Operating an Instagram giveaway or contest is a strategic strategy to have interaction your viewers and develop your following. Plus, it’s a enjoyable strategy to give again to your followers—and work to show extra of your followers into prospects.
There are such a lot of social media contest concepts on the market that might be an ideal match in your model, and so they may even be a stellar tactic for constructing a library of user-generated content material and new followers.
All through this text, we’re going to dive deeper into what an Instagram giveaway is and why you’d wish to host one—plus a step-by-step showcasing the way to put by yourself giveaway efficiently.
Why must you host an Instagram giveaway?
An Instagram giveaway or contest tends to begin with an Instagram put up that asks your viewers to finish some type of job to enter right into a giveaway to win a free product or prize. Any such marketing campaign can generate loads of pleasure round your model, bringing in new eyes and growing attain and engagement… typically by rather a lot.
There are a number of advantages to using this technique—let’s cowl a very powerful ones.
Get extra followers
Many manufacturers require that customers getting into their giveaway should first comply with them on Instagram. Observe-gating your giveaway like this ensures that your Instagram following grows alongside your entries. Whilst you’ll doubtless begin receiving entries from those that already comply with you, put together to see some progress as your giveaway features traction.
Generate greater engagement
Instagram giveaways can generate greater engagement on particular posts (your giveaway announcement, clearly)—however it could actually additionally enhance your engagement total. Algorithms work in humorous methods, however as soon as it realizes that you just’re getting much more engagement than traditional, it’ll begin to place your content material in entrance of much more eyes, boosting your whole engagement.
Improve attain and impressions
Equally, your Instagram giveaway can assist you enhance your total attain and impressions. The extra engagement in your giveaway posts, the extra doubtless your content material might be proven to followers. If customers maintain seeing your content material and interacting with it, you’ll pop up on the high of their feeds extra usually, serving to to extend your attain.
Create a chance to collaborate with others
Lastly, Instagram giveaways current an ideal collaboration alternative. Many manufacturers (as you’ll see us cowl shortly) select to co-host giveaways. Discover a model with a product that’s complementary to yours (i.e., in the event you promote silk pillowcases, collab with a model that sells hair masks) and provides away these merchandise collectively in an attractive little bundle.
Forms of Instagram giveaways
There are 5 primary varieties of Instagram giveaways that you just’ll see manufacturers make the most of. We’ll stroll you thru how every of those works and why you may wish to select that route.
1. Like, remark and comply with
One of the vital well-liked strategies of entry is to have individuals like your photograph asserting your Instagram contest, go away a remark and comply with your account with a view to achieve entry.
Or, you may make commenting a very powerful a part of the entry, like we see on this enjoyable holiday-themed giveaway from Edible Preparations:
If you use this tactic, merely identify your prize, lay down the bottom guidelines and watch the entries fly in. You’ll be able to ask individuals to touch upon why they need to win, nominate somebody to win or just tag a pal to unfold the phrase.
That final choice is a superb contest concept all by itself — learn on for extra methods to make tagging mates in contests work successfully.
2. Tag a pal
Wish to actually get the phrase out about your Instagram contest? Ask individuals to tag a pal once they enter! Customers can tag as many mates as they like with a view to get much more entries.
Then, these customers are prone to enter and tag a few of their very own mates, making a ripple impact of consciousness round your contest and model. You may also host a tag-a-friend Instagram contest with a view to ask your followers to appoint somebody who deserves a prize.
Right here’s an instance of what this may seem like from Edible Preparations:
Edible Preparations requested customers to enter the competition by tagging a pal within the feedback. Many giveaways enable customers to tag a number of mates as a means of getting into greater than as soon as, growing their possibilities.
3. Person-generated content material
If you happen to’re seeking to put collectively a marketing campaign round gathering user-generated content material (UGC) to share on-line, creating an Instagram giveaway round that idea will be an effective way to do it.
Ask your viewers to share a photograph onto their feed utilizing a particular branded hashtag or tagging your small business so that you could simply discover all the entries in a single place.
Not solely does this reward your prospects for serving to you out, but it surely provides you a complete arsenal of user-generated pictures to share in your feed for future content material planning.
As a result of one of these giveaway entry requires much more effort in your audiences’ half, you’ll wish to make the prize price it.
4. Collaboration
As we talked about earlier, one other strategy to broaden your viewers is by collaborating with an identical model in your giveaway prizes. This manner, the audiences of all concerned manufacturers can study new, comparable manufacturers, and have a fair higher prize on the finish.
Right here’s an instance of one of these collaborative giveaway the place three manufacturers obtained collectively to supply a serious prize bundle as their giveaway prize:
Many influencers additionally host collaborative giveaways like this, meant to assist their followers uncover new manufacturers and bloggers, and vice versa.
If you happen to’re working to develop your Instagram presence, a collaborative contest or giveaway is perhaps your finest guess.
5. Instagram Tales
Whereas Instagram contests are all about giving again to your viewers, there are necessary advantages in your total Instagram advertising and marketing technique too: manufacturers can garner loads of consideration and generate a much bigger viewers by means of them as nicely.
Having your viewers share a put up on their Instagram Tales as a type of entry will be one other nice strategy to get the phrase on the market.
It’s tremendous simple for customers to share posts to their Instagram Tales, so asking for one thing like this as an entry isn’t asking an excessive amount of of your viewers, and will be an effective way to unfold the phrase.
Learn how to run an Instagram giveaway in 6 steps
Operating an Instagram giveaway is a enjoyable strategy to enhance engagement and followers, however you must comply with the proper steps to maximise your success. Make the most of this blueprint in your subsequent contest or giveaway to be sure to’re protecting your bases earlier than you announce the prize(s).
