10 Things to Do Before you Run a Facebook Contest [Checklist]

Would you like more Facebook Likes? Do it is advisable to generate more electronic mail leads? Are you trying to acquire fast gross sales by means of Facebook promotions?

Contests, Facebook Sweepstakes and coupons have lengthy been part of good advertising strategies. They may help to advertise a enterprise, interact with clients, and improve gross sales. Add them to your social websites like Facebook and you’ll have a large advertising success for your small business.

Most companies now are utilizing social promotions like contests, Facebook Sweepstakes and group presents on Facebook.

To know how to run a sweepstakes or different forms of contest will not be difficult. Add just a little good outdated planning to your marketing campaign, and a properly executed contest could make your Facebook Page go viral, your model engaged with and your merchandise fly off the cabinets.

Right here’s a guidelines of 10 issues to do earlier than you run a Facebook Contest:

Table of Contents

#1: Objectives and Targets

What’s the aim of your Facebook contest marketing campaign? Whether or not you’re a one particular person enterprise, a mid-sized firm, or a multinational group, understanding the explanation to your Facebook contest will get you centered in your wants, and produce more profitable outcomes.

There are tons of the explanation why companies select to run a Facebook promotion.

Would you like:

More Fb Followers?
Greater model consciousness?
New emails and leads?
Person-generated content material?
Product growth crowdsourcing?
More engaged and dependable Followers?
Speedy gross sales?
New product/ occasion consciousness?
Higher perception into your Followers’ likes?
More site visitors to your ecommerce retailer?

All of those, and even just a little more, will be attained via Facebook contests.

Upon getting your objectives, develop your aims to your promotion. This doc offers you benchmarks for attaining, and measuring your successes.

#2: Target Market

As in any advertising success, you should know who your market is. Many enterprise miss this step. However, how will you actually join along with your shopper when you don’t even know who they’re?

You possibly can spend a lot of time, or a bit time on understanding your purchaser personas.

Your goal market analysis might be so simple as writing down:

2-three goal markets you wish to attain (i.e. present prospects; new prospects; new Facebook Followers)
5-10 demographic stats about your goal markets (i.e. for new Facebook Followers – lively on the positioning; younger professionals aged 23-30; entry Facebook through mobile; have some expendable revenue; wish to journey; beginning long run relationships; establishing personal place of residence; and many others.)

It might be as in depth as to really growing full fledged buyer personas, together with going as far as to interview prospects, and creating absolutely detailed buyer characters. (Some entrepreneurs swear by this full fingers on strategy, others don’t.)

#3: Budget

Decide the budget on your marketing campaign. You have to know the way a lot you may spend to make your contest a hit. This may affect your prize, how one can put it on the market, the staffing energy you will have, on-line instruments you should use (together with apps) and much more.

Whether or not you’re setting your personal funds, or your organization or advertising and marketing division does, be sure to stick inside it. It’s enterprise, and also you’re in it to make a revenue.

#4: Contest Kind

There are various varieties of contests, sweepstakes and group coupons you’ll be able to run on Facebook. Earlier than you soar in, select the one which’s best for you, for the actual contest you’re operating now.

In case your objective is:

To get new Facebook Followers, or to extend your electronic mail checklist, then a easy Sweepstakes is greatest; it poses a low barrier to entry, they’re enjoyable to win, and also you’ll get extra entrants.
To make quick gross sales, then a group deal or coupon will encourage your entrants to purchase your discounted product immediately.
To get extra engagement by way of user-generated content material (ugc), then contests, similar to a photo, essay and even video contest may go greatest for you.

#5: Prize

The prize is vital to your contests. Select a prize that each markets your corporation or merchandise – and that your shopper will like, and be motivated to enter. Ensure your prize is in budget too!

Select a prize corresponding to:

A present card for your small business (or perhaps a companion’s enterprise).
A product you promote (okay, for those who occur to promote iPads, then a iPad is engaging).
An expertise cash can’t purchase (similar to the possibility to be your ‘Fan of the week’, or a lunch along with your CEO).

This may appeal to individuals who’re focused on your organization. It should additionally get you reaching your total enterprise targets to market your business and merchandise.

When selecting a prize, you need to preserve your contest objectives in thoughts.

