3 Reasons to Run a Sweepstakes at Your Next Trade Show

By: Sync Marketing | In: Ask Sync, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Sweepstakes, Turnkey Sweepstakes

Offering big displays, entertainment and food sampling are all effective ways a company can draw people to their booth during a trade show. Today I will discuss an updated version of the typical booth raffle – an online sweepstakes. Below I will break down the three top reasons to run a sweepstakes at your next trade show.  

Catch people’s attention

If you’re giving away a trip, cash or free products/services, you’re sure to turn heads and pique attendees’ interest. When Sync runs trade show giveaways, we provide the client with a QR code to put on all their POP and marketing materials that when scanned links directly to an online entry form. This makes it a seamless user experience. Users will stop, scan and go directly to the sweepstakes site and enter for their chance to win – big! And best of all, we can select winners same day and they don’t need to hang around all day for their number to be called. Go Delta highlighted the benefits in their article by saying, “A study by Exhibit Surveys Inc. found that companies that displayed promotional giveaways at their booth had significantly higher traffic than companies that did not utilize giveaways.”

Boost email opt-ins

For each entry you receive, you can also receive an email opt-in. This allows you to reach back out to all of those who attended your show. You can even send them a surprise and delight offer to everyone who entered as a thank you.

Drive sales

After entry you can provide CTA on the thank you for entering page back to your site. You could even offer discounts after entry to help boost sales. Want to take it a step further? Ask those who entered to sign up for SMS notifications for an additional chance to win!

Sweepstakes are a fast and effective way to obtain the best ROI for your next trade show. Sync provides an all-inclusive package consisting of design, programming, legal and prize fulfillment for your next sweepstakes. We even offer discounts to clients who run multiple trade shows a year. Now that’s a win for everyone! Contact us today for pricing and campaign examples.

3 Reasons to Run a Sweepstakes at Your Next Trade Show

Five Types of Holiday Giveaways to Run

By: Julie Link | In: Marketing, Sweepstakes

The holiday season this year seems to have come around quicker than ever before. As brands prepare to execute their holiday plans, throwing in a last-minute holiday giveaway could possibly create your best ROI all season. Today, I will discuss five types of holiday giveaways to run. 

One – Days of Giving Sweepstakes: Keep up engagement with a day of giving sweepstakes this holiday season. Award a prize every day for an extended period. Allowing consumers to receive one entry a day will increase engagement with your brand. If you promote and/or run it on social, it will allow consumers to see other featured gift items and holiday sales you are promoting because they will be returning daily to enter. In addition, consumers feel as though they have a better chance at winning if more prizes are given away. Try going for the gold and offer a larger overarching grand prize to increase awareness about your giveaway.

Two – Social Sweepstakes: We are all guilty of scrolling and buying on Instagram. Take advantage of this “lazy” way of shopping by running a social giveaway. Ask entrants to follow, like and tag a friend for a chance to win. We would also recommend giving a prize to the friend who is tagged. Need some more tips? Check out this article from Social Media Examiner.

Three – Holiday Wishlist Sweepstakes: There are many fun ways to incorporate a Wishlist sweepstakes concept into your holiday plans. Try asking consumers if they would rather have A, B or C this holiday season. List items with comparable prices and if they win, let them choose which item they want to receive. This also provides you with consumer insight on which products are most popular. Check out this article about running a sweepstakes can help sell products online.

Four – Family-Friendly Contests: If your brand is geared towards children, try running a family-themed contest this holiday season. You could ask entrants to turn one of your shipping boxes into a race car and submit a photo or have a turkey drawing contest. The possibilities are endless, and the concept will help bring families together. 

Five – Photo Contests: Another theme that has endless possibilities. Thank silliest family holiday photos, best captured moment of the year, or even ask consumers to take a photo of their space that they need upgraded. Depending on your brand this is a great way to create a custom promotion specific to your brand that will produce engagement and fun. Need ideas on what to give away? Check out this article here.

It’s the season of giving, so give your consumers what they want – a holiday giveaway! Need more ideas on types of holiday giveaways to run? Contact Sync today for a free brainstorming call. 

