Running an Instagram Contest is most probably the fastest and most effective way of growing your Instagram following. They create interactions with your existing audience while drawing in countless new views and followers. Instagram’s algorithm can’t help but notice. Aside from growing your follower count, here are two more key reasons to run a contest:
Engage your audience - Contests and giveaways can allow authentic user engagement, bringing your audience closer to your page, brand, and ethos.
Collect user-generated content - Whether it’s caption contests, photoshops, or art, Contests can be a great opportunity to allow your audience to generate (free and creative) content for your page.
So, now we have convinced you to start a Giveaway, here is how to execute one like a Pro!
1. Plan and set a goal.
Start off with a plan. This will involve picking out what kind of content you want to run. You’ll also need to set time constraints. Make sure the time and date the contest ends are clear and adhered to in selecting your winner.
It is also important to know what your actual goal is from the outset. Yes, more followers may always be the number one priority, but maybe you also want to increase sales of a specific product for example. Knowing what you want to achieve will make tracking your results much easier.
2. Make the rules really clear and simple.
Whether it’s entry deadlines or what your followers need to do to enter, make sure that the rules are clear and simple.
3. Choose an awesome prize
Make sure you choose a prize that you know your followers will love. It could be a product or assortment of products, a gift card, or something else. It’s also wise to make sure the prize is related to your brand. General prizes like cash or Amazon gift cards will lure in random followers looking for a chance to win a quick buck but offering products and prizes related to you is way more effective.
4. Promote
You need to make sure you promote your Instagram contest as widely as possible. You’ll want to share it on your Instagram Stories as well as any other social media platform your brand uses.
5. Track
You will no doubt want to see how your contest has worked by stacking up the final numbers afterwards. You can do this by using Hootsuite, which is the perfect resource to help run and track contests. Contest posts can be scheduled with the Planner. Comments can be tracked and answered in the Inbox, and mentions/hashtag usage can be tracked via Streams.
So, now it is time to let your creative juices run wild and launch your contest. To help here are some awesome ideas to engage and excite your audience:
Like and/or comment to win contest - The one is easy as pie. All you need to do is instruct your entrants to like and/or comment on the post to enter. There’s no need to overcomplicate things and this one is such a simple but effective way to generate engagement.
Share contest - A share contest is a savvy way to run an Instagram giveaway. When someone shares a post via the repost app or to their stories you’re notified of it on Instagram. It’s really easy to track entries and pick a winner as well as the bonus of your post being shared in massive quantities.
Tag contest - Another easy as pie contest idea is to ask people to tag up to 3 friends in the comments section of your post. You will not only bring new viewers to your page, but you can then expect those tagged friends to also tag a friend or three themselves! Simply sit back and watch your engagement rocket!
Photo caption contest - Caption contests are perfect for creating direct engagement with your audience. Simply post a picture and ask your users to add the perfect caption. Choosing a winner can be either you being the sole judge or how asking users to vote for their favourite caption, with the winner being the person with the most likes. That's double engagement!
User-generated content - UGC Contests are a great way to collect testimonials. Try asking users to share their favourite personal stories surrounding your brand, product, or ones that relate to your page’s ethos. Remember to make sure it’s made clear in the rules that you have the right to repost any of the entries and you have a bunch of awesome future content right there.
Hashtag contest - Like a user-generated content contest, hashtag giveaways require entrants to post to their page or stories under a specific hashtag (you determine what that is yourself). The one thing to keep in mind when planning a hashtag contest is that there are a LOT of hashtags out there. Make sure the hashtag you use for your contest is unique to you.