Running Facebook contests is a tried-and-true method of gaining likes, followers and creating thrill around a product or brand. It’s also a low-cost social media marketing strategy because you choose the budget and the prize.

A Facebook sweepstake is the simplest method for lead generation and growing your social media following. Facebook sweepstakes can help your business increase sales and spread brand awareness like wildfire.

Set Contest Objectives

A Facebook contest must have a clear goal to benefit your business. If your goal is to gain more followers, consider why. Why is that goal critical to your company? You’ll come up with a better goal every time you ask yourself this question. Continue until you have one that is in line with your business goals. You can begin with the following common Facebook contest objectives:

• Increase your following by 1,000 people
• Gather 1,000 email addresses
• Increase brand loyalty
• 10% increase in website traffic
• Increase brand awareness

Important: Make goals as measurable as possible. This is accomplished by substituting a number, such as “Get 200 new followers” for “Get new followers.”

One Facebook contest could potentially achieve all the above objectives. If you decide to go for all of them, try to prioritize the ones you believe are most important.

Select a Prize

Your Facebook contest prize should be exciting enough to entice your target customers to participate. When selecting a prize, keep the following in mind:

• Affordable and relevant prizes: A costly and irrelevant product may be unable to attract qualified leads or target audiences.
• Custom or limited-edition products: People enjoy receiving unique and special prizes, so consider offering a limited-edition prize or allowing the winner to select a design (color, engraving, etc.).
• Provide coaching sessions: Businesses in B22 can offer a one-on-one session with an expert, which is a great way to build a reputation.
• Combine multiple prizes into one: A prize package increases the appeal of the contest.
• Devise a prize that meets requirements: If you own a beauty store, give away a popular item such as a nail paint or makeup product. Online retailers can give away gift cards (allowing the winner to choose their prize) or a personalized item such as a bag or water bottle.

Select a Contest Type

A Facebook giveaway is the most straightforward type of contest, but it is not the only one. The best way is to determine your objectives. A photo contest, for example, may be better for increasing engagement, whereas a caption may be better for spreading brand awareness.

Popular contest types include:

• Sweepstakes: The winner is chosen at random (typically using services such as random.org).
• Photo competitions: Request that followers share a photo with you, either through private messages or on the brand’s page. The winner is selected by the community.
• Comment-to-win: Ask your followers to respond to a question in the comments, and the best one will win.
• Caption: The person who comes up with the funniest or most creative caption for a photo wins.

Rules for Writing a Contest

Inform prospective participants of your guidelines and requirements. The best method is to create a bullet list of rules.

Keep the following in mind when creating Facebook contest rules:

• Entry Rules: Describe the action required to enter your contest, such as making a purchase, leaving a comment on a Facebook post or blog article, and so on.
• Rights to public exposure: These rights are required to be able to announce the winner.
• Deadlines: Set the start and end dates for the contest.
• Laws: Every Facebook contest must abide by all federal, state, and local laws, as specified in the rule’s description.
• Process of determining the winner: Explain how you will choose the winner by listing the judging criteria.
• Prize. Describe the contest prizes for the winner, runner-up, and any additional contestants, if any.

Facebook algorithms and policies must be followed to ensure the success of your brand’s contest. Check the Facebook contest rules on the Policies page, for example, as there are a few specific rules for promotions. For example, Facebook prohibits requiring participants to “share the contest on your timeline.” That is why “share to enter” style contests are not advised.

Create a Contest Landing Page

A contest landing page is a website that promotes a contest and collects information from participants. Brands create landing pages to collect participants’ email addresses, communicate with them, and effectively promote the contest. The pages could be designed in a variety of styles, ranging from complex with videos to simple with a sign-up form.

Many landing page techniques are also used by online businesses to encourage participation.

A/B testing of contest landing pages is another way to collect valuable customer data.

You may discover that one type of marketing copy generates more engagement than others. For B2C and B2B businesses, A/B testing generates 25% and 40% more leads, respectively, so consider creating multiple landing page versions to find more effective marketing tactics.

Publicize and Market Your Contest

When you click the “Post” button, the campaign to promote your contest begins. Use all available channels, such as emails, blog articles, website pop-ups, chatbots, Facebook posts, advertisements, and so on.

Write a brief message announcing the contest and encouraging people to enter.

To publicize your Facebook contest, do the following:

• Explain the main prize (or add the photo)
• Make certain that the promotion emails include a link to the contest landing page (if applicable)
• Encourage your friends to enter the contest, friends and family recommendations are trusted by 81% of customers.

Participant Communication

A positive contest experience for all participants is critical for driving engagement and leaving a lasting impression. 71% of online customers who had a positive social media experience with a brand are likely to recommend it to others.

To make a pleasant experience for participants:

• Participate in the discussion by leaving comments.
• Send an email to everyone who participated, thanking them for their time.
• Your goal should be to contact each participant and express gratitude for their participation. Some online stores even send discount codes in exchange for entering.

Declare the Winner with all grace

Ways to congratulate the winner of your Facebook contest:

• Create a post in which you congratulate them
• Include them in an email newsletter
• Create a brief blog post
• Before announcing the results, try to get a “celebration photo” from the winner (ask them via email). It would be an excellent way to make a great announcement.
• Write that announcement in friendly and positive language; it’s a better way to communicate with customers than “legal style.”

Examine Contest Results

Approximately, 48% of marketers track brand-related metrics.

Facebook giveaway performance metrics can help you gain more customer insights and identify areas where you can experiment with ads and promotions.

That is why you should consider contest-related performance. Examine audience data to see who has been the most active and could thus be targeted with future marketing campaigns.

Conclusion

With RewardPort social sales strategies, you can run engagement campaigns on any social media platform. The key is to have an acute understanding of your customers and their interests.