How Long Should I run a Sweepstakes?

By: Julie Link | In: Best Practices, Contests, Instagram, Marketing, Sweepstakes, User Generated Content

How long should I run a sweepstakes? Once a client determines the benefits of adding a sweepstakes or contest to their marketing plan, this if often the most common question they ask. There are a few important factors when determining the length of time that your sweepstakes or contest should run, so let’s get started.

1. What type of prize are you providing? If you want to provide smaller weekly prizes and a large grand prize, then running your sweepstakes or contest for a month to six weeks is a good amount of time. This way, consumers feel like they may have a chance to win a weekly prize and you will receive many entries because there is a large grand prize tied to the promotion.

2. What is your goal? If your goal is to create hype for a new product or service, then a really exciting short term sweepstakes before the launch of the product or service is the way to go. This way there are a couple weeks of build up (the sweepstakes), then the grand prize is selected on the day the product or service is launched leading to good PR opportunities along the way. The same goes for seasonal sweepstakes. If it’s a Valentine’s day sweepstakes, try to launch it towards the end of January so there is some build up. Then, close the sweepstakes a week before Valentine’s day so that hopefully the winner receives their prize in time for the big day.

3. Who is your target demographic? If you’re running a summer sweepstakes and your prize is a cruise, you want to obtain many email opt-ins, and are gearing it to an older demo, a longer sweepstakes should do the trick. If you’re targeting millennials or younger and are running a user- generated Instagram sweepstakes where you ask entrants to upload photos, then the shorter the better.

To sum it up, most sweepstakes run between 2-6 week, with four weeks being the sweet spot. This allows consumers to get excited and not feel like it’s so long that they don’t have a chance. There are always exceptions to this rule, so if you have any additional questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

Should I Run a Text Message Sweepstakes Campaign?

By: Sync Marketing | In: Ask Sync, Ask Sync Marketing, Contests, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Marketing, SMS Campaigns, Sweepstakes, Text Message Sweepstakes

We have clients come to us all the time and ask if they should try a text message campaign (sometime referred to as SMS campaign) for their next sweepstakes and contest campaign. At Sync, we not only run online sweepstakes and contests, but we can also set up and manage your next text message sweepstakes campaign. You can see some of our SMS campaigns here. Below are a few common questions we have received from our clients.

What is more effective, a photo upload sweepstakes or an SMS campaign?

In our experience, the simpler you make the entry process, the more entries you will typically receive. Requiring an entrant to text an SMS message instead of a photo as their entry is definitely quicker and easier for the entrant. Of course it all comes down to how and where you are marketing the sweepstakes. If you’re asking entrants to text a code word, make sure it’s clearly displayed on your marketing and POP materials.

How do I know if my brand or product would be a good fit for a text message campaign?

As long as you can focus your text message campaign sweepstakes or contest on a theme that is relevant to your brand or the particular promotion you are running, a text message sweepstakes will work.  Keep in mind, the goal of a text message campaign is to allow people to instantaneously enter on the spot, so the goal is to make your marketing materials and POP compelling to consumers with the hope of capturing their entry on the spot.

What should I ask entrants to text in?

The possibilities are endless, but we will go back to our theme of, the simpler the better. You can ask entrants to take a survey, answer trivia questions, or simply text in a code word that includes the name of your brand or product.

How can I get potential consumers to text in to win, but also engage with our website?

It’s easy! Once the entrant has entered the code word or answered the questions to be entered to win, you can include a link to your website in your thanks for entering SMS response. You can entice them by asking them to check out exclusive content, video contest, trivia, games, etc.

How can I be sure the entrants are of the required minimum entry age?

At Sync, we handle the entire text message set up process and will also create all of the necessary legal documents, including the official rules, for your text message campaign. Not only will the rules include the eligibility requirements, but we will be sure to set up an age gate SMS response during the entry process, if necessary. To learn more about the legal services we provide at Sync, click here.

If you have any additional questions about text message sweepstakes, including pricing, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Sync Marketing.

Do I Really Have a Chance to Win a Sweepstakes?

