Keeping It Exclusive: How Closed Sweepstakes Can Boost Customer Loyalty

Are you looking for a way to boost customer loyalty and create an exclusive experience for your brand? Closed sweepstakes might be the answer you’ve been searching for. By offering a limited-entry contest or giveaway, you can create a sense of exclusivity and excitement among your customers. In this article, we will explore how closed sweepstakes can help you increase customer loyalty and engagement.

By offering a limited-entry contest or giveaway, you can generate a sense of exclusivity and excitement among your customers. In this article, we will explore the numerous benefits of closed sweepstakes in enhancing customer loyalty and engagement.

Customers crave a sense of exclusivity, and closed sweepstakes tap into this desire effectively. By providing a unique opportunity to a select group of customers, you create an emotional bond with your brand. This incentivizes them to remain loyal and encourages word-of-mouth marketing, expanding your customer base.

Closed sweepstakes also create a sense of urgency and anticipation due to the limited time frame for participation. This heightened interest can result in increased social media engagement, website traffic, and conversions, ultimately driving business growth.

Understanding Customer Loyalty

Customer loyalty stems from a positive experience, with brands satisfying and valuing customers. It’s beyond repeat purchases; it’s a long-term relationship. Loyal customers become brand advocates, recommending products. One way to foster loyalty is by offering rewards. Closed sweepstakes provide exclusive prizes, making customers feel appreciated. This exclusivity encourages continued support and deeper engagement. Sweepstakes also create viral buzz, increasing brand awareness. The FOMO effect drives potential customers to engage and become loyal.

Benefits of Closed Sweepstakes

Closed sweepstakes offer several benefits when it comes to boosting customer loyalty.

Sense of Exclusivity

Closed sweepstakes make customers feel exclusive, creating a deeper connection with the brand and increasing loyalty. The anticipation and thrill of winning boost customer engagement.

Increased Brand Awareness

Closed sweepstakes showcase brand values. Prizes aligned with brand identity reinforce brand image and attract customers who share your values. For example, a clothing brand that values sustainability might offer a prize of an eco-friendly clothing set.

Create a Valuable Customer Database

Closed sweepstakes yield customer details like email, demographics, and preferences. This data aids in personalizing marketing, improving offerings, and fostering customer loyalty. Explicit consent for marketing communications ensures relevance, satisfaction, and compliance. 

Examples of Successful Closed Sweepstakes Campaigns

Analyzing past closed sweepstakes can provide valuable insights into how they affect customer loyalty. Effective implementation can lead to remarkable success and enduring connections with customers.

1. Nike’s Air Jordan Exclusive Giveaway: Nike ran a closed sweepstakes where customers could win a pair of limited-edition Air Jordans. The campaign was open only to existing Nike members, creating a sense of exclusivity. The response was overwhelming, with thousands of entries and a significant increase in social media engagement. The campaign not only rewarded loyal customers but also attracted new customers who were eager to join the exclusive club.2. Starbucks’ Gold Card Sweepstakes: Starbucks introduced a closed sweepstakes exclusively for Gold Card members, offering the chance to win a year’s free coffee. The campaign generated excitement and encouraged Gold Card members to continue their loyalty to the brand. The sweepstakes also created a social media buzz as members shared their excitement and encouraged others to join the Gold Card program.

3. Apple’s iPhone Pre-Order Sweepstakes: Apple ran a closed sweepstakes for customers who pre-ordered the latest iPhone model. The sweepstakes offered a chance to win exclusive accessories and a personal phone call from a celebrity brand ambassador. This campaign incentivized customers to pre-order the new iPhone and generated excitement and anticipation leading to the launch. The closed nature of the sweepstakes made customers feel privileged and valued.

Closed sweepstakes boost customer loyalty by creating exclusivity, rewarding customers, and generating buzz. Here are steps for planning a successful campaign.

How to Plan and Execute a Closed Sweepstakes

Organizing a closed sweepstakes requires careful planning and execution. Everything, from conceiving to collecting data, needs attention to ensure success.

1. Define your goals: Clearly define the objectives of your closed sweepstakes. Do you want to reward loyal customers, attract new customers, or generate buzz around a new product or service? Understanding your goals will help you shape the entire campaign.

2. Select your prizes: Choose exclusive, desirable prizes that align with your brand’s values. The prizes should be enticing enough to motivate customers to participate and create a sense of excitement.

3. Determine the entry criteria: Decide who will be eligible to enter the closed sweepstakes. You can limit entries to existing customers, members of a loyalty program, or a specific target audience. This exclusivity will make participants feel special and increase their loyalty to your brand.

4. Set the entry period: Determine the duration of the closed sweepstakes. A shorter entry period will create a sense of urgency and increase customer engagement. However, give customers enough time to learn about the sweepstakes and participate.

5. Promote the sweepstakes: Develop a comprehensive marketing plan to promote your closed sweepstakes. Utilize various channels such as social media, email marketing, and your website to spread the word. Create eye-catching visuals and compelling copy to grab customers’ attention and entice them to participate.

6. Ensure legal compliance: Familiarize yourself with the legal requirements for running a sweepstakes, including any necessary permits or registrations. Ensure your campaign adheres to all applicable laws and regulations to avoid legal issues. See Laws and Rules for Sweepstakes in Each State

7. Collect and analyze data: As customers enter the closed sweepstakes, collect the necessary data to understand your audience better. This data can help you refine your marketing strategies and nurture customer relationships in the future. Analyze the data to gain insights into customer preferences and behaviors.

8. Announce the winners: Once the entry period has ended, announce the winners publicly. Make the announcement exciting and share it across your marketing channels. Consider offering consolation prizes or exclusive discounts to participants who didn’t win to keep them engaged and encourage their continued loyalty.

By following these steps and paying attention to the details, you can plan and execute a closed sweepstakes campaign that boosts customer loyalty and creates a memorable experience for your customers.

Best Practices for Creating Exclusive and Engaging Closed Sweepstakes

Want to run a successful closed sweepstakes? Follow these key tips to make it a hit with your audience.

1. Offer unique prizes: Choose prizes that are distinct and not easily accessible elsewhere. Exclusive experiences, limited-edition products, or personalized offerings can make your closed sweepstakes more enticing and memorable.

2. Create a sense of urgency: Set a limited entry period to create a sense of urgency and encourage immediate participation. Highlight the deadline in your promotional materials and emphasize that this is a one-time opportunity.

3. Build anticipation: Tease your closed sweepstakes before the entry period begins to generate excitement among your customers. Use social media and email marketing to give them a sneak peek of what’s to come.

4. Personalize the experience: Tailor your communications and interactions with participants to make them feel valued and appreciated. Address them by their names and customize your messaging based on their preferences.

5. Encourage social sharing: Include social sharing buttons in your sweepstakes entry form to make it easy for participants to share the news with their friends and family. Offer additional entries or bonus rewards for sharing, incentivizing participants to spread the word.

6. Provide transparency: Communicate your closed sweepstakes’ rules, terms, and conditions to build customer trust. Make sure the entry process is easy to understand.

7. Follow up with participants: After the end of the sweepstakes, continue engaging with participants through personalized emails or exclusive offers. Keep the momentum going and maintain a positive relationship with your customers.

Implement best practices for closed sweepstakes to boost loyalty and engage participants.

Tips for Promoting Closed Sweepstakes to Maximize Participation

Effective promotion strategies are crucial for closed sweepstakes to increase participation and achieve desired outcomes, propelling brand success.

1. Utilize social media: Leverage the power of social media platforms to promote your closed sweepstakes. Create captivating posts, use relevant hashtags, and engage with your audience to generate interest and excitement.

2. Leverage email marketing: Send targeted emails to your existing customer base, notifying them about the closed sweepstakes. Make sure to highlight the exclusive nature of the opportunity and provide clear instructions on how to enter.

3. Collaborate with influencers: Partner with influencers or brand ambassadors who align with your target audience. They can help spread the word about your closed sweepstakes to their followers, increasing visibility and participation.

4. Run paid advertisements: Consider running paid advertisements on platforms like Google Ads, Facebook Ads, or Instagram Ads to reach a wider audience. Target your ads based on demographics, interests, or behaviors to ensure they reach the right people.

5. Optimize your website: Create a dedicated landing page for your closed sweepstakes on your website. Optimize it for search engines by using relevant keywords, meta tags, and compelling content. Make the entry process simple and user-friendly.

6. Partner with complementary brands: Collaborate with other brands that share your target audience but offer different products or services. Cross-promote each other’s closed sweepstakes to reach a larger customer base and increase participation.

7. Offer referral incentives: Encourage participants to refer their friends or family members to enter the closed sweepstakes. Provide additional entries or exclusive rewards for successful referrals. This can help expand your reach and attract new customers.

Implementing these promotional strategies increases awareness, generates excitement, and maximizes participation in your closed sweepstakes.

Measuring the Success of Closed Sweepstakes in Driving Customer Loyalty

To evaluate the success of your closed sweepstakes campaign and its impact on customer loyalty, it’s important to measure key performance indicators (KPIs). Here are some KPIs to consider:

1. Number of entries: Track the total number of entries received to gauge the level of participation in your closed sweepstakes. A higher number of entries indicates increased interest and engagement.

2. Social media engagement: Monitor the social media engagement surrounding your closed sweepstakes. Measure metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and brand mentions. Increased engagement indicates heightened interest and brand exposure.

3. Website traffic: Analyze website traffic during the closed sweepstakes period. Look for increased unique visitors, page views, and average session duration. Higher website traffic suggests increased curiosity and engagement with your brand.

4. Conversion rate: Measure the conversion rate of participants who entered the closed sweepstakes and later purchased or took another desired action. A higher conversion rate indicates the effectiveness of your campaign in driving customer loyalty.

5. Customer feedback: Gather participant feedback through surveys or social media polls. Ask participants about their experience with the closed sweepstakes and their overall perception of your brand. Positive feedback indicates a successful campaign.

6. Customer retention rate: Compare participants who entered the closed sweepstakes with the overall customer retention rate. If the closed sweepstakes participants demonstrate higher retention, it positively impacts customer loyalty.

By analyzing these metrics and comparing them to your pre-campaign benchmarks, you can assess the success of your closed sweepstakes campaign in driving customer loyalty.

Conclusion

Closed sweepstakes are a powerful tool to boost customer loyalty and engagement. Defining clear goals, offering unique prizes, promoting effectively, and personalizing the experience are essential for success. Measuring key performance indicators such as entries, engagement, and conversion rates is crucial. Start planning today to strengthen the brand-customer relationship.

Do you have any questions regarding digital gift cards as sweepstakes prizes? For more information on how Sweeppea can help you with your next sweepstakes, contact us at support@sweeppea.com or 305-505-5393.

The post Closed Sweepstakes for Current Customer Only appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

If you are looking for a way to increase sales, build an email list and SMS list for remarketing; then contests and sweepstakes are one of the best tactics. We’ll walk you through the steps you need to take to run a contest or sweepstakes for your eCommerce store. We’ll also give you some tips on how to make sure your contests are successful.

How do Sweepstakes increase eCommerce Sales?

Sweepstakes and contests can serve as eCommerce marketing tools to engage with potential and existing customers. Social media works in tandem with the sweepstakes promotion to help you get more entrants and sales.

