation and user-generated content.
QUESTIONS TO ASK
What are our specific goals for the contest?
Which social media platform is best suited for our target audience?
What type of contest will be most appealing and engaging for our audience?
Do we have the resources to effectively promote and manage the contest?
How will we measure the success of our social media contest?
HOW TO MEASURE
Participation Rate: Track the number of entries and participants.
Engagement: Measure likes, comments, shares, and interactions on contest-related posts.
Reach: Monitor the spread of contest-related hashtags and the overall reach of the contest.
Follower Growth: Track the increase in followers or subscribers on your social media pages.
Conversions: Measure any sales, sign-ups, or other conversions resulting from the contest.
EXAMPLE
Company: Starbucks
Implementation: Starbucks frequently runs social media contests, such as their #RedCupContest on Instagram. Customers are encouraged to share creative photos of their Starbucks red holiday cups for a chance to win Starbucks gift cards. The contest is promoted across Starbucks' social media channels and features a specific hashtag for tracking entries.
Outcome: The #RedCupContest generates significant engagement, with thousands of participants sharing their photos and using the hashtag. The contest boosts brand visibility and engagement on Instagram, leading to an increase in followers and customer interaction. The user-generated content from the contest provides Starbucks with a wealth of authentic and visually appealing content to further promote their brand.
By running social media contests like #RedCupContest, Starbucks effectively engages their audience, generates valuable UGC, and enhances brand loyalty, all while achieving short-term marketing goals.