How to EXPERTLY Execute a Giveaway on Social Media

Promoting social engagement can be hard, it can feel a little like carnival barking for your page. When you're first starting a page, you may need to visit specific strategies to inject some interaction onto your page until it generates organic engagement on its own. One of those strategies you can implement is the time honored tradition of the giveaway, but how do you decide what kind of giveaway is best for you?

1.Picking your prize

This is arguably (and possibly obviously) the most important part of your giveaway. You have two options when it comes to this: an internal prize (something you or your business can provide) or external (something you'll have to allocate in your budget for), both can be equally effective but it will come down to analyzing timing, the kind of engagement you want and your target demographic. For instance, offering 50% off a service you provide could be good, but if your demo is men 35-54, and your local sports team is making a playoff run, the playoff tickets might do a better job sweetening the pot.

2.Formulate your post

The next step is making the post, you'll need to not only decide which platform it's happening on and make a snappy graphic but you'll also want to have very clear rules and timing on the contest as well. If it's on Instagram, you could have all entrants tag a friend, like your page and share the post. It's important to find the balance of actions that have added value for your page and not having too many hoops your entrants need to jump through or it may turn them away.

3.Pick Your Winners

Picking your winners is important, and while it's important to be unbiased and not pick, say, your best friend as your winner there may be a few elements to consider when 'randomly' selecting who your prize is going to. First and foremost you'll want to make sure that the user you select has in fact completed all your steps to entry. Then you'll want to verify that this isn't a bot or duplicate account from someone else. An easy way to do this is if they're tagging other users, to check those profiles and see if they're fake, recently created or completely devoid of user interaction. Once you've verified you have a legitimate winner, message them that it's time to collect their prize!

4.Afterglow

This is the last step, once you've contacted your winner and they have the prize in hand, you'll want to make a separate post announcing the winner to let your audience know that it's over. This post, more importantly, also shows that you've made good on your giveaway! You might also think about requesting your applicant take a picture of them enjoying your prize for some additional interaction.

Getting your social media off the ground can be a long, frustrating process but it doesn't have to be! Utilizing strategies like this you can master every facet of your social media. Of course, if you find you could use a hand with your social media, feel free to give your pals at Hyperchat Social a call!