Types of Holiday Giveaways

5 Things to Consider When Hiring a Sweepstakes Administration Company

By: Jennifer French | In: Sweepstakes, sweepstakes company, Turnkey Sweepstakes

Your company has made the decision to include a sweepstakes or contest in your marketing plans, now what? You need to find a sweepstakes administration company. There are a lot of elements to consider when running a campaign and it can be overwhelming. You may feel your team is able to handle the promotion in house, but before you make that decision, it’s wise to know some of the pitfalls of going it alone. As I reference in this article, it’s a smart business decision to hire a sweepstakes administration company to guide you through the process and ensure your campaign will run seamlessly. But there are other factors at play as well. Outlined below are 5 things to consider for when hiring a sweepstakes administration company. 

Size

Bigger isn’t always better in this case. Companies tend to work with large agencies because they feel they are “safe” – they have the infrastructure, resources, and experience. Small agencies actually offer the same skills as larger ones but have the advantage that they can work more closely with you to achieve your specific goals all at a fraction of the cost. You often speak to the owners of the company who have extensive experience in the area and a pride of ownership. 

Specialties 

Consider working with a company that specializes in sweepstakes and contests only. Specialized agencies tend to offer focus that some larger agencies often lack. Large agencies work with a variety of clients, and, as a result, tend to use a one size fits all approach which can be diluted. A company that has a grasp on a particular specialty will lead to better results for your campaign. 

Client Relationships

This is a key component when selecting a sweepstakes company. The first test is how quickly did someone respond to your inquiry? Larger firms may have bragging rights when it comes to their roster of clients, but we’ve found that sometimes this leads them to neglect their other clients that aren’t on the “A Team.” Chose a company that feels like an extension of your team and that wants to see you succeed. You should hire a company that is just as invested in your campaign and results as you. 

References

Who better to give you insight on a sweepstakes company than their client references? In addition to speaking to their current clients, I would also recommend asking for a few names of clients that no longer work with the sweepstakes administration company. Also ask for a reference from a client that has or had a similar scope or size to your upcoming project. It’s sometimes helpful to ascertain performance with an apples to apples comparison. Here is an article that lists key questions to ask when talking to an agency.

Portfolio of Work

Does the work speak for itself? Who are their past and present clients? A company should wow you with their most impressive work. Set up a Zoom call and ask to see a capabilities presentation. Also, ask for any current projects that you can explore.  Successful creative campaigns are not limited to agencies with a large staff and big budget. Small agencies are usually more willing to explore creative ways build your business and aren’t afraid to do things differently.

We hope the above 5 things to consider when hiring a sweepstakes administration company helps guide you to find the perfect team. Here is some additional reading to consider before you set out to find the perfect fit. 

Why not consider Sync Marketing for your future sweepstakes and contest needs? Sync is a boutique, award-winning sweepstakes administration company that is ready to help guide you on all the best practices to run a successful sweepstakes. 

5 Ways to Increase Email Subscribers with a Sweepstakes

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

Sweepstakes are a cost-effective tool for increasing your email subscribers. It’s important to note that not all subscribers are created equal. You want people who are truly interested in your brand to sign up. While the number of email subscribers is important, it’s also more important that you obtain subscribers who are truly interested in engaging with your brand. Today I will discuss 5 ways to increase email subscribers with a sweepstakes.

Know Your Audience

Running a sweepstakes specific to your brand will increase engagement and build your email subscribers list with authentic and quality opt-ins. A recent example of this was a dog food company that ran a photo contest where they asked entrants to upload a photo of their dog dressed up in a Halloween costume. The fact that it was very specific to dog owners and thematic to a holiday, lead to quality engagement. It also created fantastic user-generated content as well as increased email subscribers.