To increase exposure for your eCommerce sweepstakes, encourage your participants to share your sweepstakes through social media. Remember that all sweepstakes need a free form of entry and all participants must have an equal chance to enter and win regardless of whether they purchased or not. 

That’s why we recommend hiring a sweepstakes company to help you ensure you’re legally compliant with your promotion.

What are the Benefits of Running Sweepstakes to Drive eCommerce Sales and Growth?

Properly planned sweepstakes will catch the attention of their target customers and increase sales without the need for a big marketing budget. Get creative with your prizes! Check out the most popular sweepstakes prizes for ideas. 

Benefits of running eCommerce sweepstakes:

Drives traffic

Sweepstakes or contests with a great prize will generate traffic for your website and brand. Customers and potential customers will visit your website just for a chance to win a prize. Remember to use the power of social media and your other marketing channels to drive entries.

Boosts sales

Sweepstakes and contests can help you boost sales by growing your email list, increasing social media followers, improving your product exposure, and more. Social media plays a big role in boosting sales, 83% of Instagram users use that platform to discover new products. That is more than half of their users!

If your eCommerce brand has an omnichannel presence, remember to update your marketing to reflect your campaign across all channels. More visibility equals more entries. 

Boosts awareness

Increase brand awareness with your sweepstakes promotion.  When creating marketing content for your eCommerce sweepstakes or contest, make sure to add branding elements like your company logo and website. This will help increase your brand awareness and content reach.

Gather Customer Insights

Research has shown that 32% of customers stop interacting with a brand after just one bad experience. Customer feedback is key to improving your products and boosting sales.

Sweepstakes and contests are key to gathering feedback on your products. You can gather feedback from your customers by offering extra entries if they complete a review or a survey.

Increase brand loyalty

Customers are more likely to remain loyal to a brand when they are incentivized. Sweepstakes and giveaways are a great way to incentivize your customers. If your go-to choice for your promotion is purchase-to-enter, read our Want to Require a Purchase with Your Sweepstakes? Here’s How to learn more about this type of promotion.

What is the general process of running sweepstakes for eCommerce?

Running eCommerce sweepstakes or contests requires legal, administrative, and marketing knowledge. A lot of tasks and knowledge are needed to run legally compliant and successful sweepstakes whether the sweepstakes is for eCommerce or a retail store. The general process of running sweepstakes for online stores must include the following details.

Establish Official Rules

The official sweepstakes rules are a crucial element of eCommerce sweepstakes. The rules will determine the interaction between the customer and your sweepstakes. They will also provide the foundation for a legally compliant promotion.

Important legal aspects to include in your eCommerce sweepstakes official rules are:

Sweepstakes must have a Free Method of Entry 

Legally compliant sweepstakes must be free or provide a free method of entry. Failing to comply with this may turn your promotion into an illegal lottery.

Entry Method Information and Deadlines

The official sweepstake rules must disclose the method of entry and actions to take to gain a chance at winning the prize. The rules must explicitly establish the duration of the entry window. Be as specific as possible. Include start and end date, time, and time zone.

Drawing the Winner

The rules must state how the winner will be drawn and what information the winner is required to provide. In eCommerce sweepstakes, the method should be a random drawing.

Privacy Policy

A privacy policy link should be added to the official sweepstakes rules. The participants need to know how their personally identifiable information (PII)will be used or shared.

Running sweepstakes may seem like a black and white process, unfortunately, it is not. Different types of sweepstakes require different types of legal details to be reviewed. Due to this, we recommend hiring a sweepstakes administrator like Sweeppea.

Why is using a Sweepstakes company beneficial to run eCommerce sweepstakes?

Running sweepstakes or contests for eCommerce stores requires legal knowledge of the promotional laws in each state. Additionally, project management and eCommerce marketing experience help ensure success. Hiring experts in all of these fields will require time and money. We know you want to host your sweepstakes as soon as possible so you can reap the benefits. This is where hiring sweepstakes and contest administration company like Sweeppea makes sense.

A Sweepstakes company will have the legal knowledge and expertise to help you stay compliant with sweepstakes law at the federal and state level. We even have a self-service platform that can help you if you plan to consistently run these promotions throughout the year.

A third party will have the knowledge and time to focus on delivering the best practices and compliance with laws related to contests and sweepstakes. Having an outside resource also helps relieve the administrative burdens of running a sweepstakes promotion. This leaves you more time to focus on more important aspects of your business.

For more information check out: Sweepstakes Administration Roles: Who is Missing From Your Promotional Marketing Team?

How can Sweeppea help you with your eCommerce sweepstakes?

Sweeppea is a full-service sweepstakes and contest administration company. We have over 10 years of combined experience and have helped run successful sweepstakes for some of the largest brands.

In the U.S., we offer a wide range of services that can help you not only with your eCommerce sweepstakes but also with contests, giveaways in any type of platform, and industry. 

Within the services we offer are:

Development from concept to reality

We help you turn your eCommerce sweepstakes into reality. This included legal compliance and everything needed to host and manage the sweepstakes successfully.

Official Sweepstakes Rule and Abbreviated Rules

Official rules are an essential element when running successful sweepstakes. In Sweeppea, we offer official rules drafting services including legal advice on sweepstakes legal compliance as well as abbreviated rules to include in all of your eCommerce sweepstakes advertising. 

Creation of Official Sweepstakes Rules Page

We will create an accessible custom web page for your participants and potential participants to have access to the rules.

Customized Entry Form Creation

We will create a customized online form to collect your participant’s first-party data.

Entry Confirmation Page

We will create a customized confirmation page for your sweepstakes promotion. After submitting the entry form, your participants will be directed to a customized Thank You page.

Prize Fulfillment

We will handle all aspects of prize fulfillment for your eCommerce sweepstakes. This includes working with the packing and logistics.

When prizes involve trips and reservations, we will coordinate all travel details including itinerary management and travel coordination.

Drawing Winners and Managing Winner’s Affairs

Drawing winners is one of the goals of running sweepstakes. Once your sweepstakes end we will randomly draw your winner(s) from all the eligible entries. Once winners are drawn, you will need to announce the winners publicly, which offers a great opportunity to further market your brand and get customers excited about your next promotion.

Sweeppea’s Online Sweepstakes Self-Service Platform

Sweeppea offers options for all types of clients and industries. For online and eCommerce sweepstakes we offer a Self-Service plan. This service is simple to use, and affordable for any industry. If any questions should arise, the plan includes 24/7 email & phone support. 

This unique and intuitive service offers the following features:

One-on-One Onboarding

Don’t worry, you will not be alone in this process. The plan includes one-on-one onboarding and training to walk you through the process and get your eCommerce sweepstakes started worry-free. After setting your sweepstakes up Sweeppea’s team follows up with you to make sure everything is good to go.

Even though this platform is self-service, the plan includes 24/7 email and phone support as well. This means you have help every step of the way.

Entry Form Builder 

The platform includes its Entry Form builder tool. The tool will help you easily create a custom sweepstakes entry form your potential entrants will submit to participate in your online sweepstakes. The form will let you gather information from your participants such as name, phone number, address, and email.

Official Rules Wizard

Sweepstakes Official Rules are a key part of any type of sweepstakes including eCommerce Sweepstakes and contests. Official Rules will determine how your promotion is offered, and it’s key to making your sweepstakes legally compliant. Sweeppea’s Official Rules Wizard will help you set drawing date, prize description, eligibility for your online or text message sweepstakes by asking you a couple of questions. If you have already prepared official sweepstakes rules, the platform offers the option to upload them as well.

Survey on Your Entry Form

Enrichment of First-Party Data is essential for remarketing purposes. A way to enrich the First-Party Data gathered using sweepstakes entry forms is by adding surveys or polls within the entry forms. Sweeppea’s Self-Service platform allows you to prequalify leads and get to know your audience better by adding a few questions to the entry form.

For more information Check out: How to Build Your First-Party Data with Sweepstakes

Custom Thank You Page

The platform offers you access to use a customizable Thank You page. This page will let your entrants know that their eCommerce sweepstakes entry was successful.  You can use this to your advantage by asking them to follow your social media, share the sweepstakes, or offer a coupon to motivate a purchase on your eCommerce store.

Unlimited Participants and Unlimited Texts

The self-service platform allows unlimited participants to enter your eCommerce sweepstakes and receive entry confirmation. Once you have participants you can send unlimited text messages to them. This can include promotions, coupons, and offers.

Custom Keyword

Sweeppea’s Self-Service platform allows you to create a branded keyword or as we like to call it Sweepskey. A Sweepskey is a word your entrants will text to a designated number to enter your sweepstakes.

Example: “Text SWEEP to 855-444-4545 to enter.” In this case, the Sweepskey is SWEEP.

Sweepstakes Data Reports

Sweeppea’s Self-Service platform gives you access to metrics gathered from your eCommerce sweepstakes like demographic information, click-through on links, total texts sent vs received, and more. This is key for growing your eCommerce store. With access to this data, you will be able to create personalized experiences for your customers that will motivate customer loyalty and bring more sales.

Sweepstakes in Spanish

According to Forbes.com, the U.S. has the 2nd largest population of Spanish speakers in the world. It is expected that by 2050, one in three people in the U.S will speak Spanish. With this said, it makes sense for brands and organizations to move towards a more inclusive way of marketing.

Sweeppea’s Self-Service and Online platform allows you to run your eCommerce sweepstakes in English and Spanish. This includes texts, text confirmation, entry forms, and official rules.

Text Marketing Compliance

Sweeppea follows the best practices guidelines of the Mobile Marketing Association and CTIA on their campaigns. They are also compliant with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

Guaranteed Security

Sweeppea’s self-service platform is protected with Industry Standard SSL Encryption daily backups and security audits. All the privileged information regarding your eCommerce sweepstakes campaign is safe within their platform.

Instant Drawing of a Winner

Once your eCommerce Sweepstakes entry period has ended you can automatically draw a winner.

What are the Benefits of Sweeppea’s Self-Service?

Sweeppea’s Self-Service is a great plan for busy eCommerce business owners. The Self-Service platform is perfect for eCommerce businesses who want to decrease the sweepstakes planning time.

A lot of precious time is lost during email communications, especially waiting on replies and finding attachments in extensive back and forth threads. If the other part has a busy inbox you might be left confused and asking yourself if your email was received or if it’s appropriate to send a follow-up. With Sweeppea’s Online Sweepstakes platform, you can save time and resources by maintaining all relevant files, tasks, and communication in one centralized location. 

Finally, email exchanges can feel unorganized, awkward and a lot of information can get lost through the cracks. Lost attachments and information will be a thing of the past when you start using the platform. 

Successful Ecommerce Sweepstakes Administered by Sweeppea’s

To give you an idea of how sweepstakes function and how Sweeppea’s can help you run successful eCommerce sweepstakes, here are case studies of eCommerce sweepstakes administered by Sweeppea:

1. Freedom Tremor Sweepstakes – DiamondBack Covers

DiamondBack Covers is an eCommerce store that sells automotive accessories primarily for trucks. With the help of Sweeppea as an administrator, DiamondBack sponsored and hosted their eCommerce sweepstakes named Freedom Tremor Sweepstakes.

The brand hosted its eCommerce sweepstakes on its website as well as on its Instagram. Here is the customized promotion webpage and social media marketing content.