#6: Time Frame and Frequency

Earlier than you begin your marketing campaign, it’s essential to know the period of your contest. Something greater than a month tends to decrease curiosity and motivation in a contest. You should choose your time-frame and frequency primarily based on what you are promoting wants.

#7: Entry Methods and Guidelines

You need to decide how your participant will enter your contest. Do they should Like your Page to enter? Do they should submit an e-mail to enter? Do they should reply a query, or submit a photograph or video?

Once you run a contest on Fb, be sure to’re adhering to its express pointers of working a contest.

A number of of the most important Facebook contest tips embrace:

It’s essential to have a written disclaimer stating that the competition is on no account related to Facebook.
You can not use a Fb function as an entry methodology – so even when the competition is housed inside an app, you can’t have an individual click on a Facebook Like button to enter.
Fb contests should be housed inside a tab or app. You can not, as an example, run a contest during which individuals should write one thing in your Facebook Page’s wall, remark in your standing replace or Like an image. They have to enter inside an app.

#8: Design Your Graphics

When you’ve obtained your contest particulars labored out, it’s time to design the look of your promotion.

Relying on the kind of contest you run, your app, and the options you need will decide the forms of designs you want. Your design may vary from a easy picture for the competition to more superior graphics and customised CSS.

4 major graphics embody:

Contest header
Like-gate graphic
App icon
Web site banner

Contest header:

A contest header can embrace custom-made design, so as to add more attraction to take part. The app you employ will decide the scale and dimensions for a personalized header. Right here’s an instance Wishpond designed for TravelBig:

Like-gated graphic:

Good Like-gated graphics embody a straightforward to see Call-to-Action, to Like your page. Use clear visuals like arrows in a contrasting shade to attract consideration to your contest. Tip: Be sure your arrow factors to your “Like” button!

Right here’s one other instance we made for TravelBig:

App icon:

Most apps may have a default contest icon to your Web page. Determine if you’ll use this commonplace icon, or if you’ll design your individual. In the event you’re making your personal, have it prepared earlier than your contest begin.Tip: Maintain the app icon easy (you’ve solely obtained 111 x 74 pixels), hold it branded, and embrace restricted however particular phrases.

Right here’s an instance we designed for Atmananda Yoga:

Web site banner:

If you will be advertising your Facebook contest in your web site, design a customized banner to make it attractive on your web site site visitors to go to your Facebook Page.

Right here’s an instance from our shopper Winter Lennon:

#9: Find out how to Measure Success

After having understood how to run a sweepstakes you have to know if will probably be successful. Plan out the way you’re going to measure your outcomes earlier than your promotion begins.

Record out your Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s). Your KPI’s are the precise numbers and stuff you should use to point out your ROI. They are going to rely in your aims.

So, for instance, in case your objective is to extend Facebook Likes, use the aims you wrote out (as above), and measure these numbers:

Get hold of 1,000 new Facebook Followers by week two.
Measure: Facebook Like numbers earlier than the competition, through the contest and after
Get three,000 entrants by week two.
Measure: variety of entrants to your promotion (together with current Followers); monitor the numbers each day or hourly.
Improve Followers speaking about your page by 1,000% by week two.
Measure: numbers of individuals “speaking about your web page” by utilizing Facebook analytics; measure the numbers earlier than, throughout and after the marketing campaign.

#10: Contest Advertising and marketing Plan

It’s a sensible thought to have your promotional plan able to go earlier than you dive in to the precise contest. Understand that – for those who’re social media marketer – you’ll seemingly tweak it alongside the best way primarily based on the measurements of your contest..

Plan out if you’ll:

Put out teasers on Fb to generate curiosity earlier than the competition begins.
Promote it on Twitter, your blog, and different social websites. Draft out a number of posts.
Promote it in your web site. Do you want a banner?
Market it via e mail. Draft out just a few emails for the pre-contest, contest and submit contest section.
Promote it to native media, like newspapers, radio, TV, or by way of distinguished native bloggers. Do you have got communications, like a press release, in place to ship out?
Promote on Facebook to provide your contest a lift. Design your adverts.
Promote on Google, Twitter or area of interest web sites. What’s going to this seem like? Are you aware your area of interest web sites, or do you want to do a little analysis?
Listing your contest on coupon, sweepstakes and contests web sites.