Incentivize

Incentivizing entrants to share the opportunity for more chances to win is an effective and free way to promote your sweepstakes. While this could be a separate blog post all on it’s own, it’s important to consider a few factors if you want to incentivize entrants. People inherently want to share things that tell others more about them. That share could be from a quiz result, a charitable cause they hold dear, or anything else that evokes emotion. Try to tie one of these reasons for entrants to share into your sweepstakes concept. One example is to consider running a sweepstakes with a quiz component. People love sharing their results. And if it’s for an extra chance to win, this will increase tenfold. Here is an example of a quiz Sync recently completed for Aerie. 

Offer an Exclusive Opportunity

It’s often all about the prize. Offering an exclusive opportunity is a great way to get many quality entries. This could be a VIP experience at the Super Bowl, a meet-a-great at an awards show, or a red carpet experience at a movie premiere. Last year our client Paul Stewart offered exclusive prize packages. They partnered with a home rental company to give away weekend trips to different locations in New York and added on a custom fitting to their Paul Stewart store in New York.

Share Share Share

A great way to increase engagement and therefore increase the chance of signing up email subscribers is to offer multiple chances to win. Try offering weekly entry periods with an overarching grand prize. When an entrant first enters, give them the opportunity to opt-in. You can also offer them the chance to receive email reminders about the sweepstakes. Each week you will have an opportunity to tell them about that week’s prize, getting them to continuously engage with your brand.

Create a Landing Page

While running a social media sweepstakes is great to collect UGC, you won’t have the opportunity to collect email opt-ins. Therefore, we always suggest running a sweepstakes that has a dedicated landing page vs. a social sweepstakes. Whether potential email subscribers enter on your landing page or just get information about the sweepstakes, a landing page allows you to have a dedicated spot for consumers to get all of the information they need. It also increases traffic to your site. If you are running a social sweepstakes, you can still have a landing page with all of the information in one spot. On the landing page, give entrants the opportunity to opt-in directly on your page to get more information about the sweepstakes and other opportunities.

In conclusion, there are several effective ways to increase email subscribers with a sweepstakes. If you need some ideation help, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for some ideas! 

Holiday Promotions

By: Julie Link | In: Instagram, Sweepstakes

It’s the spookiest and sweepiest time of year! For retailers, the end of October is the time to start ramping up holiday promotions for the season.  And what better way to do this than with a sweepstakes? Sweepstakes are a great solution for retailers because they are cost effective, engaging and produce exceptional ROI. Today, we will discuss the best game plan for running holiday promotions this season.

Type of Sweepstakes

The basic enter to win sweepstakes often produce the best ROI. If the prizing is good and the entry method is simple, it’s a win-win for both customer and brand.

Instagram: If you want to generate some UGC this holiday season, then let your customers imagination go wild by running an Instagram Contest.

Partnerships! Why not partner with a complimentary brand to come up with a fun and engaging sweepstakes. Partnership are great because you receive free advertising from the partner and better prizing. Here’s an example of a fun holiday partnership between Abercrombie and Paper Culture.

Prizing

If you are a retailer, the best prizing is your product. We recommend giving out several gift cards and a larger grand prize. Having more smaller prizes allows consumers to feel like they have a chance to win, while also enticing them with the larger grand prize ($1,000 gift card, a trip, etc).

Consistency!

Our clients customers love it when they run a few during the holiday season. It keeps them engaged with the brand while also feeling as though the brand values them because they are giving away their product. We recommend running a Thanksgiving sweeps, Holiday sweeps and New Year sweeps to keep customer engagement high.

Sync is currently offering a 25% discount for brands who want to run three sweepstakes this Holiday season.  Contact us today for details.

It’s not too late to get started this holiday season. Sync can turn around sweepstakes in less than a week. Please contact us today to get started!

Holiday promotions!

Sweepstakes Company

By: Sync Marketing | In: Advertising, Best Practices, Contests, Facebook, Instant Win, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Marketing, Prize Fulfillment, SMS Campaigns, Sweepstakes, sweepstakes company, Text Message Sweepstakes, Turnkey Sweepstakes

Looking for a sweepstakes company that can handle all aspects of your next online sweepstakes campaign? Look no further than Sync Marketing. Sync Marketing is a Los Angeles-based sweepstakes company that specializes in online sweepstakes.

