Summer’s one of the best times to run a social media contest; I love it because there’s a ton of different potential contest themes and prize ideas. In this article, I’m going to give you 20 summer giveaway ideas, with some tips for creating an awesome giveaway page, some great contest ideas, and a list of sweet prizes. The people who enter your contest are interested in your product, and it’s likely the people they’re connected with on social media are similarly in your target market. Prize Ideas Summer Giveaway Idea #1. Your product Giving away your product for your summertime giveaway is probably the best prize you can give away. Giving away your product means everyone who enters is at least somewhat into your product line, meaning you’re maximizing the impact of any email marketing campaigns you set up in the future to your list of entrants. Again, it ensures that entrants are interested in your brand and your products, which makes up a large portion of post-contest success. One awesome summer giveaway prize idea is a set of tickets to a specific summer event. This prize idea actually works best when their shopping spree is for your business or your e-commerce store, as this maximizes the quality of your leads and helps increase awareness of your business and products. Giving away a prize package that includes a night of drinks and appies for your winner and a couple friends is an awesome summer-specific contest idea.
Summertime is here, and for your business, it could mean a prime time for marketing. Summer’s one of the best times to run a social media contest; I love it because there’s a ton of different potential contest themes and prize ideas.
In this article, I’m going to give you 20 summer giveaway ideas, with some tips for creating an awesome giveaway page, some great contest ideas, and a list of sweet prizes.
Let’s get started!
Page Ideas
Summer Giveaway Idea #1. Countdown timer
One of the first things you should add to your summer giveaway page is a countdown timer. Just like summer, your contest is awesome but it won’t last forever. Use your contest builder of choice to add a simple countdown timer to your page, letting entrants know how much time they have left to enter your contest.
Countdown timers are so effective because they create urgency in a page visitor. Giving potential contest entrants explicit information about when your contest ends helps stop them from being indifferent and not entering altogether. Place your countdown timer above the fold to ensure people always see it – an opt-in bar works great as well!
Summer Giveaway Idea #2. Benefit-oriented headline
One best practice for any type of page with a conversion goal is to create an intriguing headline that clearly communicates the value of converting on the page. Since we’re talking about a summer giveaway here, the best thing you can talk about is your prize.
Here’s an example. Besides using a headline like “Enter Our Summer Giveaway!” which doesn’t say much more than the theme of the contest, you could use a headline like “Enter for a Chance to Win our $500 Summer Shopping Spree!” This headline, though similar, tells a viewer exactly what they want to know – they can still understand the contest’s theme, but they’re now also aware of the value of the prize and what the prize is.
Summer Giveaway Idea #3. Share prompt
This contest tip is actually my personal favorite, because I’ve seen just how successful it can be. Basically, a share prompt pops up after a visitor has entered your contest, asking them to share your contest (or Like or follow your various social media profiles) in exchange for extra entries.
This strategy is awesome because it’s an easy way to increase social engagement and reach more potential entrants by incentivizing people who have already entered. People who have converted for a first time are much more likely to be open to completing some other action (like sharing your contest) than if they were asked to share before even entering.
Summer Giveaway Idea #4. Testimonials
Often an underutilized strategy when it comes to contests, testimonials can be just what you need to convince people to convert. When people come to your contest page for the first time, they’re usually uneasy (and understandably so). One question you want to ask yourself when you’re designing your page is: how can I make my visitors as comfortable as possible?.
One such way is to utilize trust symbols – basically, elements you add to your page that increase visitor trust and – subsequently – conversion rates. Add a testimonial (or multiple testimonials!) from your happy customers to share their joy with potential contest entrants. They add social proof, which is an invaluable strategy to employ when looking to increase conversions.
Summer Giveaway Idea #5. Run ads
When putting together your summer giveaway, you want to consider the goals you’re looking to achieve with your contest. Though you may have the intention of trying to “reactivate” past customers, it’s more likely that you’re looking to get new customers by spreading the word about your contest through promotion on platforms like social media.
Unfortunately, organic reach isn’t what it used to be, and you’ll find yourself hard-pressed to reach a ton of new people through platforms like social and email without paying to play. Consider investing a least a little money
Contest Ideas
Summer Giveaway Idea #6. Share-to-enter
Just to note – you can’t do this on Facebook, but you can on Instagram and Twitter. Run a share-to-enter contest to ensure you maximize its social reach. Just tell people they need to repost your contest post (on Instagram) or Retweet your contest Tweet…
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