The following details were required to enter the sweepstakes:

Entry Methods

The main entry method was by visiting the promotion’s website and making a purchase of a product. Once the purchase was confirmed successful, the entrant would receive one (1) entry for each $1.00 spent on qualifying products purchased (tax and shipping not included):

1. Freedom Tremor PVC Patch
2. Freedom Tremor Hat
3. Freedom Tremor T-Shirt
4. Freedom Tremor Long Sleeve T-shirt
5. Freedom Tremor Hoodie

Although these products are not available anymore, some of them can be seen on this Instagram promotion.

As a free alternative method of entry (AMOE), they provided a Mail-In option.

Entry Period

The start date of the promotion was 1/2/22 and the end date was 2/15/22. They gave customers 44 days to submit their entry to the promotion.

Eligibility

In addition to following the entry instructions, potential entrants must have been 18 years or older to participate and be a resident in one of the 48 contiguous states.

Winner and Prizes

The prize for this eCommerce Sweepstakes was one (1) Ford Super Duty 250 Tremor 2020 pickup truck with 14,000 miles (ARV $80,000) and a check for $20,000. The prize’s total value was $100,000.

For this promotion, only one winner was drawn randomly. The winner was announced on the promotion’s official page.

2. “Big Purp giveaway” Sweepstakes – Mod2Fame

Mod2Fame is an eCommerce page dedicated to car enthusiasts that sell branded merchandise that connects with their community.

Similar to the Freedom Tremors campaign, Mod2Fame promoted their eCommerce sweepstakes on their webpage as well as on their Instagram page.

Entry Methods

Through the duration of the sweepstakes promotion, eligible entrants that purchased on their website received one (1) entry for each $5.00 spent on eligible products (tax and shipping not included) like:

1.Mod2Fame Decals

2. License Plate Framesit’sTo

3. Snapback Hat – Various Colors

4. Beanie Hat – Various Colors

5. Mod2Fame Logo Tshirt – Various Colors

6. Gap’N Season Tshirt – Various Colors

7. Hurt’N Feelings Tshirt – Various Colors

8. Mod2Fame Logo – Hoodie – Various Colors

9. Mod2Fame Logo Joggers – Various Color

10. Big Purp Tshirt – Various Colors

As a free alternative method of entry (AMOE), they provided a Mail-In option. Each mail entry was worth five (5) entries during the eligible sweepstakes period.

Entry Period

The Sweepstakes entry period started on 11/4/21 at 12:00 ET and ended on 2/4/22 at 11:59 ET.

Eligibility

To be eligible to participate, entrants had to be 18 years or older and residents of the 48 contiguous states including Washington D.C, but excluding Florida and New York.

Winner and Prizes

One (1) winner was randomly drawn among all eligible entries.

The prize for the winner of the promotion was one (1) Dodge Charger RTs valued at $28,000.00

3. Nonprofit Sweepstakes – The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada (UA)

The UA represents approximately 355,000 Plumbers, Pipefitters, Sprinkler Fitters, HVACR Service Technicians, Welders, and Pipeliners working in the industry of construction across North America. The members of the UA are very involved in community projects and charity hence they developed with Sweeppea a nonprofit sweepstake. All donations would go to The UA Charitable Fund Trust.

Entry Methods

Donors were offered different tiers based on what they donated. The tiers were the following:

1. $25 Donation = one (1) entry
2. $50 Donation = two (2) entries
3. $75 Donation = three (3) entries
4. $100 Donation = five (5) entries

A free alternative method of entry was also provided to entrants.

Winner and Prizes

Two (2) prizes were offered for this promotion:

1. One (1) 2020 Can-Am Outlander ATV (Value $6,000)

2. One (1) 2021 Chevy Silverado (Value $76,000.00)

Results of Case Studies

As a result of these sweepstakes, our clients were able to gain $1.55 in donations for every $1 spent in marketing. They also reported increased social media followers and new emails. These entries were used for remarketing as well as added into SMS and email lists to further grow their businesses.

eCommerce Store Sweepstakes Marketing

An essential part of running eCommerce sweepstakes or contests is marketing. The main channels that can be leveraged to promote your sweepstakes and convert to sales on your eCommerce stores are Social Media, email, and SMS. If you have web push notifications implemented on your store, leveraging them is also an excellent idea.

Let’s discuss the benefits of each channel.

Social Media

Social media is one of the best ways to find new customers. 6 out of every 10 people on the planet have social network accounts. Of those people with social media platforms, 27.5% use social media to research products to buy. Given these numbers, social media is a great way to grow your following, generate brand awareness, and increase your email list.

Within the top 10 most popular social networks of 2022 (based on monthly active users) we can find:

Facebook – 2910 million

Instagram – 1478 million

TikTok – 1000 million

When it comes to eCommerce sweepstakes marketing, these are the three platforms recommended to turn your social media efforts on. Before choosing what platform to use, it is important to know your audience and determine what sweepstakes or contest type you want to host.

Example:

    Goal: Grow your social media following.

    Sweeps Type: Request that your entrants follow your page to be eligible.

  Best Platform for your goal: Instagram

Another key factor when it comes to choosing a platform to promote sweepstakes is knowing your target audience. Especially demographics like age, geography, and gender as it varies from platform to platform. TikTok, for example, is more popular within a younger audience than Instagram and Facebook.

Finally, it is important to understand that each social media platform has individual rules and guidelines when it comes to hosting promotions like eCommerce sweepstakes, giveaways, or contests. When it comes to this, a sweepstakes administrator company can be very helpful to have by your side. Sweeppea for example has experience administering a broad variety of sweepstakes and promotions, this includes social media sweepstakes.

Email

Social media is a primary way of marketing, but email marketing is a key tool to generate leads. According to the Statista Research Department, there are 4 billion daily email users. This number is expected to increase to 4.6 billion by 2025. An email list is one of the most valuable assets an eCommerce store can have. Why? Because it’s a list of customers who have permitted you to market to them directly in their inbox. Usually, this information is collected at check out of products they have already purchased. In other words, these people receiving your emails are already interested in your product. You can use this opportunity to send promotions, offers, surveys and even to promote your eCommerce sweepstakes.

Given the importance that an email list has for growing your revenue and customer loyalty, you can use eCommerce sweepstakes to grow it even more. 

If you are considering using your email list for eCommerce marketing of your sweepstakes there are key points to consider.

First, you need to have an appropriate email service platform. For example, MailChimp and Klaviyo are popular options. 

After choosing your platform, it is important to know your audience. This way you can plan relevant emails that will capture their attention. 

Finally, it is important to add a call to action in your emails. A call to action will guide your reader to complete the action that you are looking to get from them. Make sure you include a direct link to your sweepstakes Entry Page and tell your customers exactly what they can win.

Example: Sign Up Today for a Chance to Win a Grand Prize!

After announcing your eCommerce sweepstakes using email marketing, make sure you send reminders at least once a week. This way you’ll make sure your promotion is on your customer’s mind. Once your sweepstakes has ended and the winner has been drawn, send an email letting your audience know the results. If you want to go the extra mile and cultivate loyalty you can send a discount code to all participants who did not win. This will make your customers feel appreciated.

Are you thinking about creating eCommerce sweepstakes but do not know where to start? Sweeppea is your best option to help you plan a successful and legally compliant promotion. Check out our full-service sweepstakes management package for more information.

SMS

SMS stands for “short message service”. In marketing, SMS refers to how a brand or company communicates with its customers through text messages about promotions, updates, and more. SMS Marketing is very similar to Email Marketing in the sense that you can control when, who, and what your customers receive.

People read 95 percent of all the texts they receive. This means you have a high chance of engaging with your audience when you use SMS marketing. Not only does SMS give you a high chance of engaging your audience, but it also gives you a chance to create a more intimate relationship with the audience. 

If you are looking for a hassle-free and easy way to host your eCommerce Sweepstakes, Sweeppea offers a Self-Service Online Sweepstakes Platform. This platform offers an affordable way to promote and connect with your subscribers. The best part of this Self-Service Platform is that you get unlimited opportunities to send your subscribers promotions, coupons, and discounts. This is the best opportunity to convert sales for your eCommerce store.

Conclusion

There are many benefits of using an experienced Sweepstakes company like Sweeppea to run an eCommerce sweepstakes campaign. If you’re looking for a way to increase sales, build an email and mobile list for remarketing give Sweeppea a call.

Additional Resources

Thank you for making it this far! Now that you know your options and where to get started with your eCommerce Sweepstakes, check out these helpful articles: 

No Purchase Necessary Laws: Can You Run a Sweepstakes That Requires a Purchase to Enter?

Ready to Run a Contest? Laws and What to Include in Your Official Rules

Guidelines for Running a TikTok Contest

How to Include Sweepstakes Rules in Your Social Media Campaigns

Next Steps

Contact us to get started with our sweepstakes platform that includes 24/7 email and phone support.

In addition to our Self-Service Platform, we also have our Full-Service Sweepstakes Management Service. Through this service, we have helped administer promotions within various industries such as Cannabis, Alcohol, and NonProfits.

For more information on how Sweeppea can help you with your next eCommerce sweepstakes, visit ourwebsite oremail us or call us at (888) 705-2049

The post How to Run Contests or Sweepstakes for an eCommerce Store appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Implementing employee incentive programs is a must in all companies. When creating an employee incentive program, it is important to consider what will motivate your employees. There are many different types of employee incentive programs, but in-house sweepstakes are a great way to reward employees for their hard work.

Sweepstakes are promotions in which the winner is chosen by chance which provides a great way to give your employees something to look forward to. They can also be a great way to boost morale, increase sales, and productivity. In this article, we will discuss how to run an internal sweepstakes for employees and key points to take into consideration when implementing.

What are Employee Incentive Programs?

Employee incentive programs are rewards designed to motivate your workforce. If you are thinking about implementing an employee incentive program you might find that there are a variety of options. Some examples of what incentives programs might look like are yearly incentives, bonuses, sweepstakes and contests, birthday prizes, and more. 

There are several things you need to keep in mind when running sweepstakes for employees. First, make sure that the prize is appealing to your employees. You don’t want them to feel like they are not being rewarded properly. Second, make sure that the rules and regulations surrounding the sweepstakes are clear and readily available to the staff.

What are the Benefits of Sweepstakes as Employee Incentive Programs?

Having an incentive program helps keep employees happy and engaged on company goals.. Some of the benefits that might come from implementing employee incentives are:

• Teamwork
• Decreased Employee Turnover Rate
• Increased Sales
• Boost in Company Morale

Running a Sweepstakes as an Employee Incentive Program

Just as with any other sweepstakes, when hosting a sweepstake for your employees, official sweepstakes rules should be established and made available. The official rules will avoid legal issues and misunderstandings with your employees.

Things to Keep In Mind When Running an In-House Sweepstakes for Employees

Internal sweepstakes are an exciting way to increase employee morale and engagement. If your business is working on a slow quarter or stagnated sales, this type of incentive can be very helpful as well. When planning your in-house sweepstakes for employees there are certain factors that you should take into consideration:

Choosing a Sweepstakes vs a Contest

When choosing what type of incentive to plan, it is important to make clear if you will be hosting a contest or a sweepstakes.Clarifying this difference is key because both types of promotion have different legal requirements.

Once you determine that your program will be a sweepstakes, you must aim to treat all of your employee entrants equally. Meaning that no one can be favored when it comes to the chance of winning the prize. This is where the sweepstakes Official Rules come in.