What we do

The Specifics

Regardless of what type of sweepstakes you want to run, we handle an array of details within every sweepstakes or contest.

Strategy and Management

In this phase of the project, we will go over your goals and ideas and come up with effective solutions for you to exceed your goals. Whether you want to gain email opt-ins or user generated contact, we have the experience and know-how to suggest the right type of sweepstakes for your next campaign.

Design and Programming

Our highly passionate and experienced team of programmers and designers are ready to create a stand out sweepstakes for you. We offer responsive design and mobile-optimized sites to make sure the user experience is seamless for your consumers.

Legal and Prize Fulfillment

This is quite possibly the most important piece to the puzzle. Making sure to hire an agency that specializes in sweepstakes law is integral to the success of your sweepstakes. Especially with social media sweepstakes, because these can be quickly taken down by a social media network if you are not abiding by their policy. Sync Marketing is a sweepstakes company that has got you covered in this area. Not only does our legal team specialize in promotion law, but we attend the latest law conferences and are quite frequently speakers at these events.

Analytics and Reporting

You need to know if your promotion is successful, right? Our programmers provide a 24/7 password protected website so you can access your metrics at any time. We will go over your goals prior to programming to make sure we’re tracking everything you need for your promotion.

Types of Sweepstakes

At Sync Marketing, we offer an array of sweepstakes. Our most popular is our TurnkeySweeps by Sync platform. These are turnkey sweepstakes that launch within a week of receiving approval on the creative. We also run SMS campaigns, instant win sweepstakes, and custom campaigns. If you’re looking for a sweepstakes company who solely focuses  on sweepstakes and contests, then we’re the agency for you. Contact us today for a quote.

Wedding Sweepstakes

By: Julie Link | In: Sweepstakes

As the holidays quickly approach, there’s no doubt that engagements will be abundant. As a brand, running a sweepstakes is a great opportunity to reach out to these newly engaged couples in the New Year. When running a wedding sweepstakes it’s important to know the most effective types of campaigns to run. Today we will discuss the best types of wedding sweepstakes to run that are aimed at the newly betrothed.

Instant Win Sweepstakes

In addition to gathering email opt-ins, running an instant win sweepstakes is a great way to have consumers instantly engage with your brand. Try giving away a number of gift cards a day and then provide an overarching grand prize. This way, consumers will continue to come back to your sweepstakes because they will feel they have a better chance to win. To learn more about Sync’s TurnkeySweeps instant win sweepstakes, click here.

TurnkeySweeps

Turning these newly engaged couples into email subscribers is key. Using Sync’s platform, TurnkeySweeps by Sync, is a great solution if email opt-ins is an important goal of yours. These sweepstakes can launch within a week of receiving approval on creative and are extremely effective at retaining consumers and gathering email opt-ins. They are also a very cost-effective solution. Here’s an example of one.

Surprise and Delight Sweepstakes

If you decide to run a TurnkeySweeps promotion, add on a surprise and delight feature. After entry, offer consumers a discount coupon to your store. We can also send a “thanks for entering” email that includes the discount code in case the consumer closes the window. This is a great option to have entrants engage with your brand and will leave them feeling like a winner. The coupon may even encourage them to register with your store for their wedding gifts.

Social Sweepstakes

Why not encourage consumers to go into your store to take photos with product for their chance to win? This again will encourage entrants to possibly register with your store for their wedding gifts. When running a social sweepstakes, make the method of entry writing a comment that include a hashtag for their chance to win. This will make the sweepstakes go viral and you will obtain great user-generated content. Keep in mind, you will need to provide an alternate means of entry if you are requiring people to go to your store as part of the entry.

If you need additional idea for running a wedding sweepstakes, don’t hesitate to give us a call. We can provide the best plan while keeping your goals in mind.

