What is a Giveaway?

Technically speaking, when you hear the term ‘giveaway’, you should think of it as a promotional drawing where a prize is given away to a participant chosen from a pool of entries at random. A giveaway in this case is referred to as a ‘sweepstakes’.  Artistically speaking, a giveaway is a fun way to grow your audience while giving back to your fans. It’s important to note there is no monetary charge for an entrant to participate in a sweepstakes, which is why you’ve probably seen the phrase ‘no purchase necessary’ associated with giveaways you’ve entered.

Difference Between A Contest, Sweepstakes, & Lottery

When you consider running a promotion online, you’ll hear three keywords thrown around besides ‘giveaway’: sweepstakes, contest, and lottery. At first glance, it’s easy to get these three terms confused with one another, but there are distinct differences between each.

• A sweepstakes is defined as ‘a promotional drawing in which prizes are given away at no charge to the participants’. Winners will be selected at random.

Think of sweepstakes as a game of luck.

• A contest is defined as ‘an event in which people try to win by doing something better than others’. Winners will be chosen or judged based on their submission or performance.

Think of a contest as a game of skill.

• A lottery is defined as ‘a means of raising money by selling numbered tickets and giving prizes to the holders of numbers drawn at random’. This includes a fundraiser raffle or the powerball lottery. The winner is chosen at random, but you have to pay to play.

Think of a lottery as a game of luck that has an entry fee.

Benefits of Running a Giveaway

As an internet marketer, keeping up with a blog, focusing on SEO, running monthly webinars, and being active on Twitter are just a few of the marketing channels that might require your focus. However, have you considered the powerful benefits of incorporating giveaways into your marketing strategy? 

You’ll find the benefits of giveaways can bring you a return on your investment as much, if not more, than any of the aforementioned marketing channels. Below are some of the reasons you might think about running a giveaway:

• Grow your network. Running a giveaway is a fantastic way to build your social media following on sites like Facebook & Twitter.
• Generate leads. A sweepstakes is great for growing leads or increasing the number of email list subscribers. It’s a lead generation secret weapon.
• Save money. Running a giveaway can be an inexpensive & cost-effective marketing channel; the cost associated with running a giveaway can be low and predictable. Just budget for the cost of the prize, how you’ll market it, and the time you spend on managing the process.
• Gain product exposure. Launching your product with a giveaway is an amazing way to generate buzz around your brand. Having the prize be your product will help gauge interest and fuel excitement. Using your product as the giveaway’s prize is one way to get people excited about your product and try it out.
• Give back to your fans. Want to share the love & give out prizes to your fans? Running a giveaway is a great way to show your appreciation.
• Save time & headaches. In relation to other internet marketing channels, running a giveaway doesn’t require a lot of technical knowledge. In addition, the amount of time spent creating and launching a giveaway promotion is relatively low. Rafflecopter makes this process fast and easy.
• Have some fun. Everyone loves the chance of winning! There’s nothing more joyful than delivering the good news to your winners. Relative to other marketing channels, running a giveaway can be a blast.
• Liven up your community. If you’re looking for a way to get your fans excited, running a giveaway will get them chatting.

Pros 

Attracts new followers – Instagram giveaways help to speed up the process of attracting new followers.

Increases engagement – Instagram giveaways receive high levels of engagement.

Encourages user-generated content – You can use Instagram giveaways to encourage your followers to create content for your brand.

Cons 

Short-term Followers – Your giveaway may attract followers who are only interested in the prize and will unfollow when the giveaway ends

Unengaged followers – Giveaways may increase your total number of followers, but they can decrease your percentage of engaged followers, which can have a negative impact on Instagram’s algorithm.

Fake accounts and scams – Instagram has seen a huge rise in scammers targeting giveaways recently. They create a fake account cloning your profile and then they contact your followers saying they have won your giveaway. They then ask for personal information or payment details for postage of the prize.

It’s important to note both the pros and cons to help you make an informed decision on running an Instagram giveaway.

How to do a giveaway or online contest, step-by-step:
Step 1. Set a Goal for Your Online Contest
Step 2. Choose a Good Contest Prize
Step 3. Determine the Contest Rules
Step 4. How to with RafflePress
Step 5. Promote Your Giveaway
Step 6. Pick a Winner for Your Giveaway
Step 7. Follow Up After the Contest
Step 8. Track Your Results