Instagram has more than a billion monthly active users. Isn't that amazing? In comparison, Twitter has just over 200 million active monthly users, and Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp have just over 300 million active monthly users each.

 

Running a contest on Instagram is a great way to gain free Instagram followers. If you want to get the most out of your contest, you can't just launch it right once. You need to plan and strategize beforehand. To maximise your return on investment in Instagram contest development and implementation, devote more time and resources.

Step One: Make a List of Your Contest's Goals and Objectives

 

Having a goal is essential to a well-executed game. To be effective, your purpose must be in line with your company's objectives as well as the interests and behaviours of your target audience. Instagram contests have two basic objectives: boosting the number of followers and enhancing the visibility of your company.

 

Once the contest is over, you'll be able to determine how successful it was based on your goals. You should specify the metrics you'll monitor and the frequency with which you'll monitor them in your planning stage. Options consist of:

 

Entries and comments received

 

The number of followers you have

 

The level of engagement

 

Visits to a website's home page

 

Purchases

 

Signups to an email list

 

Negative and positive comments

 

No matter what your end aim is, knowing what you're looking for can help you gauge how effective your contest was in helping you get there.

Decide which Instagram contest type is best for your brand.

 

Contests come in all shapes and sizes, and you can incorporate aspects from a variety of them to create your own unique contest. Keep the entry barrier low so that others don't believe it's too much work to join in on the fun.

 

Post a picture of your product on Instagram and ask your followers to follow you in exchange for a chance to win. The winner will be chosen at random and contacted by email. A free product is given to the winner. With the addition of follows, you can also enhance your number of followers and interaction.

 

This is one of Instagram's most popular contests: a photo challenge. Your social media platforms will benefit greatly from this tool. Using a contest hashtag or tagging the brand is all you need to do to get people to participate in a photo contest on their own social media accounts.

 

Ask your followers to remark on a picture you've posted in order to win a prize. It allows your audience to express themselves. There are many ways in which you might win a contest. For example, you can collect feedback on your posts while also increasing post engagement with this method.

 

Users are given the opportunity to win a gift by retweeting your post and reposting it. A great strategy to increase your company's visibility is by promoting it to all the people who follow you on social media.

 

Contests in which you invite people to snap a picture of themselves with your items are known as selfie contests. The prize is a free product or anything that may be used to promote the company's name and products.

 

Contests that encourage participants to tag a friend in the comments of a brand photo in order to be entered to win a reward are known as "Tag a Friend" contests.

 

Adding a voting option to a photo contest allows participants to vote for their best images. As a prize, you may give the winner a free product from your company or anything that is directly relevant to the contest.

The Hashtag Search/Creation is the third and last step.

 

In order to keep track of all the submissions, you'll need to use the hashtag. People will have trouble remembering and entering your contest if you use too many hashtags, so it's best not to go overboard with the number of words you employ.

 

Make sure the hashtag is specific to your contest so you can track who is using it. To make it easier for people to remember, keep it short. Avoid using odd spellings or ambiguous language. Don't forget to apply it to your company's name, products, or services if you're running a business.

Decide on the Prize in the Fourth Step

 

If you give away something relating to the items or services you offer, you'll increase your chances of attracting the correct targeted users. Keep in mind that not just anyone will follow your account. Keep it relevant to your brand and your target demographic if you want engaged followers. Consider your audience, your budget, and how aggressive your goals are before deciding on a course of action. Regardless of what you choose, the reward must outweigh the work required to participate.

 

A larger prize should be offered for taking images of yourself using your products and services than if you're only asking people to "like," "follow," and "comment" on your content.

 

Among the alternatives are:

 

Gift certificates can be exchanged for merchandise.

 

Coupons

 

Giveaways

 

No-cost offerings

 

Packets of goodies

Picking a Theme Is the Fifth Step

 

If you're asking contestants to share images or videos, you should make sure they know what kind of content you expect them to post in return. Choosing a theme is critical, but it shouldn't be just any old theme. The topic must be consistent with your target audience, products, or services. Contests can be launched around holidays, events, or seasons that are consistent with your business.