Sweepstakes and Contest Rules

By: Sync Marketing | In: Ask Sync Marketing, Best Practices, Contests, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Marketing, Sweepstakes

Anyone who has enters sweepstakes or contest has usually noticed a long list of rules and regulations. Some may be put off by all this legal jargon. It’s not just there to protect the companies involved in the promotion, but it is also a helpful tool for the entrant. It outlines very important features of the promotion in one neat package. Different variables of the promotion can change what needs to be outlined in your rules. Today, I have provided a list of some of the items that should be included in your sweepstakes and contest rules:

Eligibility

This section is important in sweepstakes and contest rules, because it outlines who can enter. This should include the geographical location where the promotion is open, i.e. 50 US states. It should also include the minimum age of entrants. Lastly, it should call out the fact that your employees, family members, etc. cannot enter or win.

Timing

This section should outline the exact start date and time and end date and time. Obviously, this is important because it tells entrants their deadline for entering.

How to Enter

This section outlines where and how people enter. Maybe it’s an online sweepstakes. In that case, the URL to the sweepstakes or contest home page will need to be provided. Also, you will need to tell entrants what you are collecting from them, i.e. name, address, phone number, etc. Here is a link to a sweepstakes home page that shows the entry process.

If you are running a sweepstakes where the entry method is on social media, you will need to explain the process for entry. Here’s an example of a Twitter and Instagram sweepstakes.  In addition, this section should outline the total number of entries a person can earn during the sweepstakes entry period. Depending on the complexity of the sweepstakes or contests, this section needs to be drafted with acute attention to detail from a legal standpoint. That’s why it’s important to hire an administrator who specializes in sweepstakes law to identify any additional information that needs to be included.

Winner Determination

This section should clearly outline when the winners will be selected and notified. This helps legitimize the process for the administrator when contacting the potential winners. The entrant can refer to the rules and see that the dates match. It also lets entrants know if they will have to wait days or weeks after a promotion to find out if they are a winner. Patience isn’t always a virtue when it comes to winning a prize, so this will inform your entrants when you will be conducting the drawing so that they have an exact date in mind.

Prizes

This section outlines what prizes you are awarding and their approximate retail value (ARV). This is important because any time a prize has an ARV over $600, it will need to be reported to the IRS. Winners should have fair warning before accepting any prize where they are going to be issued a 1099.

The above is a basic list of things to think about when drafting sweepstakes or contest rules. Keep in mind, there are a lot of other items that need to be included. It is extremely important to work with an agency that knows everything that is legally required to run a promotion.

Sync Marketing’s legal team is constantly researching and staying up-to-date on all the latest legal actions and changes in the field. We also attend the most respected marketing law conferences each year. This translates into invaluable legal counsel and advice for you on all your promotions and will ensure your sweepstakes and contest rules are the most iron clad. Here is a link to some of the legal services we offer at Sync Marketing. Contact us today and we will be happy to answer any questions you may have about sweepstakes and contest rules.

Sweepstakes and Contest Rules

Solutions for Running Cost-Effective Sweepstakes

By: Jennifer French | In: Marketing, Sweepstakes, sweepstakes company, Turnkey Sweepstakes, User Generated Content

When running a sweepstakes, there are a lot of factors to consider. As you start to plan, think of your objectives, target audience, timing, and theme. A major factor that can determine the entire scope of the campaign is your budget. Many marketing teams have the fortune of having large supporting budgets to run their campaigns. Some on the other hand have limited budgets. Regardless, all are in search of running a quality campaign which achieves their goals. Below are a few suggestions for running cost-effective sweepstakes.

Social Media

One cost-effective sweepstakes idea would be to offer your method of entry on one of your social channels. This will require you to create a campaign hashtag to track your entries. It will also require that a full comprehensive set of official rules be created. The benefit of running social sweepstakes is that it can increase your social following and allow you to collect fun user-generated content. These types of sweepstakes however are not ideal for a brand who is only looking to increase their email database. This is because there is no personal data collected from the entrants.

Here is an example of a social sweepstakes that is currently running for REI. In this sweepstakes, they are asking entrants to take a photo of themselves enjoying the outdoors. In order to be eligible, entrants must use both #OptOutside and #Collegesweepstakes when uploading their photo on Instagram or Twitter. Here are some additional reasons to run a social sweepstakes.