Entrant Eligibility Requirements

In all sweepstakes, public or in-house, eligibility requirements must be established in the rules. All employees must meet the requirements established in order to qualify as an entrant.

Example: Must be a sales agent or sales partner for the company. Not open to the general public.

Check out: Ready to Run a Contest? Laws and What to Include in Your Official Rules

Make the program inclusive

Make sure all of your employees have access to employee incentive programs. This includes implementing a system or platform that is intuitive and easy for the entrants to use.

Update your program constantly

Don’t let your employee incentive program stagnate. Look for new ways to update your program, if possible, every year. This way your employees will look forward to the sweepstakes every time you host it. A simple way to update your promotion would be by changing the prizes every time.

Abbreviated Rules

Regarding in-house employee sweepstakes, it is very important to prepare clear abbreviated rules. These abbreviated rules are usually the only rules employees see and they can be on emails, bulletin boards, your intranet, and handouts.

Abbreviated Rules example:

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. Open only to legal residents of the 50 United States, including D.C., who are 18 years of age or older or have reached the age of majority in his or her state of residence and have been invited to the [event] as of the Sweepstakes start date. This Promotion is not open to the general public. Sweepstakes ends [date] For entry and official rules with complete eligibility, prize descriptions, odds disclosure and other details, visit [url]  Sponsored by [company]. Void where prohibited. 

Choosing the Prize

The prize for your in-house sweepstakes should be specified and described in the official sweepstakes rules.You should also include the retail value of the prize.

Keep in mind that all prizes awarded over $600 are taxable and the employee must receive a 1099 MISC form from the company.

Also read: Affidavits of Eligibility & Publicity/Liability Releases: Understanding Sweepstakes Rules Requirements

Winner Selection

Part of a sweepstakes is drawing the winner(s). If your promotion is a sweepstakes, the winner should be chosen randomly. The official sweepstakes rules should include specific details on how the winner will be drawn  and when the winner will be notified.

Branding

When planning your incentive program sweepstakes with your sweepstakes administrator, make sure you plan around your brand. By planning around your brand you will make sure your incentive program aligns with both your brand and business values.

Conclusion

Running sweepstakes, especially as a part of an employee incentive program, can be a fun and effective way to increase employee engagement, sales and company morale. To avoid any miscommunication the businesses should always follow official sweepstakes rules when hosting such programs or promotions.

Rewarding your employees will motivate them to work hard and help create loyalty between your employee and the company.

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post Employee Incentive Programs: How to Run an Internal Sweepstakes for Employees appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Receipt validation is a key component to help boost the sales of a product when offered in a Sweepstakes.

In a Sweepstakes, customer receipt validation asks sweepstakes participants to upload a picture of their purchase receipt as a method of entry for a chance to win a prize. By offering a prize, you are incentivizing customers to make a purchase in order to participate for a chance to win. Additionally, sweepstakes help the brand obtain useful information like emails, zip codes, or mobile numbers that can be used for remarketing and brand engagement.

Here, we will cover important aspects of how to run sweepstakes with receipt validation, and their marketing, and sales value.

What is a Purchase-to-Enter Sweepstakes?

A purchase-to-enter sweepstake is a promotion in which one of the entry methods encourages customers to validate a purchase receipt to qualify for the sweepstakes. However, have in mind that all purchase-to-enter sweepstakes must abide by the No Purchase Necessary Law in order to keep the promotion legal. We highly recommend that you hire sweepstakes or a giveaway company. They will provide you with the legal tools you need to run legally compliant sweepstakes.

What is Receipt Validation?

Receipt validation is an important component of a purchase-to-enter because it produces sales that can be tied directly to the promotion. By using receipt validation, every participant, aside from the free entries, bought your product in order to enter and used the purchase receipt to show proof of purchase. The most efficient receipt validation method is the Physical Receipt Validation where customers take a photo or scan their receipt and submit it digitally by uploading the receipt as part of completing the Entry Form.

Physical Receipt Validation is usually done through apps that use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to validate the sweepstakes participant’s receipts based on the official rules established for the sweepstakes or when a winner is drawn, the receipt is verified. Another method for physical receipt validation is sending the images through text (SMS) to a designated number.

The physical receipt validation process has the following steps:

1. Participants visit the sweepstakes website.
2. Participants enter name, email, mobile, address and are asked to upload a picture of the receipt. 
3. Customers take a picture of their purchase receipt and then submit the image in the designated entry form field.
4. The participant submits the Entry form.
5. The participant is thanked for the entry and this message serves as the entry confirmation.

Why is Receipt Validation Important in Sweepstakes?

A receipt accompanied by first-party data obtained through a form or profile (i.e.: name, phone, address, etc.) can provide the organization hosting the sweepstakes with important information that can help foster customer loyalty and increase future purchases.

How to Use the Data Obtained in the Sweepstakes Contest?

Before implementing any strategy, your organization needs to determine what data they want to collect and how they will use it. 

Example: If you decide to collect your customer’s birthdays, you can use that to send birthday discounts or coupon codes.

Another important aspect to look out for when deciding what data to use is what products customers are mostly using. This could bring you insight on future product ideas, future benefits, or even give you an idea of what product communications to send off during marketing efforts.

Check out: What to Include on a Sweepstakes Survey

How to Enrich Data?

When thinking of first-party data, a good point to consider is how to enrich and add more specificity to the data. The more data you have, the more you can customize your communications with your customers. Examples of enriched data are communication preferences, gender, birthday, and other behavioral data.

There are a variety of methods that can be used to enhance or enrich data. The most commonly used is adding checkboxes during sign-up. These can be used to get customers to sign up for marketing communications. When implementing data enrichment methods such as opt-in checkboxes, make sure you always offer a benefit in exchange for the information that the customer is providing.

The data obtained from receipt validations is extremely valuable. When implemented correctly, it can help create customer loyalty experiences that increase purchases and build brand loyalty.

How to Use Loyalty Experiences such as Sweepstakes to Obtain Valuable Data?

Customers are motivated to be loyal to a brand or an organization when they are offered incentives. The chance to win cool stuff offers the opportunity to facilitate this. The data obtained from these incentives (e.g.: sweepstakes, giveaways, loyalty programs, etc.) creates engagement. This allows brands and organizations to identify consumer behavior such as what motivates repeated visits and purchases.

The Bottom Line: Receipt Validation is a Valuable Tool For Obtaining Data When Offering Purchase-to-Enter Sweepstakes

When a brand offers marketing programs such as Sweepstakes with the objective of increasing sales, Purchase-to-enter Sweepstakes with receipt validation offers an effective tool. Not only because it asks the participants to make a purchase for a chance at winning a prize, but it also captures valuable marketing information.

As a Sweepstakes Company, we encourage our customers to consider receipt validation for their sweepstakes. Not only will it help boost sales, but to capture valuable information for remarketing.

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post Purchase-to-Enter Sweepstakes: How to Use Receipt Validation for Your Sweepstakes appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Celebrities and influencers are often hired for sweepstakes and contests in order to give your brand a positive head start or better reputation in the marketplace.

While the right celebrity can drive entries for your sweepstakes or contest, there are many considerations that should be weighed carefully first.

Before you proceed with hiring a celebrity spokesperson to endorse your sweepstakes or contest, make sure to think of the pros and cons for your brand first.

Influencers and celebrities can both negatively and positively affect a sweepstakes or contest promotion. Here is what you should know about celebrity sweepstakes promotions before you proceed:

Celebrity Endorsers for Sweepstakes and Contests: The Pros

Celebrity endorsements can be highly profitable for sweepstakes sponsors. Celebrities can often persuade a sweepstakes entrant to make a purchase from your brand when they otherwise might have held back until the contest was over or not purchased at all.

Celebrities Boost Sales

Why do brands use influencers to promote products and services? The answer is simple:

Celebrities and influencers can be extremely lucrative for businesses. In fact, a study found that celebrities who endorse a promotion can boost sales by as much as 4%!

Influencers and celebrities can deliver the social proof that your brand is worth taking a look at when they use test out products or services from your brand for their own audiences.

Also Read: How to Include Sweepstakes Rules in Your Social Media Campaigns

Tap Into New Audiences

Celebrities and influencers bring their audience to you.

Instead of having to spend money on advertising in order to amass a group of potential sweepstakes entrants, you can tap directly into a ready-made audience with interests that are similar to your preferred target audience.

Also Read: How a Sweepstakes Can Help Boost Sales

When Celebrity Marketing Goes Wrong

Celebrities can hurt your brand when you make sweepstakes and contest marketing mistakes. Aside from failing to properly negotiate the deal, the problem that sweepstakes sponsors often face is choosing the wrong celebrity for the contest or sweepstakes.

Here are 3 mistakes to avoid and why:

Mistake #1: Not Negotiating Contract Terms Properly

The celebrity needs to be able to work with you on terms that make it possible for you to back out of the deal if it’s not working out.

Furthermore, you also need to specify when your sweepstakes promotion will take place and what events and advertising and other marketing materials you will need the celebrity or influencer to be a part of.

Mistake #2: Hiring Celebrities With Bad Reputations

Carefully evaluate the celebrity’s reputation to ensure that any bad press that the celebrity receives doesn’t also become bad press for your brand.

Mistake #3: Not Hiring the Right Celebrity for Your Brand

It’s vital to protect your brand at all costs. At the same time, while reputation is important, the celebrity still needs to be a good fit for your brand’s target audience.

Also Read: Sweepstakes Fraud: How It Happens and How to Protect Your Sweepstakes or Contest

5 Tips For Working With a Celebrity for a Sweepstakes or Contest

Now that you know about the pros and cons of celebrity sweepstakes, here are a few points to consider as you plan your sweepstakes:

1. Don’t Limit Your Promotion to A-listers

Celebrity endorsements for sweepstakes and contests don’t only involve A-listers. In fact, a local celebrity or micro-influencer might work just as well to boost brand awareness and sales at a fraction of the cost.

And unless you’re one of the few companies that an A-list celebrity promotes, it will likely not give you the same return on investment as hiring a few or a team of B-listers or local influencers with followings that match your target audience.

2. Know Your Audience

The match between the celebrity’s or influencer’s demographic and your brand must be as close as possible. This is how you maximize participants for your sweepstakes or contest.

3. Use Social Media

Social media can greatly expand your reach when it comes to tapping into new audiences to find new customers and sweepstakes participants.

In fact, influencer marketing is one of the most popular ways for brands use social media to advertise products and services.

By leveraging the social media accounts of a celebrity and influencer who has a following, you’ll be able to get access to audiences that your brand does not have access to on its own.

4. Consider Sweepstakes Timing and Launch

All sweepstakes and contests involve setup steps that need to be addressed, in addition to, any contractual agreements with celebrities and influencers.

As a result, it’s important that you work with a full-service sweepstakes administration company to ensure that any sweepstakes law compliance steps are handled on your behalf.

5. Hire A Sweepstakes Company for Celebrity Sweepstakes Official Rules

A sweepstakes company like Sweeppea can help you with services such as drafting official rules, winning drawing, prize fulfillment, and sweepstakes law compliance.

They will also ensure that any additional terms for your sweepstakes needed in order for you to work with the celebrity or have the celebrity interact with sweepstakes participants are included in your official rules.

