We are sharing 7 tips on how to run a giveaway on your blog. I am sure you will find these valuable.
We published a post titled “What NOT To Do When Running A Blog Giveaway: 7 Tips”, being a glass half full kinda girl, I thought I would follow it up with a post full of tips to help you impress sponsors, attract entrants and run a smooth and professional giveaway on your blog.
Table of Contents
Give different value of points for each type of tasks
On my ‘What NOT To Do When Running A Blog Giveaway: 7 Tips” post, I said I didn’t like when all tasks were worth more entries (like 10).
What I do like is when tasks that require a different amount of effort or are of different importance, are valued with a different amount of entries.
For example, it is more time consuming to “leave a comment on a non-giveaway post”, so go ahead, give the entrants 5 entries for that.
Or for a major sponsor’s Facebook page, make ‘liking’ it worth 2 entries, but liking your Facebook page worth only 1.
However you choose to do it will be fine, but I recommend grouping type of tasks together and within those groupings, go in order of value.
So all Facebook likes together and then tasks worth 5 entries above those with 2 and 1.
Yes, I am getting a little OCD here, but appearance matters.
List and give descriptions and links to each sponsor’s prize
You can see what I mean in our Giveaway for TOTS: Family launch, and our New Year, New You Giveaway .
As a sponsor, I would like you to take the time to get a little info about my product and link back to me in the content of the post.
List the prize in the ‘prize’ section of the entry form
This will make it clear and easy to know what your entrants are looking to win.
I am familiar with Rafflecopter and it is simple to do when using this giveaway tool.
Often Bloggers use Rafflecopter to learn how to run a giveaway on your blog.
Let’s face it, people are busy and some people will skim the post and head right for the entry form.
Check out! 1200+ Unique & Catchy Event Names Ideas for Your Business.
Add to the publicity by looking for other blogs to work with
Blogging really has to be a team sport.
Supporting other bloggers is what TOTS: Business is all about.
Find a couple bloggers, or a blogger group on Facebook and ask if anyone will help promote your event in exchange for an entry on your form.
Make it clear what you expect, for example, hosting the html, promoting 3 times a week or adding it to their list of open giveaways.
Sponsors will love that their giveaway is going to be posted on multiple blogs and always love to get more bang for their buck.
*Quick tip, google hates repeated content, make sure each blog changes some wording within the post.
Make the giveaway pic heavy
Add images, lots of images. Of the products, sponsor’s logos, use of the product.
Readers like images within blogs and will get more excited about entering a giveaway when they have a clear image of what they might win.
With this, if not all the items in the images are included (or if they include 10 colours of an item, and there is only 1 up for grabs) make it clear what the prize includes.
If possible, add wording to the pictures with PicMonkey or other program
For example write “Enter to win a great prize from (insert sponsors name here) valued at (insert prize value).
Pin these images and share them on you social media pages.
People respond to nice images and sponsors will appreciate the effort.
Send a detailed email to the sponsor following the giveaway
As a sponsor, I have received detailed statistics along with the winners name and contact information.
This came across very professional and I am much more likely to use these bloggers again.
The email listed total number of entries, number of actual unique entrants, page views, click throughs, etc.
It also came with the winners contact information.
This was very helpful to me and is demonstrates you know how to run a giveaway on your blog.
Were any of these ideas new to you, do you already do them, or disagree with them?
Tell us, we would love to hear your thoughts.
Wow, Cat, I REALLY appreciate you saying #7. I had never even thought about giving the sponsor all of that info at the end of the giveaway. Now, I just need to learn how to find that – haha – but I will definitely be doing that from now on. I’m sure that gives the sponsors a lot of confidence in working with that blogger again.
Thank you for all of these tips!
Great tips! I shared this many ways!
I’ve done a few giveaways… and I NEVER thought to give the sponsor a detailed stats result! That’s pretty darned brilliant.
Love these tips! I really wish I would have known some of this whenever I was first starting out!
I absolutely loved these ideas and recommendations! I’m very new to hosting giveaways and want to make sure I start out on the right foot when doing them. Now I can!
These are some really great tips. I have bookmarked your post. I’m hoping to start doing book and educational games / resources giveaways at some point soon! Thank you so much for the great information!
Wow! Great info. I rarely run giveaways, but I’ll bookmark your post for my next one. Thanks!
Fantastic tips thank you so much for sharing 🙂 I run giveaways all the time but its so useful to have a bit of a check list. x
Great tips. # 7 is especially helpful!
Good tips! I’ve always been curious about what goes into this, I’m interested in running a giveaway and I’m exploring options now.
Cat, another great article here! I especially like #7, I would love for a blogger to send me stats afterwards! As a sponsor, do you think I could ask bloggers to do some of these things when I sponsor a review and giveaway? I don’t want to come off as rude or pushy and negatively affect a good relationship with a blogger.
As a blogger myself, I would have no problem being asked to do that! I can’t speak for all…but it doesn’t seem like it would be rude or pushy at all 🙂
Stopping by from SITS. One thing I’m doing on my latest giveaway is letting people enter by just hitting enter on the form – no mandatory comment. I think I’m getting more entries this way.
What awesome tips! I love the idea of sending a detailed note to the sponsor. I don’t think I give them enough.
Glad we could help!
LOVE this post, because I hadn’t thought of #7 either. Will definitely do that for my sponsors from now on!!!!
Excellent tips! I’ll keep them in mind for future giveaways. Thank you 🙂
Really helpful info and definitely gave me a little food for thought on what I could change. Thanks! Pinning for future reference and will share as well!
Glad you enjoyed it. I know I can be a little OCD on some things, but really, its not that hard to make some of these changes.
Great info Cat! I run the Community Outreach program for a small business. We work with lots of bloggers as a giveaway sponsor. These tips are fantastic! I would definitely love working with bloggers who followed these tips.
Thanks for the kind words Sherry. I am glad you agree! Maybe if we stick together, all giveaways will be up to our standards one day!
This is wonderful, Thank you for sharing!
As a sponsor, this helps a lot with knowing what to expect and what to request in return for our participation.
I love sponsoring giveaways, and often times i`m not sure we are making the most of it. This post definitely helps!
🙂
Mazzi from Latika
These are really great tips! I love the idea of using a photo to describe the giveaway.
Great tips! Thank you. Loved number 7. I never thought about doing that but I will from now on!
Great post. Insightful information. I have just posted my 1st Giveaway. Very excited!!! Thank you for all your help and information.
Great tips Cat! I wrote a ” what not to do” type post about giveaways last year around this time but never followed up with the checklist of “musts.” You definitely know your stuff and I hope this post helps out many a blogger with hopes of a successful giveaway! Found you from the SitsGirls today.
Thanks so much for your kind words. I am more of a ‘glass half full’ girl, so I have to show both sides. Come back and visit often, we have lots of good stuff!
Thank you so much for the advice, this is really helpful.
I’m trying to do all of this. My giveaway is still quite small though.