By: Jennifer French | In: Best Practices, Contests, Marketing, Sweepstakes

Picture the scene…you have a five minute break from your busy day and decide to order a new pair of shoes online from your favorite retailer. While on their website you notice that they are running a sweepstakes and the grand prize is a luxury trip for two to Italy. Your mind immediately flashes back to the time one summer in college that you back packed (on a tight budget) across Europe and how you swore you would return some day to this magical place. Could this be your chance? But, then reality sets in and the adult you, who has limited time and lots of skepticism abound thinks, “What are the Odds? Do I Really Have a Chance to Win a Sweepstakes?”

Believe me, I’ve been there as well. On many occasions in the past I’ve seen random sweepstakes that have piqued my interest, but before entering, I stopped for a moment and thought, “Why bother, what are the chances?” Now that I’m on the other side and actually see the inner workings of a sweepstakes, I can say, “Sometimes, the chances can be pretty good!” So good in fact, that there are many people, aka “Sweepers,” as referred to in industry terms, who make entering sweepstakes a full-time job. Here is one example of a site that lists new sweepstakes every day to aid people involved in this very hobby.

But for the average person who may only enter here and there, below are some helpful tips to determine if you should take a shot at entering for your chance to win.

What are the odds of winning? 

Obviously, this is a big factor in your chances of winning. Typically the odds are based on the number of eligible entries received during the sweepstakes entry period. As a good rule of thumb it is always good to check the official rules to see how the odds are outlined. In some instances, companies choose to limit the number of entries or only open the eligibility up to people who are subscribers to their email notifications or to people within a certain age range. You typically have a better chance of winning if it’s a contest vs. a sweepstakes as entrants have to complete a task in order to enter a contest, which often lessens the number of entries received. Also, look for local sweepstakes to enter. There will be less entries than a national promotion so you will have a higher chance of winning.

How often are you allowed to enter?

Building on the odds of winning, another thing to consider is that if it is only one entry per person total you will have a much greater chance of winning than a sweepstakes that allows people to enter daily, unless you plan to enter on a daily basis yourself.  Be sure to read the official rules to see if there are restrictions on the number of entries in order to make sure you have the best chance.

How many prizes are being awarded?

If a sweepstakes sponsor is only offering one grand prize, your chances of winning will be less than if they offered more than one grand prize, or if they are offering several first prizes.  Obviously, the more prizes a company is offering, the better chance you have of winning. You may not win the trip to Italy, but it might be fun to win some of the other prizes they are offering.

Enter a sweepstakes that has a mail-in entry

Because most sweepstakes have been moving online, you have a better chance of winning one that is strictly a mail-in entry since less people tend to enter these sweepstakes.

Now if you do win, additional questions may arise such as, “How do I know this isn’t a scam?  Here is a blog article that may be helpful in this instance.

Want some additional tips? The sweepstakes pros share their tips to winning here.

Whether you take the time to enter or not, of course it is ultimately up to you, but one thing rings true…you can’t win if you don’t play.

Common Questions asked by Sweepstakes Entrants

By: Sync Marketing | In: Ask Sync, Ask Sync Marketing, Best Practices, Contests, Marketing, Sweepstakes

We receive many inquiries during our sweepstakes and contests from entrants who want to know the answers to their questions pertaining to the promotion before entering. First and foremost, the official rules are your friend. The majority of the answers to most questions regarding a sweepstakes or contest will be found here. Below we will go over a few of the most common questions asked by sweepstakes entrants.

Can I enter more than one time per day?

This varies by promotion, but if you attempt to enter more than one time in a day and you receive a message stating that there is only one entry allowed per day, then you have your answer. And, no, this doesn’t mean you can sign up with a different email address to try to enter again as that is against the rules and you will be disqualified.

When will I be notified if I am a winner?

It’s very important to know this information as sometimes potential winners only have 24-48 hours to respond to the initial notification regarding their prize. If you enter a sweepstakes or contest that you’re really interested in, set your calendar to be ready for the call or email from the sweepstakes administrator. At a minimum, the date of winner notification will be listed in the Official Rules in the winner notification section. It’s also a good idea to check your spam folder of the email account that you used to enter on the posted date of winner notification as sometimes email carriers may inadvertently mark the notification as spam.

Why can’t I provide a P.O. Box as my address?