Step Six: Getting the word out about the contest on Instagram

 

If you want to get people interested in participating in the contest, you'll need to plan some promotional postings ahead of time. You can achieve this in a variety of ways, such as:

 

Composing a blog entry for your website

 

Using your other social media accounts to promote the contest

 

The act of sending an email to everyone on your contact list.

 

Think about what will pique the interest of potential participants in the contest. Take into consideration what outlets you'll employ for promotion, as well as how you'll do so Think about the promotion's timing and dates. So, who's taking part in this contest and what are their plans? Do you have a strategy in place to deal with any potential roadblocks or dangers? During the competition, how are you going to keep the enthusiasm continuing?

Seventh Step: Tell Participants How They'll Become Winners

 

Once the contest is set up, you'll need to clearly explain how the winner will be selected. Whether or not it will be picked at random. The finest entries will be decided by a panel of judges. Entrants will be more inclined to participate if they have a realistic expectation of winning.

 

Instagram's promotion standards are fairly lenient, allowing companies a great deal of freedom and creativity when it comes to building competitions and promotions on the site. In order to have the best chance at success with your Instagram contest, be creative and employ a variety of contests, give the correct prize, and target specific hashtags to attract the proper audience.

OR

 

A Step-by-Step Guide to Hosting an Instagram Contest

Instagram has become an apparent medium for marketers trying to grow their reach and engage with their audience, with more than 1 billion monthly active users.

 

The process of launching a successful Instagram contest, on the other hand, is far from simple. Using user-generated content (UGC) and requiring participants to put in minimal effort sounds like a good way to get people talking. It's a tough question. And how can you know whether you've covered everything?

Plan your goals and objectives.

 

It's critical to have a strategy in place before to participating in an Instagram marketing contest. Contests that are well-received are the result of well-thought-out campaigns with a clear goal in mind.

 

A clear objective will keep you focused on the ultimate result and prevent you from second-guessing whether or not your efforts were successful in increasing your brand's Instagram presence or growing your list of followers.

 

The audience you're aiming to target can help you focus your attention. Do they enjoy seeing certain types of content from you? On their own feeds, what kinds of posts do they like to share? On the platform, how do they act? It's important to focus your goals and purpose on content that your audience truly wants to publish and engage with if you want a lot of engagement.

 

Remember to set a deadline and budget for your contest, which will help you build a more effective contest from the get-go.

Create a way for people to get in.

 

There are a variety of ways brands may run contests on Instagram, but the most effective and engaging are those that encourage your followers to share their own images. As a result, it's critical to spell out and underline exactly what your audience needs to do in order to participate in the contest.

 

Here are a few suggestions for how your audience might participate in your competition:

 

Use a specific hashtag and a specific theme to encourage your followers to post to Instagram.

 

Encourage your followers to follow you simply or in addition to making a post.

 

Do what you can to get your customers to tag you in their posts.

 

Participate in the conversation by asking your followers to "like" or "comment" on one of your posts.

 

Be sure to spell out the rules of the contest in your marketing materials so that participants know exactly what they're signing up for. There may be a hashtag in your contest that doesn't include your company name. Make it explicit in your guidelines if you want your brand to be labelled so that it may be recognised.

Make sure you use the right hashtag.

 

A successful Instagram contest relies on a well-chosen hashtag. There is no connection between the contest and the content that is generated if it is not implemented. In other words, hashtags serve as a means of promoting brands and/or contests by facilitating sharing and encouraging participation.

 

The problem is that finding the right hashtag might be a bit of a challenge. There must be a time limit for your contest to be successful, thus you need a hashtag that you don't plan on reusing. In addition, the sheer volume of hashtags being generated daily makes it challenging to come up with anything that is both original and memorable.

 

If you're stumped, check out these hashtag guidelines to get you started:

 

In a nutshell: come up with a catchy hashtag that people will remember. The better your hashtag is for your contest, the more people will be able to read and recognise it.

 

Keep in mind that the hashtag you use should be directly tied to your company's name, products, or services. Choosing a generic, overused hashtag like #ThrowbackThursday makes it difficult to track down the real people behind the posts.

