How to run successful competitions on social media

Follow us - @bozboz#socialcomp

Why social?● Over 3 billion active Internet users (45%

of the world’s internet users)● Nearly 2.1 billion people have social

media accounts● 3.65 billion mobile users have access to

the internet via smartphones and tablets● Close to 1.7 billion people have active

social media accounts● Social media increased its share of e-

commerce referrals nearly 200% between the first quarters of 2014 and 2015.

@bozboz#socialcomp

Competition Time1. Draw a picture that represents what you love

about Brighton2. Take a picture of the image and tweet it,

along with a caption that says ‘I love Brighton because...’

OR just write the tweet withoutthe image3. Tweet @bozboz #socialcomp

So………….

@bozboz#socialcomp

What is the point in all of this?• To be engaging • To promote your brand• Increase reach• Boost social followers• Build partnerships with other local businesses• Lead generation (data babes)• Gain audience insights

@bozboz#socialcomp

It doesn’t just end there...

• Re-marketing• Content curation• Opportunities for

brand ambassadors

Who’s done awesome competitions?• iTunes festival• Ted baker competition• Domino’s UK competition

@bozboz#socialcomp

The Salt Searchhttps://storify.com/Bozboz/saltsearch-takes-over-brighton

@bozboz#socialcomp

How to choose the right social platform• Facebook? Twitter? Instagram? Blog?• All really easy to set up – you don’t need to do much!• Choose the best one to fit your needs, your

competition objective and your brand personality.• You can use a 3rd party app, like WooBox or ShortStack,

but these are expensive and not accessible for all users on all platforms.

• Make sure you plan your competition well and prepare for any eventuality!

@bozboz#socialcomp

Holding a competition on Facebook

Facebook competitions require:• great images to stand out in people’s timelines. • a great way of engaging the audience - get them involved!• users should like or comment a post to enter.• users should also ‘like’ the account - boost fanbase.

@bozboz#socialcomp

Holding a competition on Twitter

Twitter competitions require:• great images to stand out in people’s timelines.• a cool hashtag for entrants to use, spread the word and also check entries after the

competition closes.• users should retweet, favourite, or use the hashtag to enter.• users should also follow the account - not necessary but you want to get your account

to grow.• be careful when using ‘#win’ - this will pick up a lot of ‘compers’ and not the people

who will actually later purchase your product.

Instagram competitions require:

• great images• a cool hashtag• a fair amount of copy on the

graphic• an easy to enter competition!

Holding a competition on Instagram

@bozboz#socialcomp

Holding a competition on your blog

Blog competitions require:

• shareable content for social media.

• no limits in character count or graphics.

• go wild!

@bozboz#socialcomp

Dos• Make it easy for people• Have a good prize• Where possible, look for

chances for lead generation - capture email addresses etc

• Encourage people to share the competition

• Have a clear Call to Action• Be clear about your time

limit - have a sense of urgency

• Include terms and conditions• Publish the winner

Don’ts● Ignore the dos● Exclude any of your target

market● Be vague● Be boring

Do fret the legal stuff•Compliance•Rights•Everything must have a clearly accessible and

labeled terms and conditions form•Closing date must be prominently displayed•Check out the advertising standards -

https://www.asa.org.uk / @ASA_UK

@bozboz#socialcomp

Twitter•Don’t encourage multiple tweets eg ‘whoever RTs

the most wins’•Don’t use hashtags unrelated to the comp

@bozboz#socialcomp

Facebook● ‘Share to enter’ competitions are not

allowed

● Users must not be encouraged to tag themselves in a photo they don’t appear in as a competition entry mechanic

● T&Cs must contain a complete release of Facebook by the entrant, e.g. ‘You agree that Facebook is in no way liable for this promotion’@bozboz

#socialcomp

WINNER!!!

random.org

The prize is…What did we do wrong?

@bozboz#socialcomp

Your turn...Design a competition -

• What is your platform? Why?• What do you want your

audience to do?• What is the objective?• What do they get out of it?• How are you going to

manage it?

@bozboz#socialcomp