Prize Provider

You may not have the actual funds to run a sweepstakes, but you may have plenty of compelling merchandise, travel elements, or services to trade with a company who is already planning to run a sweepstakes. Companies are often looking for a partner to provide the prizing. This allows them to save money, offer compelling giveaways, and it helps their sweepstakes. A lot of time, the prizing that you can offer is at cost so it is less of an investment for your company. In exchange for providing the prizing, the company can feature the merchandise you are providing along with your company logo and link to your website. You should also ask them to collect and provide email opt-ins on your behalf. In exchange, you can promote the sweepstakes on your social media channels and marketing pushes to help promote the sweepstakes. If you are looking to utilize the cost-effective sweepstakes idea of becoming a prize provider, contact Sync Marketing today. We can put you in touch with companies who are looking for this type of partnership.

TurnkeySweeps by Sync

If you are looking for a cost-effective sweepstakes option that is full-service, you should consider our TurnkeySweeps by Sync platform. These turnkey sweepstakes are an affordable solution that can launch within one week of receiving approval on creative. With TurnkeySweeps, not only will you receive programming, design, legal and prize fulfillment at a very competitive rate, our price also includes Sync’s personalized customer service and management. They are a low-cost solution that offers exceptional ROI. Here is some additional information about TurnkeySweeps by Sync.

We know that budget can be a concern for everyone who is considering a promotion. With that in mind, reach out to a team member at Sync Marketing who will be happy to discuss your options and provide pricing that will work for you.

Cost-Effective Sweepstakes

Why Run a Back-to-School Sweepstakes?

By: Julie Link | In: Ask Sync, Ask Sync Marketing, Best Practices, Contests, Legal and Prize Fulfillment, Prize Fulfillment, Sweepstakes, sweepstakes company, Turnkey Sweepstakes

We’re now officially into summer, and while most people bask in that fact, marketers are already looking ahead and making plans for the back-to-school season. This is a prime time of year to focus on consumer loyalty and brand awareness. This is especially true for retailers that carry merchandise geared for children and young adults. Back-to-school sweepstakes are an effective marketing tool to accomplish these goals. Today I will go into a few reasons why.

1. Deals, deals, deals.

This is a great opportunity to provide incentives to consumers to shop your brand. Back-to-school sweepstakes allow you to incorporate coupons and surprise-and-delight offers to consumers. This can be accomplished by offering these deals after they have entered for a chance to win. For example, once they receive the “thanks for entering,” message, offer them 20% off their next purchase. Not only is this optimal for reengagement but its also an invaluable way for you to obtain insights on your consumer. If you find that a high percentage of consumers redeem the coupon from the sweepstakes, then you will know that sweepstakes are resonating with consumers.

2. Consumer Loyalty

It’s a two way street. While you’re looking for consumer loyalty, so is your consumer. By running a back-to-school sweepstakes, you will in turn receive loyalty because you’re offering you consumer something in return. Once you receive their email address, the hope is that these consumers will keep coming back. If you are offering them incentives, like sweepstakes or surprise and delight offers, it’s even a better reason to return to your site. So, after you run that back-to-school sweepstakes, make sure to follow up with a pre black Friday sweepstakes and keep the momentum going! Check out some of our work samples for more inspiration on back-to-school sweepstakes.

3. Showcase your back-to-school merchandise

What better way to showcase your new back-to-school product than with a back-to-school sweepstakes. Through banner ad campaigns, social media posts and in-store POP, you will be able to promote your new products all while promoting the back-to-school sweepstakes.

When running a back-to-school sweepstakes, also keep in mind the prizing for your sweepstakes. Optimal prizing could be a daily awarding of your product or service with an overarching grand prize like cash or a trip. People love to start planning trips as soon as the reality that summer is over kicks in and cash offers consumers some hope of financial relief to offset some of the money they spend to send their kids back to school. To learn more about ideas for prizing and some of the best types to give away, click here.

As this year’s back-to-school season quickly approaches, consider running a sweepstakes. You will be sure to be top of your class with consumers.

Back-to-School Sweepstakes