1. Outline your Instagram giveaway objectives
Earlier than anything, you must be sure to outline the total goal of your Instagram giveaway. In any other case, how will you identify whether or not or not it was profitable ultimately?
A number of questions you may ask your self to find out your objectives are:
- Are you making an attempt to have interaction your viewers extra in your content material?
- Are you aiming to generate a bigger following?
- Is your plan to construct a library of UGC to share on social media?
That is going to find out what sort of Instagram giveaway you run. No matter your primary aim or goal is, maintain it in thoughts all through your whole contest planning course of in order that the whole lot you do is smart in your finish aim.
2. Determine your funds and prizes
The following step is to establish what your funds is and the way giant of a prize or prize bundle you’re capable of give away free of charge. You may begin with a single, small prize in your first giveaway to check the waters earlier than finally transferring onto a bigger prize down the street.
Understand that your prize ought to be particular to your target market and one thing distinctive for hem to win.
For instance, a money prize or an iPad or iPhone might apply to anybody, whereas a present card or restricted version product out of your store would enchantment solely to the individuals who would purchase from you anyhow. This helps have interaction your target market additional and may also assist your consciousness objectives. If the winner posts their very own pictures of the merchandise they obtained out of your contest, you’ll get further consciousness and attain out of your efforts.
3. Plan and run your Instagram giveaway or contest
First issues first, are you operating a giveaway or a contest?
For essentially the most half, these are one in the identical. Nonetheless, some manufacturers select to create extra in-depth contests, the place entrants are requested to place their finest foot ahead and a winner is chosen by their efficiency.
A giveaway, although, has a randomly-selected entrant win the prize.
The following factor to think about is how customers will enter your Instagram contest. Assume again to the examples we shared above. Which contest or giveaway sort falls most in step with your primary aim or goal?
No matter you resolve, make certain it’s simple for individuals to enter your contest. Nobody goes to enter a contest that requires them to do loads of work–individuals need your entry course of to be easy and simple.
When you resolve the perfect entry methodology in your contest, it’s time to begin planning out the remainder of the small print.
First, decide how lengthy your Instagram contest will final. What number of days will your viewers should enter? Be sure that deadline is predetermined and that you just clearly let your viewers know when getting into will finish.
Second, are you going to make use of a hashtag in your marketing campaign? Whether or not you have got individuals put up pictures with that hashtag or ask them to make use of it within the feedback, making a campaign-specific hashtag that nobody else is utilizing is a good suggestion. This manner, you’ll have the ability to inform the competition entries from common posts about your model.
Third, what’s the theme in your contest? That is particularly necessary for UGC-focused contests. You wish to make certain your viewers is aware of what varieties of pictures you’re in search of them to share.
And at last, how will you notify the winner? Will you tag them in a remark? Share a brand new put up? Message them? Tag them in an Instagram Story?
These are all issues you must plan earlier than you launch the competition.
4. Design your marketing campaign property
Subsequent, you must put collectively marketing campaign property to announce and promote your Instagram contest. Not solely will this draw consideration to followers, it’ll make it easier to cross-promote it on varied platforms, in your electronic mail publication, in your web site and extra.
Create imagery for each your Instagram feed and to share in your Instagram Tales to extend the variety of followers who see the competition early on, supplying you with loads of time to gather entries. You’ll need these to face out and enhance the full variety of entries. Think about getting high-quality pictures of the prize and add “GIVEAWAY” or comparable copy in huge, daring lettering to the highest of your graphic.
Subsequent, you must take into consideration your captions. Begin with an attention-grabbing hook so that you could reel viewers in. Then clarify what the prize is, the way to enter the giveaway and what the general guidelines are. It’s essential to additionally comply with Instagram’s phrases and launch them of any affiliation with the giveaway.
5. Measure your giveaway entry outcomes
Hold a detailed eye on how many individuals are getting into your giveaway, in the event you’re receiving any questions on it and what number of related entries are coming in with the giveaway hashtag.
Use a social media administration software reminiscent of Sprout Social to generate experiences on hashtag and key phrase use, follower depend, engagement fee and extra.
Regulate all associated posts and feedback so that you could pinpoint whether or not or not you met your preliminary aim with the giveaway. If elevated consciousness or attain is one among your objectives, observe the efficiency of your giveaway hashtags within the Instagram Enterprise Profiles Report back to measure the hashtags related together with your model. You’ll have the ability to inform in case your branded giveaway hashtag is creating the excitement you’re in search of:
Additionally concentrate throughout and proper after the giveaway to see in the event you’ve generated an inflow in gross sales as nicely.
6. Choose your winner with an Instagram giveaway picker
As soon as your giveaway timeframe has ended, it’s time to decide on a winner. One of the simplest ways to do that is through the use of an Instagram giveaway picker software. There are a selection of obtainable instruments so that you can make the most of particularly for these functions.
Many manufacturers will even document themselves utilizing a software to pick out the winner and share the video on their Instagram Tales as a strategy to show that the winner really has been randomly chosen.
A number of well-liked Instagram giveaway pickers embody:
Flip Instagram giveaway entrants into prospects
Begin operating your personal Instagram giveaways to spice up your followers, enhance social media engagement and, better of all, ramp up conversions. By introducing new individuals to your product, you’re growing the possibilities of introducing somebody to your model for the primary time and changing into a buyer.
For much more concepts on the way to convert your social media viewers into prospects, try the newest Sprout Social Index™.
