contests and promotions for social media

Contests and Promotions

Week #5February 26, 2014

Utica CollegePRL 408: Social MediaThomas Armitage

In today’s lesson…

Why grow a following? Quality vs quantity Should I buy followers? How to grow a following Types of promotions Why run a contest? Things to consider What are your goals? Type of social media users Software Types of contests Tips Breakout

Past week’s articles

“6 Benefits of Running Social Media Contests” - http://bit.ly/1hmA8Wf

“13 Ingredients in the Perfect Social Media Contest” - http://bit.ly/1jrBEbq

“Everything You Need to Run a Successful Social Media Contest” - http://bit.ly/1mBGckq

Why grow a following?

With any marcom effort, you should ask who and how many are you reaching?

Social media: You can easily see who watches you and who actually cares + you can react

No one wants to speak to an empty room

Quality vs quantity

What value do my followers bring? Will they help push my messages? Will they engage and hold

conversations that strengthen loyalty?

Will they buy my product?

Should I buy followers?

How to grow a following

Strategic activity Blogging Share to access Advertising Email marketing Online promotions

Types of promotions

Giveaways Sweepstakes Fan of the Week Trivia/quizzes Check-ins Coupons Tug of war or ceiling goal Contests (simple or user generated)

Why run a contest?

Incentivize people to follow and share Build awareness Increase web traffic/subscribers Increase engagement Increase sales

(Lee, 2013)

Things to consider

Goals Target audience Software Type Platform Theme/name Timeline Graphics Rules Prize

(Baer, 2013)

What are your goals?

Branding/awareness? Build fanbase? Get people talking? Boost web traffic? Sales?

(Vaughan, 2013)

Type of social media users

No Shows (41%):  Mix-n-Minglers (19%) Onlookers (16%) Newcomers (15%) Cliquers (6%) Sparks (3%)

(Dyer, 2012)

Software

Wildfire (by Google) Hubspot Invovler ContestCore Vitrue Buddy Media Wishpond GroSocial Strutta

Types of Contests

Simple enter Share/hashtag use Comment, quiz or short story Photo/video submission Most votes

(Vaughan, 2013)

Contests on Facebook

Remember goals Follow the rules Terms and conditions Make use an app Include CTAs Include form to capture

data How will you notify

winner? Measure results

(Vaughan, 2013)

Contests on Twitter

Remember goals Iron out details Timetable Pick unique but memorable hashtag Respond accordingly Measure results

(Vaughan, 2013)

Contests on Pinterest

Goals Follow pin etiquette Rules Use hashtag and/or

boards How will you

announce winner? Measure results

(Vaughan, 2013)

Contests on Instagram

Goals Develop a theme Tease it on

multiple platforms Unique but

memorable hashtag

Measure results

(Vaughan, 2013)

Contests on Websites

Goals Tease it Set up form for

submission Thank you page Share for

additional entries

Measure results

Tips

Use a good app Beware of rules Encourage sharing Promote Consider a partner Use the results!

(Pickering, 2012)

Breakout

Groups of 3 15 minutes 5 contest ideas

PR/marketing team for the following companies: Ashley Furniture, Toyota, Petsmart, Best

Buy, Make A Wish, New York State Tourism

Next week, we will discuss…

Reputation Management and Crisis Communication

To do: Read articles from #UticaCollegeSM and

comment Continue working on PPT presentations Twitter presenter should be ready to

present

References

Baer, J. (2013, December 1). 13 Ingredients in the Perfect Social Media Contest. Convince & Convert. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://www.convinceandconvert.com/social-media-marketing/13-ingredients-in-the-perfect-social-media-contest/?utm_content=buffer24813&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Dyer, P. (2012, June 25). The 6 types of social media users. SocialMediaToday. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://socialmediatoday.com/pamdyer/564409/6-types-social-media-users

Leaning, B. (2012, July 3). Everything you need to run a successful social media contest. Inbound Blog. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/33352/Everything-You-Need-to-Run-a-Successful-Social-Media-Contest.aspx?utm_content=buffer952bb&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Lee, A. (2013, March 14). 6 benefits of running social media contests. Maximized Social Business. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://maximizesocialbusiness.com/6-benefits-of-running-social-media-contests-8288/

Pickering, B. (2012, June 28). 8 tips for running social media promotions. Socail Media Examiner. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-promotion-tips/

Scott, D. M. (2013). The New Rules of Marketing and PR. New Jersey: Wiley. Vaughan, P. (2013, August 9). 15+ stats to know before running your next social media

contest. Inbound Blog. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/social-media-contest-stats-infographic