Freelance Copywriter

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4 Top Reasons Why Online Contests Are An Important Part of Social Media

Social media, however you look at it, is all about having fun. And what better way of having fun online can you think of than contests? Contests are great I personally have a strange affinity for them because they bring people together, they help people know each other better and they are a great ambition tool. Provided that you give away attractive products, you will have no problem gaining an audience and keeping your followers interested in your activity.

4 top reasons for organizing contests on social media platforms

1. Attracting target audience Most of the time, contests on social media have the main goal of attracting more followers. By putting together a Like&Share contest you ensure that people are sharing information about your activity information which then appears on other peoples walls (as is the case of Facebook). If someone who is interested in your activity sees the post, they are going to visit your profile and like your page. And this because they want to win your prizes or because they are simply interested in what you are doing and want to learn more about you. 2. Keeping your followers interested in following you Posting about your latest online activity may become a boring task even for you, not to mention your audience. So make sure that neither you, nor your fans are getting bored on social media this is entirely forbidden. But this is not all. By having contests on a monthly basis you can reward those who are following you just for being there. They support your activity and they deserve to see that you care about their actions.

Bianca Marieta | www.biancamarieta.com

Freelance Copywriter
www.biancamarieta.com facebook.com/marietasblog

3. Great marketing & leverage tool By organizing contests on social media you ensure that your business does not go unnoticed. Whatever the contests topic or its prize, you are going to make a bit of a fuss. Think about it this way: People are always interested in whatever is free. And when they are offered a chance of getting something they like without having to pay for it, they will definitely sign in for your contest. This is how your brand is going to enjoy massive recognition online. 4. They help you know your audience better Chances are that you are just like me: you created a public profile for your business, but at the beginning the only people who like your page are the ones that you know. It is a good thing, dont despair. It means that you know your audience. But what happens the moment more and more people like your page and you dont know anything about them? Well, here is where contests become practical. By having contests organized on a regular basis you will eventually come to know what people like about you. You could even hold a contest with this question: What it is that you like about my activity? Get rewarded for writing a review!.

Why havent I organized an online contest for my followers yet?

As you probably already know, I have a new Facebook fan page and I am thinking about organizing monthly contests once my audience reaches 100 followers. Although at the moment the majority of those who are following me are my friends, I also have some people who are not among my list of friends, which is a great thing. One of the main reasons I have not yet started organizing contests on Facebook is because I dont think that I have an audience that is really interested in what Im posting. I appreciate my friends interest in supporting me, but I find it hard to believe that someone who is working as a teacher (to give an example) will find my activity interesting & will be eager to win my prizes. So for the moment, I truly believe that for me, a contest would be close to failure. Nonetheless, a contest is a great means of attracting more followers and I am definitely going for them as soon as I will consider its appropriate.
Bianca Marieta | www.biancamarieta.com

Freelance Copywriter
www.biancamarieta.com facebook.com/marietasblog

Speaking of which

When is the best time to start organizing contests?

1. At the very beginning of your online presence. When you start your online existence with a contest, there are great chances that you will boost the number of followers very fast and very easy. Therefore, if you have recently created a new fan page on one of the many socializing networks out there, you should start considering organizing a contest to gain more followers. Attention! Be careful what you are offering as a prize, because many people will like your page just to get your takeaway. So focus on giving something that is relevant to your activity rather than something that attracts people from all over the place who have no interest whatsoever in your activity. 2. The moment you reach a certain number of followers. You see, social media contests are not only focused on increasing the number of followers, it is also about entertaining the ones who are already following you. When you start with a public profile on Facebook, for example, set yourself a goal: lets say your goal is to reach 100 followers. The moment you have 100 people following you, you can organize a Thank you! contest and reward your audience. The good thing about this kind of contest is that you dont have do give away a certain type of product like in the first situation. The fans that you already have are there to support you no matter what, so whether or not they are interested in your activity they deserve to be rewarded. This is what I have planned for my audience. At the moment I have 66 followers, so the contest is only 44 people away. 3. On a monthly/weekly basis. Once you have grown you audience and reached a number of followers that you are fine with, you can start organizing monthly contests. These contests can be two-fold: either to attract new followers OR to reward the existing ones (points 1. and 2. of this article). But! What you need to keep in mind is that once youve gone monthly, you need to stick to your business activity. So the giveaways must be relevant to what youre doing.
Bianca Marieta | www.biancamarieta.com

Freelance Copywriter
www.biancamarieta.com facebook.com/marietasblog

Now I pass this to you:

Are you organizing contests? What are you giving away as prizes? Post your answers in the Comments section Im dying to see what youre doing!

Best wishes,
Bianca Marieta

Thanks for downloading and taking time to read this document! I am waiting for your opinions on my website or you can contact me on Facebook.

Bianca Marieta | www.biancamarieta.com