 

Advertising for your contest may be seen by users before the content is actually posted. As a result, your hashtag must be distinctive enough for users to recall it later on and take action as a result of seeing it. Your hashtag should be memorable and easy to find and use. Avoid grammatical errors and ambiguous word choice.

 

Consider who you're speaking to. Is everyone using the same words or speaking the same language? If you're writing for an international audience, be careful not to utilise slang words or regional terms that may be unfamiliar to your readers.

 

Before you choose a hashtag, do a search. Has your ideal hashtag been used for other purposes? If this is the case, it's time to start over.

 

Here's an example of a hashtag that works:

 

Mint.com, an online personal budgeting and financial management company, held a #MyMintMoment contest to find the best #MyMintMoment story.

 

There are several reasons why this contest is well-designed, one of them is the contest's hashtag. Using the hashtag #MyMintMoment makes it simple, quick, memorable, and easy to follow. It was consistent with the company's identity and had a distinct concept.

 

Competition organisers hoped participants would post about the things they were saving up for as part of the tournament. Tattoos, trips, marriage proposals, children and even cars were among the photos that were shared by participants.

 

In addition to being an effective hashtag, this is an excellent illustration of how user-generated content (UGC) may be leveraged to influence marketing strategy. The Mint community was encouraged to post about the items they were saving towards. Isn't this a simple approach to learn about the motivations and interests of the people who use their service?

Defining a central topic is essential.

 

Make sure you establish a subject for your Instagram contests so that your participants know what kind of photos and videos they can post.

 

It is best to select a theme that is consistent with the nature of your business. It is also possible to capitalise on seasonal, holiday, and brand-related events.

 

Here's an example of a well-executed theme:

 

It was a successful #StayCoolDallas campaign run by D Magazine, a Dallas-based city and lifestyle magazine. Participants were asked to submit images of their favourite techniques to remain cool in the Dallas summer heat. Among the submissions were alcoholic beverages at favoured pubs and restaurants, as well as summertime activities.

 

Because of the ambiguous nature of the word "cool," this contest and hashtag were a big hit with participants, who were able to express their own unique perspectives. An excellent example of how to make it easy for people to get involved.

 

While the hashtag didn't specifically refer to their brand, the topic was in keeping with their love of all things Dallas. Additionally, they received a slew of new ideas for their upcoming issue as a result of the sweepstakes.

 

Decide how the winners will be selected in step 5.

 

The winner of a well-planned contest should be made clear to the participants. Voting or a jury are the two most common methods of awarding prizes in contests. Let's take a closer look at each of these possibilities...

 

Voting:

 

Make your contest even more viral by having players compete for the most Likes. Participants who believe they have a good chance of winning will do everything in their power to increase the number of Likes on their posts by sharing them with their social media networks.

 

Using this method helps you get the most out of your audience. Using "Like bots" to artificially inflate the number of Likes can hurt your contest's chances. In order to avoid any misunderstandings, you should establish extremely explicit standards for the use of these types of workarounds.

 

Jury:

 

The jury approach is clearly superior in terms of both quality and fairness. It's easier to select an expert jury than a voting system when using the jury method.

 

Votes and juries have their advantages and disadvantages, but whichever method you use, make sure your users know what they're vying for. Many companies employ a combination of voting and a panel of judges to choose the winner.

Decide on a suitable award.

Consider your target audience, your budget, and how aggressive your goals are when deciding on an award for your contest.

 

In order to win the contest, your audience has to take action on your behalf, therefore be mindful of this fact. You'll need the prize's value to outweigh the costs and work involved in entering the competition. A free trip, on the other hand, is likely to be worth the effort of completing a few extra steps than a free t-shirt.

 

To be effective, you need to make sure your prize appeals to both your target demographic and the entry activity. Ask yourself, "What would my ideal customer want?" To answer this question (budget not taken into account) could be an enormous undertaking. If you'd like to get your hands on a free vacation, you can do so. You need to pick a prize that is both valuable and related to your brand in order to succeed.