Also Read: Sweepstakes and Contest Administration Management Services: How They Benefit Your Promotion

Start Now to Plan Your Celebrity Sweepstakes

Celebrity endorsements can deliver a major ROI for your sweepstakes or contest. However, it’s important for you to have a clear vision for your promotion, including goals and target audience, before making a deal.

Building a sweepstakes or contest that involves a celebrity or influencers requires extensive planning.

A professional sweepstakes company can you to conceptualize your sweepstakes campaign so that you’ll be able to correctly match an influencer or celebrity with your promotion.

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post Should You Involve a Celebrity in Your Sweepstakes or Contest? appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

High sweepstakes participant engagement is a key feature of a successful sweepstakes or contest.

Why should your brand care about entrant engagement?

First, participants who are actively waiting for your sweepstakes to end are more likely to respond promptly to the winner announcement.

Second, engaged sweepstakes entrants mean that you’ll get more sales as the participants learn more about your brand while enjoying your sweepstakes or contest.

Here are 10 tips to boost sweepstakes participant engagement and how to keep people from forgetting about your sweepstakes after they’ve entered it.

Follow all of these tips, and repeat them as necessary, to help participants stay active during your sweepstakes:

1. Make Your Sweepstakes Marketing Fun and Exciting

People enter sweepstakes for the chance to win a prize, but also to be entertained.

If all of your sweepstakes follow-up messages are overly promotional, you might end up losing your audience’s attention.

By using wit, humor, and surprise to entertain participants, you’ll increase sweepstakes engagement.

Also Read: How Traffic From Sweepstakes Promotions Helps You Go Viral

2. Create Engaging Sweepstakes Advertising

From photos to memes, GIFs, and original graphics, you should incorporate a number of different elements to create unique visuals that will engage sweepstakes and contest participants.

Make sure to feature your brand while using the creatives to tell a story about your sweepstakes. Use images and videos to maximize engagement.

3. Schedule Your Sweepstakes Follow-ups for the Right Time

It’s important that you study your audience to learn what times of the day they are most likely to engage with your sweepestakes or contest follow-up messages and send them accordingly.

By targeting sweepstakes entrants at their preferred times to open your messages, they are more likely to feel that your brand is catering to their personalized needs. This helps to build trust which translates to sales.

4. Increase the Value of Your Sweepstakes With Freebies for Non-winners

It’s not enough to give away a single prize, you also need to give participants rewards for continuing to engage with your promotion until the end.

By offering freebies, as well as discounts and coupons, to non-winners and sweepstakes participants throughout the promotion, you can help them to feel connected to your promotion without even having to win the grand prize.

5. Feature Customers in Your Sweepstakes Promotion

One of the most effective ways to help sweepstakes participants to connect with your brand is to feature your customers in your promotion. You can turn them into brand advocates and share the user-generated content that they’ve created with the sweepstakes participants.

By doing this, you’ll not only provide that your sweepstakes is a real promotion but it also shows that existing customers already love your brand.

Also Read: How Do Brands Make Money From Sweepstakes?

6. Go Live

You can kick up the excitement of the sweepstakes by making announcements regarding your promotion live.

You could announce how many days there are left until the winner is selected live, give reviews of the prizes that participants are eligible to win, or host the sweepstakes or contest itself during an industry event.

Or you could also go live on a monthly basis to announce the latest sweepstakes promotion for your brand if you run sweepstakes and contests regularly.

Going live can help you reach thousands of people and increases sweepstakes participant engagement.

Also Read: Sweepstakes and Contest Management: What Happens After Your Campaign Goes Live?

7. Be Consistent

To train your sweepstakes participants to engage with you, you need to be consistent. Make sure to follow up with them at regular intervals so that they know when to expect sweepstakes follow-up messages from your brand.

8. Respond to Contest Participants

If a participant messages you a question or feedback about your promotion, get back to them promptly. Whether they leave a positive or a negative message, you need to respond to each participant.

You should also make the abbreviated rules and official rules easily accessible so that participants can view them if they have questions about your promotion.

This helps to build trust in your brand by showing participants that your sweepstakes promotion is legal and fully-compliant with sweepstakes laws.

9. Ask Questions

Questions aren’t only for participants. In fact, sweepstakes surveys are popular for brands that use sweepstakes and contests to gain customer insights.

You can poll or survey your participants to learn more about who they are, if they are enjoying your sweepstakes and contest, and what they think about the sweepstakes prizes.

Also Read: What to Include on a Sweepstakes Survey

10. Share Content That’s Relevant to Your Participants

In addition to reminding sweepstakes participants to stay active in your sweepstakes so that they can be immediately notified once a winner is selected, you should also share content that is relevant to your brand and participants.

For example, if you were to give away a backyard BBQ party as a sweepstakes prize, you might share BBQ recipe tips using your brand’s product as one of the ingredients.

The result?

Sweepstakes participants learn more about your brand and you also give them something to engage with while they wait for the winner drawing.

If you want to maximize your sweepstakes marketing ROI, you need to engage your sweepstakes participants both during and after your promotion ends. Follow up and watch your results skyrocket!

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post Sweepstakes Engagement: How to Get People to Stay Active During Your Sweepstakes appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Cannabis sweepstakes and contests are fun, engaging, and can help boost your sales and brand awareness.

Sweepstakes and contests have also proven to deliver some of the best returns for cannabis brands seeking subscriber growth.

But there is a lot of confusion when it comes to cannabis marketing promotions and applicable state regulations, sweepstakes laws, IRS reporting, social media advertising, and all of the other requirements needed to run a successful cannabis or marijuana sweepstakes.

Cannabis marketing has a lot of restrictions that could also open your cannabis business up to big legal risks.

Compliance should be your top priority…

Here we cover the sweepstakes rules, cannabis laws, and compliance requirements you need to follow for a legal cannabis sweepstakes.

You’ll learn how to run a cannabis sweepstakes from start to finish.

We’ll provide everything you need to know about marijuana marketing compliance to ensure that your sweepstakes is success, along with sweepstakes ideas and sweepstakes examples.

Ready to take your cannabis brand higher?

Let’s go up, up, and away!

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All cannabis manufacturers, distributors, and dispensaries can offer sweepstakes.

As a result, sweepstakes promotions are becoming a popular option for cannabis B2B marketing with many types of cannabis businesses including:

• Plant-touching businesses. These are the businesses that are directly responsible for the growing, processing, and distribution of cannabis.
• Ancillary service providers. These are the companies that provide retail space for the support of the sale of cannabis.
• Cannabis breeders. These are the companies that are responsible for developing cannabis seeds and experimenting with new strains of cannabis.
• Cultivators. These are the companies that grow the cannabis plants from the seeds provided by the breeders.
• Extractors. These are the companies that take raw marijuana plant materials in order to convert them into concentrates.
• Manufacturers. These are the companies that incorporate cannabis flower and concentrates into a wide variety of cannabis-based products.
• Dispensaries. These are the companies that are responsible for the sale of consumer cannabis products.

State regulators typically determine the laws regarding cannabis advertising. However, not every state permits cannabis sweepstakes and contests.

Since cannabis remains banned at the federal level, you won’t see any national advertising for the substance.

As of now, cannabis and marijuana brands can only offer sweepstakes promotions in states where both recreational and medicinal use of cannabis is allowed.

Key Legal Issues Facing Cannabis Marketers

Before you launch a sweepstakes for your cannabis brand, you should learn about the legal concerns facing cannabis marketing.

Here’s what you should know before you run a cannabis sweepstakes to ensure compliance.

The main legal areas you need to consider are U.S. sweepstakes laws, U.S. cannabis laws and regulations, privacy and data collection, and the rules and regulations of the FTC and other consumer protection bodies.

Aside from sweepstakes laws which apply to all U.S. sweepstakes promotions, cannabis marketing comes with additional challenges:

1. Digital Ads and Social Media. Finding places to promote your cannabis brand online is tricky, for both B2C and cannabis B2B marketing. Social media platforms don’t allow the use of the word cannabis or cannabis-related imagery in digital ads.

Brands are also required to follow the advertising platform’s TOS rules, in addition to ensuring that the promotion follows all sweepstakes rules.

2. State and Local Advertising Laws. Some states and local jurisdictions limit cannabis advertising. In California, for example, the recent Farmer v. Bureau of Cannabis Control case banned cannabis companies from using billboards on interstate roads or state highways that cross a state border.

3. Evolving Regulatory Landscape. Legality and regulation will continue to shape the cannabis industry as every state in the U.S. handles the use and sale of cannabis differently.

4. Cannabis Remains Illegal on a Federal Level. All marijuana use and sale is illegal under federal law, where it’s classified as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act.

As a brand, you need to be on top of these constantly changing laws and in a position to easily adapt to them.

How a Sweepstakes Company Helps Cannabis Brands Grow

A sweepstakes company helps you stay on top of the latest legal developments in the cannabis industry, in addition to, sweepstakes laws and regulations.

Sweeppea handles every detail of cannabis sweepstakes management.

From legal compliance to the layout of your entire promotion, we’ve got you covered!

We can help with:

• Drafting official rules and abbreviated rules
• Legal compliance
• Execution
• Prize fulfillment
• State registration and bonding
• Winner drawing and verification
• Prize insurance

Our sweepstakes capabilities for cannabis companies include concepting, design, technical development, and legal compliance from start to finish.

Need help? Sweeppea creates a wide variety of cannabis grower, distributor, and dispensary marketing sweepstakes and contest promotions.

We’ll have you up and running in one week or less.

Get a Quote: Full-service Sweepstakes Administration for Cannabis Companies

Sweepstakes Compliance for Cannabis Companies: Here Are the Rules

What sweepstakes rules must cannabis companies follow?

How does running a sweepstakes for a cannabis brand differ from other types of sweepstakes?

First, you should know:

All cannabis companies must comply with U.S. sweepstakes laws and regulations on the federal, state, and local levels.

Second, the sweepstakes rules that apply to cannabis companies are almost the same as the rules for other industries, but with a few differences.

Here are the most important sweepstakes legal requirements cannabis brands should know about:

Official Rules

All sweepstakes must have official rules. The official rules are the contract between the sponsor of the cannabis sweepstakes and the sweepstakes entrant.

The official rules need to mention the following:

1. Free Method of Entry

All sweepstakes must offer a free method of entry. The Alternate Method of Entry (AMOE) for a sweepstakes is typically a free, no purchase necessary entry method. Your AMOE can be a simple mail-in entry.

Also Read: Your Sweepstakes Rules Checklist

2. Abbreviated Rules

Sweepstakes advertising must include abbreviated rules. Abbreviated rules must be included in all printed advertisements for your cannabis sweepstakes or contest. They are usually found in the fine print at the bottom of an ad or sign and are required by several state statutes.

Also Read: What Are Abbreviated Sweepstakes Rules and Who Needs Them?

3. Random Drawings for All Sweepstakes

All sweepstakes must draw winners randomly. A legal sweepstakes is a promotion where the winners are chosen at random, without consideration. As a result, the winner of your sweepstakes must be selected by a random drawing.

Official rules are just the start of ensuring that your sweepstakes is legal. Your promotion may also require registration and bonding, prize indemnity insurance, and more.

Are your official rules legally compliant? Sweeppea will review your promotion to ensure that your sweepstakes is legal.