Typically this is because if there is a physical prize to be won, some carriers do not ship to P.O. boxes. Also, it allows administrators, like Sync Marketing, to help prevent cheaters from entering their client’s sweepstakes. You can learn even more about this here. 

Was my entry received?

Sometimes entrants have a computer glitch or their internet goes out during entry. Typically it’s not the sponsor or administrator’s responsibility to look into this as the issue occurred on the consumers end and the hosts of the promotion are not responsible for the entrant’s internet problems. However, if the administrator offers good customer service, and it is something that they can identify, they will look into the entry to see if it has been received, but this process is not legally required in most cases.

How much is the trip worth?

You can find the approximate retail value, also known as ARV for a trip in the prize section of the Official Rules. To learn more about ARVs, check out our post here.

If you’re an entrant or a company planning an upcoming sweepstakes or contest and have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Sync Marketing at inquiries@syncmarketing.net. Come back next month for another Ask Sync feature!

Best Practices for Running Instant Win Sweepstakes

By: Sync Marketing | In: Best Practices, Instant Win, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Marketing, Sweepstakes

Instant win sweepstakes are becoming increasingly popular with brands due to the ever changing habits and valuable input of their consumers. We are in an age where people love instant gratification so what’s better than winning a prize instantly? There are certain best practices for running instant win sweepstakes that we will go over today to make sure you’re running one that will tie into you brand or service and enable you to have the most successful campaign possible.

Prizes that matter: When running an instant win sweepstakes, you first want to make sure you have relevant prizes to give away and a lot of them. If there is only one instant prize winner a week, your instant win game will not be as popular as say one that gives hundreds or even thousands of prizes per week. So be sure, if your budget allows, to give away a substantial number of prizes. If budget is an issue, think of connecting with a suitable partner to offset some of the costs. 

If you can’t partner with another company, it’s important to provide prizing, like branded swag for example, that relates to your product so you know you’re getting entrants who truly care about your brand. Lastly, it is recommended that you offer an overarching grand prize that relates to the theme of the campaign. In the Mopar campaign, they are also giving away a trip to a Sandals Resort, which ties in perfectly with the Smooth Summer Travels Sweepstakes.

Is it Shareable? With all sweepstakes, exposure is key. It’s important when running an instant win sweepstakes that it’s something that would be attractive to consumers to share with their social network. A lot of instant win sweepstakes incorporate games or quizzes. Often time personality quizzes are the most shared, so consider running one where entrants who take the quiz find out at the end if they’re an instant prize winner. Or, think of creating an instant win promotion which partners with a cause or charity that is important to your organization.  Your consumers will really feel compelled to spread the word which equates to a win-win situation!

Knowledge is Power: There is a lot of trial and error when creating instant win sweepstakes, including the programing, legal, registration, and security measures to name a few. To avoid mishaps, hire an agency like Sync Marketing who has extensive experience in the area to make sure you’re getting the most out of your instant win sweepstakes.

The next time you want to run an instant win sweepstakes, try to keep these best practices for running instant win sweepstakes in mind. If you have any additional questions or need help with your promotion, don’t hesitate to reach out to Sync Marketing!

Instant Win Sweepstakes

Questions Regarding Prizing ARV

By: Sync Marketing | In: Ask Sync, Best Practices, Contests, Marketing, Sweepstakes

We are often asked by our clients and blog followers alike a variety of questions relating to online sweepstakes and contests.  We thought it might be informative to highlight some of the questions here once a month in order to offer our insight on a broader scale. This month’s topic specifically relates to questions regarding prizing ARVs.

What does it mean when a sweepstakes refers to an ARV in the official rules?

When you win a sweepstakes prize over $600, you are required to pay income taxes on the amount won. The ARV stands for approximate retail value of the prize. If for instance, the sweepstakes you are entering has a cash prize, your winning income would be the exact dollar amount of the prize. If the offered prize includes non-cash items such as a television, or a service such as a trip, it’s up to the sponsor and/or administrator of the sweepstakes to determine the approximate retail value or the ARV of each prize. For more information on taxes and sweepstakes prizes, see our previous blog post here.

What determines if I need to bond and register my sweepstakes?

