As a business owner, it can be challenging to get through the holidays with an ROI on promotions. And with Thanksgiving here, the height of the holiday season isn’t far behind. That means it is time to prepare yourself and your business for the buying season to get the most out of your investment of being cheerful, giving, and happy!
Here we offer you five examples of successful holiday promotions that you should consider implementing, like contests. Yes, contests! A great way to get business in the door or order online that will have a great ROI with little investment.
How will a contest bring in business?
- They reach your audience market without advertising
- They generate buzz, spreading the word organically
- They keep your business at the top of your audience’s mind
- They will create email leads that you can market about holiday sales and after holiday sales
- They bring in immediate business
Choose a social promotion that works best for your business. Determine a prize that is awesome and unique while it cross-promote the contest and your business on your website, by email, and on social media. A few successful ideas in the past that are worth doing:
#1: Sweepstakes
Sweepstakes a simple social promotion that only requires three steps for success:
- Make contest entry simple.
- Offer a desirable prize for your target audience.
- Use some effort to create visuals that grab attention.
An easy way to get leads that is quick and painless for prospective customers. Four tips for the holiday season sweepstakes:
- Use the 12 Days of Christmas theme! Have a sweepstake every day for the 12 days promoted within the contest from the day before.
- Have a sweepstakes prize that is relevant to your target audience and your business to capture their attention.
- Increase the chance for every contestant to win by offering several prizes for different levels.
- Make the prizes packaged to increase the attention to the contest and your business.
#2: Photo Contest
A photo contest will get user-generated content and bring your website organic traffic while increasing the awareness of your brand. Three tips to make your holiday photo contest a success:
- Creating a holiday design that promotes the pictures are holiday-esque. Create a festive mode with greens and reds, snow-covered trees, holiday lights, etc.
- Make sure the call to action stands out.
- Publish the complete contest rules and fine print on a separate website page, accessible with a link for interested potential customers to click.
#3: Essay Contest
This time of the year, holiday stories, traditions, and recipes are shared by everyone. We love to talk about our holiday times, and with this contest, you will be sure to draw in potential clients from your social media platforms using these tips:
- Set up your essay contest for votes. An essay will encourage more people to share their entries while they enter your contest.
- Set the essay topic to be an inspirational essay with a favorite holiday memory, an emotional story, holiday hilarities, the #1 worst gift received, delicious dessert recipes, etc.
#4: Refer a Friend
Referral promotions are one of the most recommended campaigns. They give those who enter the incentive to market your promotion, and your business, for you. These types of promotions can be one of several ways:
- Offer a sizeable discount for anyone that refers five or more to your business that makes a purchase.
- Offer a prize for the person with the most referrals to a unique URL that another person engages. The one with the most referrals wins.
- Set up a contest where a set number of referrals must be met by a specific date.
Two tips that will make these contests work:
- Send reminder emails once a day to encourage those who have entered to share their unique URL with others.
- Use a discount of 5% or 10% to every entrant whether they win the contest or not.
#5: Hashtag Contest
A great example of a hashtag contest is a fitness competition! The winter holiday season brings holiday treats with the urgency of getting in shape next year. A hashtag contest on Instagram will give each participant a chance to win a fitness prize daily by uploading their holiday fitness photo with a hashtag.
Three tips for a holiday hashtag contest:
- Keep the hashtag short and catchy.
- Cross-promote the hashtag contest on other social media platforms with the same hashtag.
- Use up to 3 other hashtags along with your unique one and promote the contest on Instagram.
It’s A Wrap ….
Online is the place to run your contest and promotion during the holidays. People are looking to buy at a savings or looking for something to get them in the holiday spirit. The prizes don’t have to be elaborate or expensive. Many companies have generated more than 1000 leads with prices that were under $100. Let the holidays be the place to boost your marketing strategy and business.