  Need Official Rules? Click to Draft Your Sweepstakes Rules

Age Gate for Participants

Cannabis sweepstakes are not for every age. Every cannabis sweepstakes needs to verify that the participant meets the minimum age requirement for their state in order to access the sweepstakes entry form.

By submitting their age data, participants agree that they meet the eligibility requirements of the sweepstakes. If selected as the sweepstakes winner, they are also agreeing that they will be able to provide valid proof of age during the winner verification process.

Note that state and local laws can influence the age requirement for your sweepstakes.

Not Allowed: Illegal Sweepstakes Prizes to Avoid

One question that we get asked the most about cannabis sweepstakes is what’s allowed and what’s not.

In order to ensure your cannabis giveaway is legal, make sure to avoid giving away any of these as sweepstakes prizes.

As a cannabis company, you’re not allowed to give away:

1. Cannabis Products in Any Form
2. Discounts or Coupons

Aside from those products, you can give away almost any prize.

Legal compliance is one of the most important aspects of running a cannabis or marijuana sweepstakes. Due to changing regulations in the United States, it’s essential that you stay on top of the latest rules for cannabis marketing.

Cannabis and Marijuana Marketing Ideas

Making your cannabis brand stand out will require some creativity. Here are a few marketing ideas to consider for your next promotion:

Marijuana Sweepstakes Prize Ideas

Your sweepstakes prize connects your sweepstakes to your brand. Some ideas for cannabis sweepstakes prize ideas include:

• Experiences: Tickets for local cannabis events, competitions or concerts
• Accessories: branded glassware, papers, grinders, custom merch
• Grower Equipment: Lighting, ventilation, hydration

Smaller prizes allow you to host cannabis giveaways more frequently while larger prizes tend to attract more entries.

Also Read: Top Sweepstakes Prizes of 2021: Here Are the Most Popular Prizes From Brands

Cannabis Sweepstakes Ideas

If you want to maximize your entries, choose a popular sweepstakes idea. Here are some top sweepstakes and contest ideas:

1. 420 Giveaway Sweepstakes

Every year, cannabis companies run promotions to recognize April 20 or 4/20 as a national holiday for cannabis.

To get on the action, you can give away a large cash prize, vacation, car or other prize that your fans would be excited to win.

Also Read: Top Ideas for Holiday Sweepstakes

2. Monthly Merch Sweepstakes

Promotional merch is perfect for giving to multiple sweepstakes winners, making it possible for you to run a monthly merch sweepstakes giveaway.

With custom merch branded with your logo, you’ll be able to raise awareness for your brand or cannabis product launch.

Promotional products like these have been a classic marketing technique for years. Now with the combined power of a sweepstakes, you can use monthly merch sweepstakes to create an ongoing source of viral traffic.

Also Read: How Often Should You Run a Sweepstakes or Contest?

3. Win Tickets to a Cannabis Competition Sweepstakes

A unique cannabis sweepstakes idea that will get fans excited is to give them exclusive access to an upcoming cannabis competition via a sweepstakes.

Some of the top cannabis competitions in the U.S. include the Cannabis Cup, the Stony Awards, and the High Times Medical Cannabis Cup.

By partnering with a cannabis competition sponsor, you’ll be able to tap into an instant network of cannabis industry professionals. This sweepstakes idea can be particularly effective in B2B cannabis marketing to attract dispensaries to your brand.

Effective B2C and Cannabis B2B Marketing: Sweepstakes Examples

Here are some high-performing cannabis marketing examples that will help you use sweepstakes to grow your cannabis brand:

Curaleaf

Curaleaf Holdings, an international provider of cannabis consumer products, recently launched a sweepstakes to promote their Select Squeeze, 5mg THC flavored Beverage Enhancer.

The goal of the campaign was to increase brand awareness for the product. Curaleaf offered participants the change to win a $1,000 Airbnb Gift Card.

The result?

Curaleaf was able to generate thousands of social engagements and participants. They also saw a retail sales boost for the quarter as a result of the cannabis marketing promotion.

Also Read: Here’s What Entrants Love About Sweepstakes and Contests

Additional Resources

Congratulations! You’ve reached the end and now it’s time to launch a cannabis sweepstakes!

Before you get to work, check out these extra tips:

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• Running a Sweepstakes for Marijuana or Cannabis Marketing? Our Suggestions
• How to Create a Cannabis Sweepstakes in Recreational and Medicinal States

[/su_list]

Next Steps

Sweepstakes and contests are a great way to boost sales, increase brand awareness, and drive the growth of your cannabis business.

Follow these next steps to get started:

Step #1: Before you launch your marijuana sweepstakes or contest, make sure that it’s compliant.

Then…

Step #2: Stay on top of ever-changing cannabis laws and sweepstakes regulations by hiring an experienced sweepstakes administration service.

We’re here to help!

Sweeppea’s full-service sweepstakes administration includes the services you need from drafting official rules to registration and bonding services, sweepstakes drawing and winner notifications, insurance coverage, tracking and reporting, secure participant data management, and more.

Our customized promotions will engage your audience, attract new fans, and empower them to market your cannabis brand for you.

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post Cannabis Marketing: How to Run a Legal Cannabis Sweepstakes appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Running a nonprofit sweepstakes via a sweepstakes fundraising platform can increase donations and attract new donors at the same time.

To spread your nonprofit’s impact story and reach your mission outcomes, you’ll need support, and lots of it.

Although 501(c)(3) donations are tax-deductible, this is no longer enough to incentivize donations. New donors also need to connect with your organization’s mission.

Sweeppea’s sweepstakes fundraising platform is helping nonprofits achieve their goals of changing the world for the better. Our expert advice and charity sweepstakes management delivers everything nonprofits need to run a successful promotion.

Here’s your guide to nonprofit sweepstakes promotions…

Here you’ll find out how to run a sweepstakes for a nonprofit company with a checklist of everything you’ll need.

To help you get started, we’re sharing everything from fundraising sweepstakes examples to nonprofit sweepstakes ideas and sweepstakes laws. You’ll also learn the differences between sweepstakes and raffles.

Ready to eclipse your annual donation goals? Let’s go!

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What Is a Sweepstakes Fundraiser?

A sweepstakes fundraiser, or charity sweepstakes, is a game of chance where a 501(c)(3) nonprofit sweepstakes sponsor offers a prize but does not require consideration for entry, such as with a mandatory donation.

While nonprofits are allowed to use donation-based entries, all sweepstakes fundraisers must offer a free method of entry because it’s the law.

Also Read: Sweepstakes & Contest Rules: Biggest Mistakes Companies Make

Fundraising sweepstakes for nonprofits are typically professionally managed via a sweepstakes fundraiser platform or full-service sweepstakes administration company.

A sweepstakes company will manage all of the aspects of the promotion from drafting the official rules to winner drawing, prize indemnity insurance for high value prizes, sweepstakes law compliance, registration and bonding, and more.

Some examples of local nonprofits and national nonprofits that run charity sweepstakes include schools, sports teams, religious organizations, civic organizations, universities, and labor unions.

Also Read: Legal Services a Sweepstakes Company Can Provide

Sweepstakes and contests are popular with nonprofit organizations because this type of promotion makes it easier for nonprofit organizations to engage with donors and other supporters.

Nonprofits that use sweepstakes also use the chance to win a prize as a means of attracting donors to learn more about the nonprofit organization’s mission and donate.

Can a Non-profit Run a Sweepstakes?

Yes, nonprofits can run sweepstakes as long as they follow all of the sweepstakes laws and regulations that also apply to sweepstakes for for-profit companies.

Nonprofit sweepstakes must be free to enter, are not considered gambling, and generally have fewer regulatory restrictions, which is why nonprofits are using them frequently these days.

Many charities are even making sweepstakes part of their annual fundraising plan in order to attract more donations.

They are also a legal way for US non-profits to reach donors nationally, as opposed to only locally.

Why Do Nonprofit Organizations Run Sweepstakes?

With a sweepstakes, nonprofit organizations can raise awareness about their cause and attract more donations. Here are some of the more nuanced reasons why nonprofit brands choose sweepstakes:

Attract Donations

Sweepstakes can give you a shortcut to attracting donations without the effort of writing grants or hosting galas.

When new supporters enter your sweepstakes for the chance to win a prize, they’ll learn about your organization’s efforts at the same time. 

Sweepstakes participants may also decide to donate at the time of entry. It’s okay to ask participants to donate to your cause as long as your official rules make it clear that:

1. A donation is not required for entry and a free method of entry is available
2. A donation will not increase the chances of winning

Important Note: A donation can not be a requirement for entry or winning, else your will be considered as an illegal lottery.

Viral Sharing

The chance of winning a prize attracts new donors and encourages viral sharing. Sweeppea sweepstakes management is designed to give your nonprofit sweepstakes maximum reach.

By promoting your nonprofit fundraiser on social media, as well as, traditional media outlets, you’ll be able to take advantage of the viral sharing aspect of sweepstakes.

Your sweepstakes get shared everywhere and the donations pour in. 

Reach New Local and National Donors

Sweepstakes can be offered in all states, even the ones your nonprofit organization is not registered in. This means new donors and supporters outside of your community can become interested in your cause.

With a sweepstakes, you’ll not only be able to reach local donors. You’ll be able to attract donations from across the country, thus helping you to reach your goals faster.

Need new donors? Find out how Sweeppea can help run your national nonprofit fundraiser.

Request a Quote for Full-Service Sweepstakes Fundraiser Administration

Sweepstakes vs Raffle: What’s the Difference?

Raffles and sweepstakes are similar in that both game formats involve the sale of tickets, drawing winners, and giving away cash prizes. However, the similarities end there.

One question that nonprofits ask us often is “Is a sweepstakes fundraiser a raffle?” The short answer is “no.”

These differences should help you decide whether to run a raffle or a sweepstakes campaign for your nonprofit organization. Here are the most important sweepstakes vs raffle points to consider:

Charity Raffles

Here’s how charity raffles work:

Is a Raffle Gambling?

• Raffles are considered as a form of gambling in the United States since donors have to make a payment in exchange for a chance to win a prize, just like at a casino.

Raffle Regulations

• Nonprofit organizations must comply with both state and local raffle laws in the state in which the organization is domiciled.
• Raffles for charitable giving for 501(c) organizations are legal at the federal level. Raffles are illegal for for-profit organizations.

Limited Geographical Reach

• Multiple US states (about 10 states and Canadian provinces) prohibit online raffles which means that it’s near impossible to run a legal interstate or national raffle.
• Nonprofits are only permitted to run raffles in the states where the organization is domiciled if raffles are legal in that state. State or provincial licensing may be required.

Sweepstakes Fundraisers

Here’s how sweepstakes for charities work:

Is a Sweepstakes Gambling?

• Sweepstakes are not considered as gambling because they require a free method of entry.

Free Method of Entry for Sweepstakes

• Unlike raffles, sweepstakes are limited on the number of free entries per person to prevent abuse, such as one entry per household.
• Unlike raffles, participants don’t necessarily have to donate because all sweepstakes fundraisers must offer a free method of entry.

Also Read: What’s the Difference Between a Sweepstakes, Contest, Game, Raffle and Giveaways and Which is More Popular?