The rule of thumb is that if your sweepstakes has a total approximate retail value (ARV) of all combined prizing of over $5,000, you will need to bond and register your promotion at a minimum with the states of New York and Florida. There are also other factors involved where other state or federal authorities may have jurisdiction over your sweepstakes or that your organization may be exempt from this process, so it’s best to consult an expert in the field, such as Sync Marketing, to review your promotion structure and advise you on a case by case basis.

How do you determine an ARV for a sweepstakes at Sync Marketing?

There are several instances where we work with our clients to determine the approximate retail value (ARV) of a prize for a sweepstakes or contest.  If it is an item that our client sells, we will designate the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), which is the amount for which the company that produces a product recommends that it be sold for in stores. Here is an example of how one retailer, Diamond Candles, explained the ARV of prizing in their recent sweepstakes. When determining an ARV for a service such as a trip, we do our due diligence to research the average price of the trip elements to ensure that the ARV is on target.

Check back next month for another topic of interest regarding sweepstakes and contests.  If you have any additional questions regarding this topic or another sweepstakes or contest question, feel free to send them to inquiries@syncmarketing.net and they may be featured in an upcoming blog post.

Sync Marketing: How Do I Run an Online Sweepstakes or Contest?

By: Julie Link | In: Best Practices, Contests, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Marketing, Sweepstakes

You’ve finally made the decision to join many of your fellow companies by adding an online sweepstakes or contest to your future marketing plan. Since you’ve reached this point, you probably are asking yourself, “How do I run an online sweepstakes or contest?” First you need to identify your audience, outline your goals, pick a platform, and assign a budget, and then you might be asking yourself, “What do I do next?” Below is a check list of things that you will need to focus on to get your sweepstakes or contest off of the ground successfully:

• The Concept: The ideation process is very important to make sure that you grab your audience’s attention to get them interested in participating in your campaign.

• The Creative Design: What is the look and feel of your campaign? How will you incorporate your message in the design of your sweepstakes microsite? There are a lot of things to consider during this process.

• The Programming: How do you plan to collect the data entered by your consumers? Are you planning to send thank you for entering or reminder emails to your participants?

• The Legal: Although not as fun and “sexy,” this is one of the most important elements of your campaign. You really need to outline the legal parameters of the promotion and offer entrants clear and concise rules. Also, are you going to need to bond and register your promotion based on state guidelines?

• Customer Service: Did you plan to answer consumer inquiries during the campaign, or provide access to winners lists at the end?

• Winner Selection, Notification and Verification: Playing Santa Claus is definitely a fun part of the promotion, but making sure your potential winners meet all of the sweepstakes eligibility before you award the prize is imperative.

• Prize Fulfillment: The winner has been cleared and now it’s time to deliver their prize. But wait, is the prize over $600? You are planning to send the IRS and the winner a tax form, right?

• The Metrics: So, how did it go? Without setting up the appropriate metrics, how will you know?

This list is just a basic outline of what is needed to run a successful sweepstakes or contest as there is much more involved. Here is another of our blog articles that might also be helpful to get you started.

We get calls all of the time from first-timers looking for information and what steps are needed to create their campaign. It can be initially overwhelming when you hear all of the things that go into putting together a sweepstakes or contest. That’s why we are here to help. At Sync, we will put together a program for you that will clearly outline what is needed and offer services that allows us to manage all or some of your campaign based on your needs.

Sync Marketing: 4th of July Sweepstakes and Contests

By: Julie Link | In: Contests, Marketing, Sweepstakes

Happy 4th of July everyone! In celebration of America’s Independence, we want you to get some Independence of your own! How about some cash to buy that car you have always wanted or how about a trip to the Caribbean? Below we list out some of the best 4th of July Sweepstakes and Contests to help you get your Independence.

Xome Home Remodel Sweepstakes

Get some freedom to decorate your home the way you want in Xome’s latest sweepstakes! Youc ould win $25,000 tor emodel your home.

Valpak Great American Giveaway

Nothing screams 4th of July more than The Great American Giveaway from Valpak. Enter now for your chance to win a trip to our nation’s capitol.

We here at Sync wish everyone a safe and Happy 4th of July weekend!

