Being the most popular social media platform out there, Facebook is a great marketing tool these days for any business out there who’s looking to either convert or build awareness around the brand.  

If your ultimate goal is to grow your business through new clients and sales, it’s time to consider running a Facebook contest. Here’s everything you need to know about setting up and running one: 

Determine Your Goal 

• Lead Generation – If your goal is to collect more email addresses for your newsletter or email promotion blast, a Facebook contest is a great tool for that.  
• Getting new customers – Offer a new discount or promotion to those who sign up for your contest.  
• Growing your account – Ask your entrants to like your business Facebook page when participating in the giveaway. 
• Promoting an exclusive offer or a sale – Offer a product or service that’s already on sale as a giveaway prize to get people interested in what your business has to offer. 

Choose a Giveaway Prize: 

Offer a relevant prize to all your potential customers, in other words – entice them to enter your Facebook contest. The goal is to give away something that people will be willing to take action for. Furthermore, your prize should be relevant to your target audience, so make sure to allocate an appropriate amount towards a prize (product or free service). 

Select an Entry method: 

Don’t ask for too much from your participants, so they don’t get discouraged or confused. Be clear and direct about how to enter your giveaway. We recommend sharing up to 3 rules of entry: 

• Like a business’s Facebook page 
• Comment 
• Tag a friend 
• Fill out a form on a landing page – great option for collecting emails 
• Offer an additional entry for those who share your post on their page 

Include These Giveaway Post Must Haves: 

• Design an appealing post – Decide what’s the best way to grab people’s attention keeping your target audience in mind. Next, make sure that you include important information (prize, deadline, your logo, etc.) in the image as well as the giveaway caption. Try to be as specific yet concise as possible. 
• Include what’s the giveaway prize 
• Share the rules for entry 
• Determine who can participate and what are the entry deadlines 
• Include how and when you’ll select a winner 

Important  

Check Facebook Contest Rules to make sure that your promotion doesn’t violate any platform rules, such as ‘Acknowledgement that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.’ 

Promote Your Facebook Contest: 

• Pin the Post – Make sure your giveaway post is pinned to the top of your page for the duration of the contest and when you announce the winner. 
• Facebook Ad and Boosting – Put some money into running an ad or boosting your giveaway post on Facebook to reach more people and to target the right audience. 
• Social Media – If your business is active on other social media platforms (Twitter, Instagram or Snapchat), let your followers know about your Facebook contest as well. There’s a good chance they will be willing to enter on Facebook if they’re already active users on those platforms. 
• Blog – Write a blog post detailing the contest and the prize or include a blurb about the opportunity at the end of an article you’re currently promoting. 
• Custom Giveaway Hashtag – If you’re promoting your Facebook contest on Twitter or Instagram, create a custom hashtag to grab more attention and to monitor the giveaway entries. 
• Email blast – Send out an email blast to your current subscribers to give them a chance to participate. After all, they are your most loyal followers and they will most likely be more inclined to spread the word about your giveaway. 

Once you select a winner, don’t forget to announce it to the public and thank everyone else for participating!  

Last but not least, make sure you measure your results so you can run more successful giveaways in the future. 

Need help setting up and running a Facebook Contest? We can help! 

Advertising Is Simple is a full-service marketing agency located in Wilmington, Delaware helping small to mid-sized businesses with all their digital marketing, radio and television advertising needs. Call us now.  

Advertising Is Simple | 302.407.0431 | info@AdvertisingIsSimple.com