Sweepstakes Regulations

• Sweepstakes require official rules and abbreviated rules
• Some states require registration and bonding for sweepstakes promotions

Global Geographical Reach

• Sweepstakes are legal in all 50 states and all Canadian provinces.
• Sweepstakes can be expanded to include participants both nationally and globally

No Manual Drawing for Sweepstakes

• Unlike charitable raffles, where paper tickets are sold, there is no manual method of drawing for sweepstakes. All sweepstakes winners are electronically drawn at random.

When to Use a Raffle vs a Sweepstakes

Both nonprofit raffles and sweepstakes are excellent ways to increase donations to your organization. However, sweepstakes often come with fewer restrictions and the ability to expand your fundraiser promotion globally.

Still unsure whether your promotion is legal? We can help with compliance review or create, run, and manage your promotion via Sweeppea’s full-service sweepstakes administration.

CLICK HERE: Request a Quote for Full-Service Sweepstakes Administration

Nonprofits Must Follow Sweepstakes Laws

Although, nonprofit tax-exempt organizations are exempt from some tax laws, all prize promotion laws still apply to nonprofit sweepstakes. Nonprofit sweepstakes follow the same sweepstakes laws as for profit companies.

Here is a quick overview of sweepstakes laws for nonprofits:

Free Method of Entry

All sweepstakes must offer a free method of entry.

Official Rules

All sweepstakes must have official rules. The official rules are the contract between the sweepstakes sponsor and the participant.

You may not change the official rules once a sweepstakes is launched.

The official rules typically contain the following information. Here is an official rules checklist:

1. No purchase necessary
2. Start and end dates
3. Eligibility requirements (including age, residency, and any exclusions)
4. Entry methods (including the free method of entry)
5. Entry limitations
6. Odds of winning
7. Description and Approximate Retail Value (ARV) of the prize(s)
8. How the winner(s) will be selected and notified
9. Restrictions on claiming the prize
10. Void jurisdictions
11. Sweepstakes sponsor name and address
12. Any additional disclosures specific to the promotion

Never use official rules templates that you find online. Any sweepstakes rules template may appear on the surface to be well written. It won’t account for the nuances of your particular promotion and how it fits within the laws of certain states, as well as, your own state.

Sweeppea can help you draft or review your sweepstakes rules to ensure that your promotion is fully compliant.

 Need Official Rules? Click to Draft Your Sweepstakes Rules

Is Sweepstakes Registration and Bonding Required?

Registration and bonding is required in certain states (New York and Florida) for all sweepstakes promotions with high value prizes of ARV $5,000 or more:

If the total retail value of your non-profit sweepstakes prize(s) is $5,000 or more, then you will need to register and secure a surety bond for your sweepstakes if it is open to residents in New York state.

If your Florida organization is not a registered 501(c), namely for profit, then you must also register and bond your sweepstakes promotion if it is open to residents of Florida.

Also Read: Which States Require Sweepstakes Registration and Bonding?

Winner Drawing

Sweepstakes for nonprofits, like all sweepstakes, must draw the winner randomly. At Sweeppea, we conduct random winner drawing electronically for nonprofit sweepstakes to ensure compliance with sweepstakes laws.

Privacy Policy

How will you use the information you collect from entrants during your nonprofit sweepstakes?

Some states have requirements for the collection, storage, and use of consumer information including that you include a privacy policy on your sweepstakes entry form.

Make sure that your nonprofit sweepstakes promotion clearly outlines your organization’s data collection policies and include it in the official rules.

Advertising Your Fundraising Sweepstakes

When advertising your charity sweepstakes, you need to make sure that all of your print advertisements, including any creatives you design for social media, you must include abbreviated rules and a link to the full official rules for your nonprofit sweepstakes promotion.

The abbreviated rules should contain the sweepstakes end date, the exact date on when winner(s) will be announced, the contact information for the nonprofit sweepstakes sponsor, and a disclaimer.

Nonprofit Sweepstakes Prizes

The best prize ideas for your nonprofit or charity sweepstakes are ones that interest your audience. By choosing relevant prizes that suit your target audience’s lifestyle, you can use your campaign to boost loyalty from existing donors and attract new fans.

Event and Concert Tickets

Event and concert tickets are popular prizes for sweepstakes fundraisers because they are fun and exciting experiences for the sweepstakes winners.

At the same time, they are also easy to deliver and low cost but high ROI when it comes to the potential for user generated content that can be used in your future nonprofit marketing efforts.

Travel

Vacations and trips are popular sweepstakes prizes for nonprofit giveaways. It is important to make sure that you explicitly state in your official rules whether certain amenities and accommodations are included with the sweepstakes prize or if the winner is responsible for paying these costs.

Also Read: Can I Offer a Vacation Stay Without Airfare as a Sweepstakes Prize?

Donations

Sometimes people donate prizes to a nonprofit sweepstakes sponsor so that the prize can be given away as the sweepstakes prize. A classic car is an example of a sweepstakes prize that an individual might donate to a nonprofit.

Cash Is Not Usually Offered

Although cash sweepstakes are popular in other industries, nonprofits typically do not give away cash as a sweepstakes prize.

However, sometimes nonprofits choose to make the sweepstakes prize a donation on behalf of the sweepstakes winner to another organization.

In this case, the requirement for the donation of the sweepstakes prize must be explicitly defined in the official rules for the nonprofit sweepstakes.

Also Read: Can Your Sweepstakes Prize be a Donation?

Prize Fulfillment for Charity Sweepstakes

One of the most important considerations when running a sweepstakes fundraiser is how to securely manage prize fulfillment.

A full-service sweepstakes fundraising platform, like Sweeppea, helps makes it easy for your entrants to participate and less hassle for your organization to deliver prizes to the winners.

We recommend that you obtain prize indemnity insurance for your sweepstakes you plan to give away high value prizes.

Also Read: Sweepstakes and Contest Administration Management Services: How They Benefit Your Promotion

Nonprofit Sweepstakes Ideas

Are you looking for nonprofit sweepstakes ideas to delight your donor target audience?

Here we share our favorite nonprofit sweepstakes and contest ideas so that you can get started as soon as possible.

Car Sweepstakes

The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada (UA) recently ran a car sweepstakes with the goal of attracting donations for The UA Charitable Fund Trust.

The UA offered two sweepstakes prizes: an ATV and a truck to two lucky winners.

The result?

For every marketing dollar spent on the charity sweepstakes promotion, the organization recouped an additional $1.55 in donations.

Additional Sweepstakes Ideas

Check out some of these additional 15 ideas for sweepstakes fundraisers:

1. Golf Course & Resort Weekend Trip

2. Enter to Win Sweepstakes During a 5K Walk or Run

3. Help Us Build It School Sweepstakes

4. Sports Event VIP Sweepstakes

5. Carols for a Cause Holiday Contest

6. Family Fun Day Sweepstakes

7. Tree Planting for Earth Day Sweepstakes

8. Cause Week Sweepstakes or Awareness Month Sweepstakes

9. Concert for a Cause Sweepstakes

10. Clean Water Advocacy Sweepstakes

11. Celebrity Meet and Greet for Charity Sweepstakes

12. Protect Endangered Species Sweepstakes

13. Cancer Awareness and Prevention Sweepstakes

14. Food Bank Sweet Treats for Charity Sweepstakes

15. Taking Care of Our Veterans Concert Fundraiser Sweepstakes

Additional Resources

This sweepstakes guide is almost over but, we’re not done yet!

Are you ready for more donations? Read these articles to learn more about nonprofit sweepstakes success:

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• How to Create A Sweepstakes for a Non-Profit Organization
• Can Your Sweepstakes Prize be a Donation?
• What’s the Difference Between a Sweepstakes, Contest, Game, Raffle and Giveaways and Which is More Popular?

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Reach New Donors – Run a Sweepstakes for Your Nonprofit With Us

If you’re really to thrill your fans with exciting prizes and make an impact, we can help. Sweeppea will design a sweepstakes that encourages more entries and donations in order to help you quickly achieve your fundraising targets.

Hassle free online sweepstakes management for nonprofits means that we’ll handle your promotion for you!

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post How to Run a Nonprofit Sweepstakes? Everything You Need to Know appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Do no purchase necessary laws apply to every sweepstakes?

If you’re running a sweepstakes or giveaway to boost sales or increase brand awareness, you may have wanted to encourage participants to buy at the same time or run a customer-only sweepstakes.

Most brands agree that it totally defeats their marketing objectives to let customers enter their sweepstakes for free.

So how can you make sure that your sweepstakes is legal and while also achieving your marketing goals?

“No Purchase Necessary” Is the Law

While you can’t require a purchase as the sole method of entry for your sweepstakes or giveaway, you are permitted to include it as one of your methods of entry.

Now this may sound confusing, but we’re going to explain everything you need to know about the No Purchase Necessary Law.

You’ll learn what “no purchase necessary” means, the reason behind it, and how to run a sweepstakes that is fully-compliant with no purchase necessary laws.

You’ll also see how the no purchase necessary law works in real life with examples of sweepstakes that ask participants to buy in order to enter and receive additional entries.

These sweepstakes give entries to both free participants and paid customers.

Let’s get started!

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Is It Illegal to Require a Purchase to Enter a Giveaway or Sweepstakes?

Two questions that we get asked frequently here at Sweeppea are, “Can a sweepstakes require a purchase to enter?” and “Is it illegal to require a purchase to enter a giveaway?”

No purchase, payment, or other consideration is allowed in a legal sweepstakes.

The definition of a legal sweepstakes is “a promotion in which participants can win a prize based on chance.”

By requiring participants to make a purchase to enter or win, you would add an element of consideration.

What Does No Purchase Necessary Mean?

In legal terms, a purchase is often viewed as “consideration,” which is another word for effort, money or time.

Any element of consideration may result in your promotion being deemed as a illegal lottery by regulators.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the United States Postal Service (USPS) work together to enforce the “No Purchase Necessary law” in order to protect consumers and promote fair competition.

One of their duties is to ensure that sweepstakes participants are not tricked into thinking that they are required to purchase something to win.

“No purchase necessary” means exactly that. As the sweepstakes sponsor, you can not require participants to pay to enter or win your sweepstakes or giveaway.

The No Purchase Necessary law applies to any sweepstakes run in the United States.

Aside from federal regulations, states also have requirements for sweepstakes.

The State Attorney General is responsible for enforcing state sweepstakes laws and ensuring that sweepstakes do not violate lottery laws.

Do Sweepstakes Have to Be Free to Enter?

Yes, sweepstakes must be free to enter. What makes a sweepstakes different from a lottery is that sweepstakes must be free to enter.

For-profit companies are only permitted to run sweepstakes, giveaways, and contests if the promotion doesn’t require entrants to purchase something in exchange for sweepstakes entries.

By law, only nonprofit organizations can run raffles.

To make it clear for participants, your sweepstakes official rules and abbreviated rules must mention that there is “no purchase necessary” and that there is a free method of entry available.

Sweepstakes Compliance: No Purchase Necessary Laws & Official Rules

Here’s what to include in your sweepstakes rules for “no purchase necessary” sweepstakes compliance:

1. Alternate Method of Entry (AMOE)

Despite no purchase necessary laws, you can still ask people to enter your sweepstakes by making a purchase. Yet, you should always also offer a free, Alternate Method of Entry (AMOE).

Typically, brands use mail-in entry or a web entry form as the free AMOE.