Sweepstakes and Contest Guidelines: Recent Changes That Could Affect Your Upcoming Sweepstakes or Contest

By: Jennifer French | In: Advertising, Best Practices, Contests, Facebook, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Sweepstakes

When running an online sweepstakes or contest that includes a social media element or endorsement feature, it’s very important to follow the most up-to-date sweepstakes and contest guidelines to make sure your company or client is on the right side of promotion law. For example, recently Facebook made a significant change to their guidelines with respect to sweepstakes and contests, and the FTC has updated a host of FAQs outlining their stance on several topics related to endorsements and social media sweepstakes and contests. Below are a few highlights, but to read the entire FTC FAQ list, click here.

FTC Recommendation for Social Media Sweepstakes or Contests
The FTC recommends that companies running a sweepstakes or contest require all entrants to make it clear that their post on their social media account was an entry into a sweepstakes or contest. They recommend including either “sweepstakes” or “contest” in the overall promotion hashtag required for entry into the promotion. Also noted is that the FTC does not feel using the word “sweeps” is clear enough as they feel that many people will not understand its meaning.

No More Facebook “Likes” for Entries
A recent change in Facebook policy prohibits earning additional sweepstakes entries by sharing on personal timelines or by using friend connections (i.e. asking entrants to share on their timeline to enter for a chance to win, or by sharing on a friend’s timeline in order to earn additional entries, and tagging your friends in a post to enter are no longer allowed). Additionally, all promotions must be administered on pages or within apps on Facebook. Personal timelines and friend connections must not be used to administer promotions. For a full list of Facebooks promotions guidelines, click here.

It is very important to know all of the facts before you begin planning your upcoming sweepstakes or contests. Consider hiring a sweepstakes administrator like Sync Marketing for your next promotion. Our legal team is constantly staying up-to-date on all of the many changes in the field and we will make sure that you are always informed and running legally compliant promotions. Please contact us at 323.596.7962 or email info@syncmarketing.net.

Sweepstakes and Contests: Handle Internally or Hire a Sweepstakes Administrator?

By: Sync Marketing | In: Best Practices, Contests, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Marketing, User Generated Content

We may be a bit biased when it comes to whether or not you should handle a sweepstakes internally or hire an administrator, but we hope the following tips will lead you in the right direction. Whether you’re a marketing agency or an international corporation, these questions will help you determine if you’re equipped to handle a sweepstakes or contest, or if you need to call the experts.

1. Does your in-house legal counsel specialize in promotion law?

Promotion law is very specific. Just recently, Facebook changed its policy to no longer allow entrants to share on Facebook that they’ve entered a sweepstakes or contest in order to earn extra entries. Using a legal team who specializes in promotion law will allow you to stay up to speed on these types of changes so that you know you’re running legally-compliant promotions. You can read more about the policy change here.

2. Does your creative team know how to design mobile-optimized websites?

These days, a lot of consumers enter sweepstakes through their mobile devices and it’s important that your site is mobile optimized to provide the best consumer experience. More importantly, you must have a creative team that understands how to design for a mobile optimized site to ensure your site will run smoothly. It’s also important to know the difference between mobile-friendly, mobile-optimized and responsive sites, and determine which one is best to use for your sweepstakes or contests…but that’s for another post. 🙂

3. Does your ideation team know the difference between a sweepstakes and a contest?

It is not only imperative to know the difference between a sweepstakes, but it’s also important to know which one to run to achieve your goals. Are you looking to obtain user-generated content or are you looking for data capture? To learn more about the differences between a sweepstakes and contests and which one you should run, check out co-founder Julie Link’s article on the very subject, here.

4. Is your accounting team set up to handle winner paperwork and issue 1099’s at tax time?

Whenever the total ARV of your prize is over $600, you will need to obtain a W9 from your winner and then 1099 them during tax season. Your accounting team will need to gather this information during the year, submit the information to the IRS and answer all consumer calls that come after you send the 1099. Co-founder, Jennifer French, has a lot to say about this topic, here.

Hopefully we have helped make the decision of whether or not to handle a sweepstakes internally or not, a little easier. And if you have decided to hire an agency, please give Sync Marketing a call! 323.596.7962.