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How to run an Instagram contest like a pro

How To Run An Instagram Contest Like A Pro

We love a good Instagram contest! Who doesn’t love the chance for a free prize?! Instagram contests are terrific for showing appreciation and giving back to your loyal audience. Additionally, these events boost your engagement since they encourage likes and comments on your photos and help you gain new followers. 

Instagram is one of the most successful social media sites, with more than a billion monthly active users. Compared to other major social media platforms, Instagram has the highest levels of user engagement. 

Here’s everything you need to know about how to organize a successful Instagram competition. 

Understand and Set The Instagram Contest Rules From The Get-Go

Let’s start with Instagram’s fine print and policies. Instagram giveaways and contests typically have lengthy captions with many rules and regulations. 

Instagram’s stringent rules and guidelines protect you from legal action should the other party breach the agreement. 

Here’s a rundown of the most crucial aspects of Instagram’s rules for their contest: 

  • Your Instagram contest must be run per all applicable laws, and it’s your responsibility to ensure that that’s exactly what happens 
  • You should avoid incorrectly labeling photos 
  • Make sure each participant signs a full release of Instagram and that it is made abundantly clear that Instagram is not associated with or endorsing this competition in any way 
  • To be clear, Instagram will not be helping you in any way with your contest 
  • If you decide to host a contest on Instagram, you do so at your own peril 

The full policy is available here, but Instagram wants you and your followers to understand that they are not responsible for Instagram’s actions in any way, shape, or form concerning your contest.

Your Guide To Planning An Engaging IG Contest

Explore similar Instagram contests and see what your competition is up to before you make any firm decisions. Set concrete objectives for your Instagram competition to know how well it did. The more specific they are, the more likely it is for them to be understood.

  1. Set Goals For The Campaign

Start by determining who you want to hear from. This will allow you to focus your efforts. Your campaign’s success depends on achieving a balance between your desired outcomes and the reactions of your target audience. 

When setting goals for your campaign, look into the following aims: 

  • Increasing the number of people who follow you on Instagram 
  • Boost interest in your Instagram updates 
  • Encourage the purchase of a particular item 
  • Promoting your company or new item to the public at large 
  • Promoting the use of a chosen Instagram hashtag
  1. Determine The Length Of Your Contest

Next, set a schedule and budget for the competition. There is, alas, no silver bullet when it comes to scheduling! Knowing what you hope to accomplish and how much time and effort you are ready to invest into advertising the contest will help you settle on an end date with confidence. Below are some options available to you:

Daily Contest

Daily contests can also get people talking about your brand on global hashtags, but they require more preparation and planning up front and only last for a day.

One Week Or Less

It takes a little bit of work to generate interest and excitement in a contest. Usually, one week is all it takes to get people interested and bring in new audiences to check you out and enter your contest. Nobody wants to pass up a chance like that. 

Two Weeks 

Two weeks is a reasonable time for a social media contest, as it allows for widespread promotion while maintaining its novelty. Bear in mind that two weeks may not be enough time to reach monthly targets, depending on the scope of the competition.

A Month+

If you’re planning on running TV commercials or other ad campaigns in conjunction with the contest, a month’s duration should be more than enough time to get the word out. However, constant effort is required to maintain its currency.

  1. Pick A Prize

In an Instagram competition, the reward is the main attraction. 

The incentive for participants to sign up for your contest is the prize. Therefore, make sure that the prize you offer appeals to the people you intend to win it over. 

Offering store credit is a great way to reward customers and promote brand awareness.

The prize that you offer has a lot to do with your results!

  1. Decide How People Enter Your Contest

Now that you have chosen a prize, you must decide how people will participate in your contest. 

  • Like A Photo: Your Instagram contest can be limited to those who like a specific photo. 
  • Follow: To enter, get your fans to follow your Instagram. 
  • Share A Photo: Fans must submit a photo related to the contest’s theme (you should also create a hashtag for this competition). 
  • Tag Friends: To participate in your contest, Instagram users must tag their friends. 
  • Comment: Get them to leave a comment on your posts.
  1. Choose A Theme

Your IG contest must have a theme. When a photo submission is required, decide what the subject should be. What if they wanted to incorporate your product into the scene? Exactly are the requirements? What hashtag will people use for your competition’s posts? 

These are all the elements that make up your contest’s theme.

  1. Design Your Campaign Assets

Design some graphics to spread the word about your Instagram competition and use them to promote the event elsewhere, like in your newsletter, on your website, and on other channels. 

To ensure that many people learn about the contest right away and have plenty of time to submit an entry, you should make visuals for your Instagram feed and Instagram Stories to spread the word.

  1. Choose An Entry Deadline

Give people plenty of time to participate in your Instagram contests so that they can build some steam. 

Consider how many rewards you intend to hand out before settling on a schedule. Having multiple prizes means you should extend the contest’s entry period. 

  1. Promote Your Contest

Now is the time to spread the news. Having a contest is a simple method to increase your Instagram followers. You won’t get any entries if no one knows about your competition. And you’ll have to put forth some work to achieve that. 

Here are a few ways to promote your contest: 

  • Promote on social media
  • Run PPC ads
  • Send an email
  • Collaborate with influencers
  1. Pick a Winner! 

You are going to want to compile all of the entries to your contest into a document, so you can track entries, comments, likes, followbacks, etc. First, make sure each entry follows your rules of the contest. For example, if you require each entry to follow your Instagram account and they don’t, then they are disqualified. Do you count multiple entries from one account as 1 entry or multiple? You’ll need to decide this before picking a winner. We recommend 1 entry per account, but it is up to you! Once you have your total number of true entries, we recommend using google random number generator and select your winning entry!

Be sure you let the winner know the exciting news – THEY WON! Reply to their entry on Instagram with a comment! Then, send them a private message, again congratulating them and be sure to ask for their address and any other information depending on the prize. (size, color preference, etc). Send out their prize in a timely manner. Also, we recommend a cute note thanking them for their support and asking them to post their prize on their social media when they receive it! Be sure to edit the Instagram caption to reflect that the contest is closed and remind your audience to follow you for more information on your next contest! 

In Conclusion

It’s crucial to follow Instagram’s guidelines if you want to have any success with your own contest. Pick a contest hashtag to track entries and related conversations, and offer a prize proportional to the time and energy people will put into entering the contest.

Above all – have fun engaging with your audience and growing your followers! If you’re looking for more inspiration or help running your own contest? Reach out to us for an introduction call! We’ve helped several clients run successful contests that increase engagement and follower numbers!