2. No Purchase Necessary Clause

The following is the “no purchase necessary” verbiage that your sweepstakes rules should include:

“No Purchase Necessary”

“A purchase will not increase your chances of winning”

“Void where prohibited”

It’s recommended that you make these disclaimers clear and easy to see. They should be included in both your official rules and the abbreviated rules that appear on all of your sweepstakes advertisements.

Asking customers to buy with your sweepstakes? Request a sweepstakes rules review to ensure that that your sweepstakes or giveaway is legal.

Need Official Rules? Click to Draft Your Sweepstakes Rules

3. Equal Chance at Winning

Every participant must have an equal chance at winning by receiving an equal number of entries.

All sweepstakes participants must receive the same number of entries whether they purchased your product or entered without purchase.

Make sure to include at least a general statement about the odds of winning in your sweepstakes official rules.

Customer-only Sweepstakes Are Illegal for Alcohol and Cannabis Companies

This is an important note for alcohol and cannabis marketers who run sweepstakes and giveaways:

It’s illegal for companies to give away alcohol or cannabis as a sweepstakes prize.

It’s illegal for alcohol, cannabis, and other companies in certain regulated industries to run sweepstakes that incentivize consumption of the product.

Also Read: Running a Sweepstakes for Marijuana or Cannabis Marketing? Our Suggestions…

Why Do Companies Ask Participants to Buy to Enter a Sweepstakes?

There are several reasons why brands ask for a purchase with a sweepstakes entry. Namely, to:

Boost Sales

Sweepstakes give people reason to talk about a brand and its products and services. They also encourage people to visit a brand’s website to learn more about the company’s offerings, and possibly buy.

While not required to win, existing customers and potential buyers may make a purchase before entering a sweepstakes, if they like the brand’s products or services enough.

Gather Customer Insights

Companies that run sweepstakes that ask participants to make a purchase do so to increase sales and brand awareness. They also want insights into how their potential customers think, use their products or services, and spend their time.

These are the brands that most often run sweepstakes that ask customers to buy to enter:

• Subscription-based companies (online subscription to both content and products, subscription boxes)
• Merch companies and platforms (retail and wholesale)
• Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) brands
• Direct to Consumer (D2C) companies

These companies rely on customers making frequent, repeat purchases. They use the results of sweepstakes to make their future advertisements more effective.

Build Customer Loyalty

Sweepstakes also strengthen the relationship between brands and consumers simply by being fun.

They provide entertainment while giving customers a benefit for engaging with the company.

Customers receive sweepstakes entries. In turn, brands receive the sweepstakes participants’ personal information when they enter the promotion and the valuable data in the form of participant sweepstakes survey answers.

Also Read: What to Include on a Sweepstakes Survey

Sweepstakes Purchase Examples

Are you wondering how to do a giveaway with a purchase or what a customer-only sweepstakes looks like in real life? These sweepstakes purchase examples show how brands give away sweepstakes entries to free and paid participants.

Here are 4 examples of how customers can enter your sweepstakes by making a purchase…

while still ensuring sweepstakes is legally compliant:

1. Free Sweepstakes Entries for Active Subscribers

This method of entry is popular among brands who offer online subscriptions to content or products.

Active monthly subscribers receive free sweepstakes entries for each new monthly giveaway in exchange for staying subscribed.

Entrants who want to enter the sweepstakes but who are not subscribed can use the free AMOE and receive the same number of entries as subscribed participants.

2. Insert a Sweepstakes Entry Code Inside Your Product

In order to obtain the entry code for the sweepstakes, customers will have to purchase the product and open the package. This method of entry with a purchase is popular with CPG brands.

Place the sweepstakes entry code on the inside of the product’s label or under the lid (e.g. peel to win sweepstakes, under-the-cap giveaway).

3. Take a Picture of a Purchase Receipt With Sweepstakes Receipt Validation for Winners

Have buyers take a picture of their purchase receipt and upload it with their sweepstakes entry form. Proof of purchase is not required in order to win, but you can ask for it.

Sweepstakes receipt validation only needs to be performed to verify the winner of the sweepstakes.

4. Mail-in Entry or Web Form Without Purchase Receipt for Free Participants

Participants who do not want to buy your product can enter via mail-in entry or web form without purchase receipt.

Do Sweepstakes Have to Be Open to Everyone?

Sometimes companies hold sweepstakes where you have to be a paid member to enter, such as via an online subscription or membership.

Why don’t paid member giveaways violate the no purchase necessary law? Can sweepstakes discriminate?

These sweepstakes take advantage of a loophole: the rules say you need to have been a member before the sweepstakes started. Most jurisdictions will accept that a subscription or membership payment was not a requirement for sweepstakes participants to enter or win.

All eligible participants in the sweepstakes must be treated equally. While federal law prohibits illegal discrimination, in this context, the law means that an entry from any method should be valued equally.

In this case, the payment would have had to been made before the chance to win a prize in the sweepstakes ever existed.

Therefore, this type of promotion doesn’t discriminate against non-members since the promotion would never be made available to them.

With so many loopholes and grey areas, this is why we recommend full-service sweepstakes administration for brands that want to run a sweepstakes with a purchase requirement.

Sweeppea helps you create a fully-compliant, legal sweepstakes. We’ll check your sweepstakes for the elements of an illegal lottery and ensure that it follows no purchase necessary laws.

 CLICK HERE: Request a Quote for Full-Service Sweepstakes Administration

4 Examples of Sweepstakes With a Purchase for Additional Entries

Looking for sweepstakes examples that ask participants to buy to enter? Need examples of sweepstakes that allow multiple entries?

Here are 4 top-performing sweepstakes ideas to help you get started:

Mod2fame

Mod2fame recently ran a car sweepstakes in which the brand gave away sweepstakes entries for every $5 spent on a product in the Mod2fame store.

Sweepstakes entants secured automatic entries to win a pre-owned 2017 Dodge Charger RT. Free participants were able to participate in the giveaway by submitting a mail-in entry.

80Eighty

80Eighty recently ran a sweepstakes where every $1 spent in their merch store equaled 5 automatic entries for sweepstakes participants.

The sweepstakes prize was a Ferrari 488 GTB + $60,000 cash. Free participants could enter via a mail-in, handwritten entry.

Armour & Company

Armour & Company was looking to promote their frozen meatballs at commissary stores on US military bases. The sweepstakes offered $50.00 commissary gift cards to 25 winners.

Participants were asked to upload a photo of their receipt for their purchase of 25oz. Armour Meatballs in order to enter the sweepstakes. Free participants could still enter the sweepstakes by skipping the purchase receipt upload step of the entry form.

TunerCult

Turner Cult recently launched a sweepstakes to boost sales. For every $1 spent at tunercult.com, participants received 50 automatic entries.

The sweepstakes offered a number of main prizes and grand prizes, including a chance to win a 720HP Nissan GT-R and $60,000 cash or $200,000 cash. Free participants could enter by mail-in entry.

Additional Resources

Congrats, you’ve made it this far… So let’s keep going!

Now that you know that all sweepstakes must always include a free method of entry, keep reading to learn more about how to make your sweepstakes fully-compliant with no purchase necessary laws.

For more tips, check out these articles:

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• Can I Require a Purchase to Enter a Sweepstakes?
• Sweepstakes 101: How to Avoid Crossing the Line Between a Sweepstakes and an Illegal Lottery
• Want to Require a Purchase with Your Sweepstakes? Here’s How
• Can I Avoid the “No Purchase Required” Restriction?
• Can I Conduct a Sweepstakes at a Trade Show That Requires an Admission Fee?
• 4 Ways to Promote a Sweepstakes on Consumer Product Packaging

[/su_list]

Next Steps

We’ll have your promotion up and running within 1 week.

In addition to sweepstakes compliance, Sweeppea can help with creating your AMOE, prize fulfillment, winner drawing, and much more.

Our full-service sweepstakes administration will provide everything you need for a sweepstakes that boosts sales and brand awareness.

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

The post No Purchase Necessary Laws: Can You Run a Sweepstakes That Requires a Purchase to Enter? appeared first on Sweeppea Blog.

Boost brand awareness and sales with an instant win sweepstakes. This game of chance lets participants know instantly if they’ve won. Besides the timing and frequency of winner announcements, what are the differences between an instant win game and a traditional sweepstakes? 

Sweeppea offers the option to run an instant win campaign or a traditional sweepstakes. Before you decide which option is best for your promotion, here’s everything you need to know about traditional vs instant win contests or sweepstakes.

How Does an Instant Win Games Work?

Instant win games or instant win giveaways mean that there is no waiting until the promotion ends before a winner is drawn and participants learn whether or not they have won a prize. As a result, instant win sweepstakes entrants find out instantly as soon as they submit their entry. They instantly win.

In contrast, in traditional sweepstakes or contests, participants have to wait weeks or months in order to find out whether they’ve won or not.

The best instant win games also typically involve giving away small prizes that can change daily or the prizes are randomly selected so that entrants don’t know what prize will be available yet. With traditional sweepstakes, there is typically only one grand prize (or several main prizes and a grand prize) that are given away once the promotion has ended.

Why Run an Instant Win Promotion?

Let’s face it, people love instant gratification. For sweepstakes entrants, the choice is obvious: finding out if you’re a winner in an instant win sweepstakes in just a few seconds is much more exciting than having to wait.

There are also many more benefits for brands. With an instant win game:

• Daily entries for multiple prizes means daily traffic
• Sales leads and email opt-ins help you build your customer list
• Increased brand awareness and social media engagement
• Customer loyalty

Before you start creating your traditional or instant win sweepstakes or contest, take a look at what other brands in your industry are doing. It’s also a good idea to use full-service sweepstakes administration to ensure that your sweepstakes promotion delivers the results that you’re looking for.

What Traditional Sweepstakes Do For Brands That Instant Wins Don’t

Participants who are continuously offered the chance to win a prize but never do will burn out at some point. As a result, an instant win promotions like instant win cash sweepstakes isn’t the best option if it’s your only means of building customer loyalty.

When it comes to building brand awareness and customer loyalty, here is where traditional sweepstakes shine. A large sweepstakes prize like cash prizes combined with an elaborate rollout and winner announcement is guaranteed to wow your audience.

It also makes it seem like your promotion is worth the wait, which means that the participants who are most likely to wait for the winner’s announcement in traditional sweepstakes are also your most loyal fans.

Ready to get started? Check out these tips to make sure that you have everything you need run a sweepstakes:

Your Sweepstakes Official Rules Checklist

Here’s What Entrants Love About Sweepstakes and Contests

Business to Business Sweepstakes: 5 Ways to Reach B2B Customers Effectively

What’s the Difference Between a Sweepstakes, Contest, Game, Raffle and Giveaways and Which is More Popular?

Align the Sweepstakes Prizes With Your Goals/Brand

Lastly, before you choose prizes for an instant giveaway or traditional sweepstakes, think about how you can align your prize with your campaign’s goal and brand.

Sure, a $1,000 gift card instant win might bring thousands of entrants, but are they interested in your brand? Aligning the sweepstakes prize with your brand, not only attracts higher quality participants, but it will also help you decide whether to run an instant win game or a traditional sweepstakes.

Sweeppea’s full-service sweepstakes management service provides everything you need to create an engaging and rewarding instant win game or traditional sweepstakes.

Need help with sweepstakes or contest management? Call 305-505-5393 or email us with your questions.

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