Everybody loves prizes and freebies. And when it comes to social media marketing, there is no easier way to win over your target audience and grow your following than running contests and giveaways. After all, it’s the season of giving, right?
Capitalize on the holiday season by running a contest or giveaway. When done right, it can serve as a free advertisement for your brand. This is great, especially if the nature of your contest is to encourage people to share your post, which can help you build awareness. Soon, you’ll have a very strong following.
Here are 7 holiday-themed contests and giveaways you should try to boost your social media presence.
Photo contest
Ask your followers to submit their best holiday snaps to your social media page. Put the photos together in one album and feature them on your page.
Consider adding a voting component to add a little extra buzz around your contest. Get your community involved by voting for their favorite entries. This type of contest works well in helping you grow your following. In most cases, participants would share the photo with their family and friends, and ask them to like their photos.
Video contest
Video contests are similar to photo contests, except that people are asked to submit a video instead of a photo.
During this time of the year, people inundate their social media accounts with videos. Capitalize on this and ask your followers to send in their videos. It can be videos of them singing carols or showcasing their holiday spirit. User-generated submissions like these make great content for social media.
Photo caption contest
A “caption this” prompt is a fun way to encourage followers to comment on your photo and engage with your brand.
This type of contest is great for getting feedback from your fans on how they feel about a new product, what your new slogan should be, simply to get interesting user-generated content. Don’t forget to share the winning caption to your social media accounts.
12 days of Christmas giveaway
As the title suggests, 12 days of Christmas giveaway means you’ll be giving out prizes for 12 consecutive days.
For best results, it is best to talk about your giveaway at least a week before the event. Let people know what items you’ll be giving away, how many winners there will be each day and other details. This will help build excitement and anticipation. Plus, it will give people a reason to visit your page each day.
Holiday recipe contest
Everyone is busy preparing their holiday menu by now. Help your audience fill in their menu by asking people to send in their tried-and-tested recipes.
Ask people to share recipes for their favorite holiday dishes. You can also host a family recipe showdown. Another idea would be to ask for specific recipes each week. For instance, you can ask for Christmas cookie recipes this week, and then vegetarian side dishes the following week.
Fulfill a wish contest
People tend to feel generous and thankful during the holidays. Leverage the holiday atmosphere to help those who are in need while engaging your audience.
Give your fans and followers a chance to do something nice for others. Ask them to nominate one person, who deserves to have their wish fulfilled and the reason why they chose that person.
A giveaway like this doesn’t just make you look generous, but it also makes fans feel good about themselves for nominating a friend. It’s a great way to improve your brand image, as well as gain the trust and loyalty of your audience.
Ugly sweater contest
The holiday season is the time to let loose and have fun. What better way to do this than to let people wear their favorite ugly sweater.
The ugly sweater has become a ubiquitous feature of the holiday season. Ugly sweater contests are popular during the holiday. Why not take it online with a holiday sweater contest?
To enter, participants are required to submit photos of themselves wearing Christmas or winter-themed sweater or sweatshirt. The one with the most number of votes wins.
Hosting an ugly sweater contest can help ease a little bit of holiday stress and add some fun and creativity to your social media marketing campaign.
Final thoughts
The holiday season is one of the most important times in your marketing calendar. If you’re looking to ramp up your following and grow your brand simultaneously, then you should consider running contests and giveaways.
Not only will it help drive traffic to your social media pages, but it will also help increase brand awareness. Remember, sometimes you have to give to be able to receive.
If you need help with your holiday social media marketing campaign, feel free to get in touch with us. We’ll help you make the most out of this seasonal spike in engagement.
