Be Careful When it Comes to Contests

When I think of contests, my mind goes in a very macabre direction — I think of Shirley Jackson’s classic short story, “The Lottery.”

Fortunately, online contests don’t end with a stoning … usually.

No amount of Binging could yield when, exactly, the concept of giving away product through contests began. I know it’s older than I am, so I’m not going to give you a history of contests. Instead, I’m going to talk about the current trend.

Remember, nothing in this world is for free

Photo by kalandrakas

It’s a universal truth, like death and taxes. Anyone offering a free product as the prize of a contest is looking for something in return. They’re not giving things away out of the goodness of their heart.

Their contest could be generating greater brand awareness, sparking your participation in their channel or beyond, or even just capturing your email address. Mashable has done a fine analysis of the cost of free.

Latest contest trend: the quid pro quo

The quid pro quo trend has come on strong recently. It usually involves participation via adding a blog comment, offering an opinion, following on Twitter, or becoming a fan on Facebook in order to be entered into a giveaway drawing.

This trend is related to the concept of the Social Media One-Night Stand that I wrote about a few weeks ago. Exchanging a coupon or contest entry for becoming a fan or for following is strictly a ‘Quantity as Success’ play — and that’s an easy way to devalue a content channel.

Take the example of asking for a Twitter follow in return for a contest entry. That call to action is meaningless for a number of reasons:

1. An engaged reader will follow you on Twitter anyway, provided it’s a valuable stream.
2. You’ve automatically excluded readers who aren’t on Twitter, or you’ve encouraged people who don’t want to/shouldn’t be on Twitter to sign up.
3. You’re devaluing your own stream by incentivizing the participation of people not interested in your regular content.

Usually, any content created will be of marginal quality (if content is created at all), because the motivation to create content wasn’t a genuine interest in building discussion; it was the desire for free product. The same is true for a newly boosted follower/fan count. These users won’t add value to the content channel if their sole interest is in free stuff.

The quid pro quo approach is becoming more and more common on consumer-centric blogs where a manufacturer provides free product in return for participation of some kind.

There’s good participation and bad participation

A good contest is going to be transparent and, hopefully, beneficial to the community as a whole.

Encouraging or requiring a blog comment that is of some value to the community may yield more meaningful content. It still may not be 100% genuine, as the user may or may not have made the comment without the incentive. But at the very least, leaving a comment encourages them to share something of value.

Focus on the goal

Whether a contest is successful or not will come down to the end goal, just as with any other marketing campaign. The goal should be focused on raising awareness about your content, encouraging the creation of quality content, and/or rewarding loyal readers.

The concept of a random drawing makes it difficult to achieve any part of this goal. I encourage blogs and brands looking to give things away to randomly reward quality participation as opposed to announcing a contest.

Of course, this misses the promotional aspect of a contest. Making a weekly, monthly, or regularly scheduled contest would achieve more in terms of promotion because the contest is now content, not a campaign.

Spot On! articles are released on Wednesdays and highlight emerging trends in web content distribution and finds examples of great distribution, efforts that just miss the mark, or utter failures, and then offers helpful suggestions or opportunities for elevating the engagement.

About the author

Brad Schwarzenbach -

As an analyst on the Tippingpoint Strategy team, Brad explores new opportunities for clients to build relationships with their customers. He’s always testing new social media channels, poring over analytic data, and identifying emerging trends. He also speaks at conferences & events about uncovering powerful messages hidden within brands' unique values.

Brad’s research has contributed to the development of content & contributor strategies for such clients as Breville, Rodale, Long’s Jewelers, and Fusionapps, as well as being a frequent contributor to the Tippingpoint blog. He’s been “listening” to the way we communicate online since the old AOL People Connection days and watched the way that digital communication has evolved.

An English and Creative Writing major at the University of Connecticut, Brad’s spent most of his career creating web content and becoming intimately familiar with web theory for Bayard, Inc. and TomTom Inc., giving Brad keen ears and eyes to what, exactly, makes web content valuable.

Outside the office, Brad feels most at home with his beautiful wife-to-be Kristina, or on the golf course. “There’s a distinct pace and rhythm to the way people communicate online.  Understanding and taking part in them yields amazing opportunities for my clients to not only grow but to improve their business. I’m constantly looking for those opportunities.”