 

For contest prizes, brands often employ gift cards, discounts, handouts, and product goodie bags, but we're always open to new ideas.

 

As an illustration of a prize for a creative contest, consider the following:

 

Sperry's Photo Real Design Contest was one of our favourite examples of contest prizes. "Odyssey" and "epic" images were promoted by Sperry.

 

All kinds of images were submitted, including nature views, vivid art, genuine people, and more, to be assessed on the amount of Likes they received.

 

Sperry shoes emblazoned with the winner's photo were given to the lucky winner. Isn't this a creative award? Additionally, it was a terrific illustration of how brands can use competitions to generate real product ideas.

Create a set of rules and regulations to govern the use of your website.

 

Keep in mind that you must follow legal standards while putting on an online contest that includes a prize. Depending on where you're located and who you allow to participate your contest, your terms and conditions may need to be drafted by a lawyer. You must have a terms and conditions page in place.

 

Here are some of the most often used terms:

 

The brand's name and contact information

 

The contest's time and date

 

Who is allowed to participate in the competition? (such as age and employee restrictions)

 

The rules by which anyone can participate the contest

 

Guidelines for selecting a winner

 

a schedule for when and how the winners will be announced

 

When and how the winner will be notified are still to be determined.

 

Winners must respond and claim their prize during this period of time

 

What is the prize's specifics? (including number of prizes, description of prizes, and any caveats)

 

There are specifics about how the award is going to be delivered

 

Instagram and other social media platforms used in the contest are not sponsors, approved by, or affiliated with the campaign.

1. Go crazy with the promotion.

 

Promote your contest as much as possible now that a plan is in place.

 

A good place to start is with your own network of friends and family. To get you started, here are a few ideas to get you thinking about your promotion efforts:

 

To get people to your contest landing page, create a post about the contest on your blog.

 

There is no better location to launch a social media competition than on social media. Include a shortened link in your bio and use it in your promotional posts to direct your current followers to the contest.

 

Send a quick and friendly email to your email subscribers to let them know about the promotion.

Submissions should be monitored.

 

Maintaining a close eye on your advertising activities and contest participation is critical if you want to fulfil your objectives and devise a strategy for the contest's future success.

 

Consider the metrics you want to utilise and how you want to track them in advance. Some metrics to think about utilising are as follows:

The total number of posts that have been submitted in accordance with your terms and conditions is called the "number of submissions."

 

If your contest is decided by popular vote, you can keep track of how many people have liked each entry to keep track of who might win.

 

How many unique participants did you have in your contest if people were allowed to submit multiple submissions?

 

Who were the most active contributors to your campaign's social media accounts? It's important to keep track of this if you want to connect with your most ardent supporters.

 

A contest's "Total Likes" metric measures the total number of Likes received by all entries.

 

The number of followers your participants had at the time of submission is included in this calculation. To give you an idea of how far your campaign can go.

 

Follower growth during the contest - Track the growth of your following over the course of the event.

 

It's possible to monitor your contest manually if your existing audience is tiny and you don't expect more than 30 submissions. Keep track of contributions each day by appointing a person to handle this for you. Someone will have to go through and measure and record the results of each submission at the end of the contest.

 

Try using a service like Tagboard or Google Alerts to keep track of when your hashtag is used online, which will make it easier to track submissions for your contest manually. Set up a custom stream in your social monitoring tool to monitor a particular trending hashtag. (HubSpot customers: Learn more here.

 

Keeping track of more than 30 entries, on the other hand, may prove to be a challenge. Instagram-specific tools like Iconosquare may be useful if that's the case.

Tend to the situation in a timely manner.

 

You can't forget about the rules you set in the beginning once the contest is ended. Keeping your terms and conditions in mind while reviewing submissions will ensure that your evaluation is completely fair.

 

Establishing terms and conditions early on is crucial because it will provide you with a documented plan for selecting, communicating with, and awarding the winner of the contest.

 

Don't forget to make a public statement once you've chosen and contacted the winner. In D Magazine's #StayCoolDallas contest, here's an example of what we mean: