Simon Rogers reflects on starting a contest by reflecting on his own contest. You can connect with Simon on Twitter.
Blog contests are awesome things to do. Some people think they just get you traffic, but that’s an outright lie. If you set it up properly, running a contest on your blog can lead to massive brand exposure, sharp increases in sales and, well, just about whatever you want to happen.
So, how can you achieve all of these things? Hopefully, if you keep reading then I can give you some great ideas to plan a contest which will help you reach your blogging goals.
Planning is easily the most important part of any contest process. If you get this initial part just a little bit wrong, the success of the whole contest could be in jeopardy, so here are a few things which you should consider when planning your contest.
What Prizes?
The prizes are what will attract people to the contest, so it’s important you make them quality, but also relevant to the participants. For example, if you’re targeting people who blog in the MMO niche, why not give away a WordPress Theme, an eBook, or advertising on other blogs? By giving away something that people can find useful, they’re more likely to participate.
Take my current contest for example. I’m giving away around $700 worth of advertising, and then a custom Twitter background and a blog report. All of these prizes are useful to the people who read my blog… bloggers!
How do I get sponsors?
I’m guessing that you won’t want to shell out hundreds of dollars for prizes… I know I don’t! The way to run a contest whilst not being massively out of pocket is to get other people to donate prizes.
This is where a lot of people seem to struggle; I personally have had quite a few people ask me how I got so many sponsors for my contest. Quite simply, email them and ask. Identify companies/blogs which you think will be willing to sponsor the contest, and just ask nicely. Explain to them why they should donate prizes (tell them about the traffic they can expect to receive, that sort of thing).
When I was sending emails, the key points I used (which attracted ten sponsors) were these:
- You’ll receive a link and paragraph on the contest page.
- I will be promoting the contest like crazy.
- The contest will be run in a points style, where people can earn entries by commenting, tweeting and posting about the contest on their blog.
- You can expect to receive traffic and brand recognition from this contest.
As a result, I received more than $750 worth of prizes in donations, and worked with the sponsors closely when I was setting up the contest. This sort of communication will make the sponsors more likely to help you later on in the contest.
Deciding on the contest format
This bit is arguably the most important part of any contest. My best piece of advice would make it easy and simple to enter, this way more people will enter. For example, contests which are extremely popular are:
- Commenting – After a certain time period, the person with the most comments on your blog wins. This is great as it boosts the comment count on your blog, but at the same time it means you have to do all the advertising as people stay on your blog to enter.
- Retweeting – This one consists of people tweeting a message of your choice (which will contain a link back to your contest page). This one is great as it drives a lot of traffic as loads of people are tweeting your link! Also, you won’t need to advertise the contest as much to get the same level of coverage, as other people are doing it for you!
- Subscription – Contests can be used to boost your RSS count, or to get new people to your list. The thing about this type of contest is that, whilst during the contest you’ll see a massive increase in the amount of people subscribed, people will often leave your list once the contest is over.
- Posting – This basically consists of people doing a post on their blog about your contest. This is awesome for traffic, and also means you get backlinks for you and your sponsors. However, lots of people will be reluctant to post about a contest on their blog (I know I wouldn’t do it).
Either that, or you can do a combination of the above. After all, it’s your contest, so you can decide!
Planning is Crucial
That wasn’t too hard now, was it? If you’d like any more help planning your contest, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me directly via my blog. I’d be more than happy to help!
The Discussion
Leave a Comment Read Again?Nice tips. I’ll be thinking of having a contest on my blog, sometime.
.-= Eric B.´s last blog ..Qualities of a Good Website Design =-.
Great let us know and we’ll try to support it on Blogussion.
.-= Seth´s last blog ..How to Start a Killer Blogging Contest =-.
I’m consfuse. Is this written by SImon or by Alex? Either way. I’d just like to share my experiences on contest. I seldom win. Haha. But what I frequently do is to sponsor them. It’s always interesting to sponsor contest since all you have to do is offer a prize. The buzz and all the promotion is handled by the host and it sort of has an appeal to a lot of people.
Well, I don’t just do it because I want to ride on the buzz wave. There’s also a unique thrill in sponsoring. It makes you more excited (and not bitter. haha) when you find out who won
.-= Liane´s last blog ..Sorry Mom, Dad, I Don’t Want To End Up Working For A Boss =-.
Yea it was a bit confusing, but writing style wasn’t of that of Alex and yea: he said ‘my contest’ so yea we know it’s by Simon.
Yea, that’s so true, it’s really exciting. Moreover. it’s fun to sponsor a contest. People start seeing you as something Big which I totally love. We all love eyeballs (err with the owner, I meant).
.-= King Sidharth in Meditation´s last blog ..Super Creative Mind in 15 Minutes =-.
The article was written by me.
As for your point, I can see where you’re coming from, but I can guarantee you’ll get way more exposure if you host the contest on your own site. Take my contest for example; everyone’s thinking of it as the ‘Teenius contest’, and whenever someone wants to enter they go to my site. Yes, the sponsors get linked out to and will therefore receive some of that traffic, but generally speaking the contest host will get the biggest benefits!
.-= Simon | Teenius´s last blog ..34 Amazing Premium Wordpress Themes =-.
and that’s the reason why I have to come up with a contest of my own before the year is over… hopefully. Haha. Thanks Simon
.-= Liane ´s last blog ..The Simplified Content Writing Cycle =-.
Let me know how it goes, Liane!
I’d love to enter that!
.-= Simon | Teenius´s last blog ..34 Amazing Premium Wordpress Themes =-.
This is super exciting! I was just wondering how you did that and several other blogs I know were hosting such contents. I was really curious to know how you got those sponsors so well thanks to you Simon (and Alex) that I know now.
Thanks for sharing awesome way to have more excitement on the blog. This post is worth a Stumble (and more, only if they allowed me multiple stumbles).
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
Thanks for the stumble!
It’s definately worth hosting a contest if you can – even if you don’t do it often, it can still be an awesome source of traffic.
Last month when I was having a small contest on my blog, my traffic rose dramatically, and then stayed there, so clearly contests drive quality traffic!
.-= Simon | Teenius´s last blog ..34 Amazing Premium Wordpress Themes =-.
If it’s of any help King, here’s my post on “how to find contest sponsors and guides in winning them over”. It’ds kinda old but I think the lesson still is relevant to today.
Hope that’s useful for you, and for others too
.-= Liane´s last blog ..The Simplified Content Writing Cycle =-.
I dunno about King, but I’m saving it.
=-.
.-= Dennis Edell´s last blog ..UPDATE! 4 Plugin Package – 75% Off! PLUS Something Extra From Me!
Awesome post! Wasn’t it?
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
Simon,
That is so cool! I am going to run a contest way soon!
Liane,
First of all, that post was awesome! And yeah, great to see a girl around (really) LOL
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
Hem… thanks for sharing the secret behind that great sponsors. I always have a question about it before read this article.
.-= Dana @ Online Knowledge´s last blog ..Online Knowledge Blog Disclosure =-.
You bet! Before I read it I was like “HOW THE HECK DO THEY GET ALL THOSE SPONSORS.”
Thanks to Simon for reminding me the power of ‘Asking’
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
This a great post. Def have answer few questions I had.
.-= John Paul´s last blog ..6 Simple Steps To Increase Blog Traffic =-.
Fantastic ideas (and love the getting the sponsors to donate prizes too!)! Hope your contest brings in hundreds of visitors!
.-= Barbara Ling, Virtual Coach´s last blog ..Today’s Make Money Tip – Take advantage of 75% HUGE discounts for killer affiliate/blog/Wordpress tools =-.
The thing about contests is that you need a decent prize pot, and those can be expensive. Sponsors are often more than willing to help out, so it’s well worth sending a few emails, that sort of thing.
Also, my contest is doing really well, thanks!
In the 8 or so days it’s been live, it’s skipped to my 5th most popular post ever, so that’s nice. It’s also the second most popular post in terms of comments! 
.-= Simon | Teenius´s last blog ..34 Amazing Premium Wordpress Themes =-.
Yea, I am seeing the progress! It’s like ‘GREAT!’
Congrats man, and thanks (again) for sharing the ‘secrets’.
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
I would love to see a cool blogging contest here on Blogussion, great post guys keep up the high-quality stuff!
.-= Blogger Den´s last blog ..How I made over $200 with a simple blog post =-.
We are in the process of looking into a contest perhaps for our birthday!!! We’ll let you know so stay tuned.
.-= Seth´s last blog ..How to Start a Killer Blogging Contest =-.
Can’t wait! Alex and Seth will have hard time keeping up with all the entries. It will be super exciting.
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
This was a great post! I was planning on doing a giveaway using a combination of the commenting and retweeting method (still have not worked out the kinks yet). I think a lot of people are surprised to learn that the majority of companies do not mind sponsoring contests provided the person running the contest has a clear, concise plan in how they will be promoting the contest. It really is a win-win situation for all involved.
So true! It’s a win-win situation. Also I think it will be easier to get ‘new products’ as prizes from sponsors (if their own) coz they want to get the word out and you are going to go viral so it makes sense.
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
Having a posting contest seems like a pretty good idea. As long as you may get some backlinks you will benefit. Has anyone gotten any success with a blog post contest?
.-= Blog Handbook´s last blog ..Three Ways to Make a Succesful Blog =-.
Hey Simon! Contests are great! They benefit everyone involved, especially the most important part of your blog, the readers. I’ve developed a few more opinions on contests:
1. I’d rather win something tangible than an ebook or free advertising. When something comes in the mail, it feels more real.
2. I’d rather enter into a contest once and have an equal chance to win as everyone else. When winning is contingent upon how many times I retweet an article, I feel like I don’t have a chance to win. At the same time, if I could win something that I really want, then I would devote more effort into it.
What are your opinions on giving away your own products/services?
.-= Nick Tart | JuniorBiz´s last blog ..Don’t Buy a Book Without Finding Where It’s Cheapest =-.
Nick your suggestions for contest rules and guidelines is worth noting for anyone planning to start a contest.
.-= Seth´s last blog ..How to Start a Killer Blogging Contest =-.
True! Sometimes you feel like it’s just too late to join in. Something like, “It’s too late to be on Top Commentators List. I’ll try next time.
Totally agree man. Fair chance is so required. Maybe a mail to regular readers. Well you got to be a regular reader for fair chance, isn’t that fair?
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
If you have a core competency, it’s a great idea to offer your own services as the prize. So for someone like King, he could offer a design element, like a logo or banner.
.-= Gabe | freebloghelp.com´s last blog ..Blogging lessons learned from a failed webinar =-.
Gabe you are right on. Having a specific and monetarized skill goes a long way in a contest and can be very worthwhile!
.-= Seth´s last blog ..How to Start a Killer Blogging Contest =-.
Even if they don’t have a hard skill, if bloggers get creative enough, there’s always something that they can offer.
Contests shouldn’t discount things like a site review, an addition to a blogroll, an endorsement, etc… Those are all valuable to most bloggers.
.-= Gabe | freebloghelp.com´s last blog ..How I get more comments than blogs that have 10 times more traffic =-.
Maybe I’m coming at it from a different angle, but I always try to have contests somehow tie in to my content creation model. As I’ve done recently on my video game fan site, the contest entries were based around readers submitting their opinions and/or their own knowledge of the niche. The often-used quote of “quality over quantity” applies as I’d rather give a prize to a loyal reader who has displayed an insightful comment then to someone who just promoted the hell out of the contest itself or commented the most. As a side benefit, you can then compile all the entries and make a great article out of it for the blog.
.-= Jordan Cooper´s last blog ..Trouble Explaining What You Do For A Living? =-.
I like Jordan’s approach here. Rewarding those that are dedicated to your blog is great.
I can also see why you’d want to set the competition winner on a more broad approach by simply getting others to promote it. I think for a blog that is relatively new and not reached ‘pro’ status a competition where EVERYONE can enter and your blog gets lots of exposure is a good one.
Maybe later on down the track you create a contest where not everyone is going to enter because it will require some creativity from your readers and it will be a best entry wins, not just a random lucky draw.
The best approach I’ve seen is where there is a mixture of both – The main prize will be given to the person with the best entry. Then there are other prizes given out to those that promote etc which is a lucky draw system – anyone can win it.
I’m thinking of having a contest on my blog soon, I’m still working out the prizes and how it will be run. This post has given me some ideas and helpful information. Cheers Simon
Sarge | BeginnerBlogger.com
.-= Sarge @ beginnerblogger.com´s last blog ..How To Apply A Google Analytics Filter For Quality Results =-.
This is a really good idea, Jordan! And I’ve never seen it done before.
Another thing to consider is that you don’t have to give something away to get your readers to contribute to a post. For instance, Bradley Will asked his followers, “How do you know you’re an entreprenuer?” He took the top 50 responses and listed them in a post. Then he contacted all of them and everyone who was included promoted the post.
It’s a quick and easy way to incorporate your readers into a post and encourage them to share it with their friends.
.-= Nick Tart | JuniorBiz´s last blog ..Don’t Buy a Book Without Finding Where It’s Cheapest =-.
Exactly, Nick! Who says you even have to give away anything? It’s natural human behavior to want to be part of a group and get recognition so you don’t even need much more enticement than that!
I think you can get more out of blog contests by integrating it into your content model and creating a snowball effect of production and promotion cycles. Contest to content to discussion inspiring more content, more discussion, more contest participation and so on…
.-= Jordan Cooper´s last blog ..Are You Getting the Most Out of Your Blog Contests? =-.
Nice things cooking here!
This conversation really added to the post.
I’ve seen some blogs giving away a Quality and a Quantity prize. The biggest reason is – bloggers want to make it ‘viral’ but I think that if a loyal contestant wins it than he’ll make it viral for you
+ Holiday Season is best time to run a contest. Don’t you agree?
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
Thanks for the tips for making a blogging contest
Amazing post! I bookmarked it. I have a contest running right now (giving away free game time for your favorite MMORPG) and had trouble getting the word out.
Creating a big and great contest need a lot of money, so I think you would start looking for sponsors, and to get sponsors, you must have a blog with high pagerank, because that’s what sponsors wants, links from a high pagerank site.
.-= Reza@Blogging Guide´s last blog ..100 Adsense Tips – Part 4 =-.
Hi Alex, Your every step is meaningful. I loved this two step “How do I get sponsors? & deciding on the contest format”. I am giving giving special thanks for giving secrete tips behind that get sponsor which was I am looking.
I ran a birthday contest for my blog and the uptake was not encouraging, despite that the prizes offered were very attractive…i’m talking multiple luxury weekend getaways which are pretty expensive when paying from your own pocket.
The requirement was for them to retweet and join mailing list. The problem with my readers is that they’re not bloggers, but tourism entrepreneurs like tour operators, guest house owners etc…all the technical stuff becomes too much for them.
How do I reform them to learn to accept and use the wonders of the interview, besides just reading a blog post?
Twitter is too foreign to them…
.-= Muzi Mohale´s last blog ..I’ve been featured on SA-Venues.com about my hometown Roodepoort =-.
Simon Nice Way Of Promoting Your Blog Contest…btw Killer Article
Sponsors are indeed the lifeblood. When I was holding my monthly comment contests (coming back soon) they were pouring in and it made all the difference.
=-.
.-= Dennis Edell´s last blog ..UPDATE! 4 Plugin Package – 75% Off! PLUS Something Extra From Me!
Thanks for revealing the secret to get sponsors for the contest.
.-= Blogging Tips´s last blog ..How to add three columns to footer =-.
Nice tips.. I m planning for the contest.. trying to contact sponsors..
.-= Rajesh Kanuri @ TechCats´s last blog ..Thank Your Commentators with Thank Me Later Plugin =-.
Lemme know if you need help. Though I am not that much know in your niche but I will do what I can.
If you find enough sponsors for your contest, as you did, and you can market your contest well (I think indeed Twitter is great for that!), then I can imagine that such a content will be a killer traffic source. And if you manage to convert even only a small percentage of the contest-traffic-peak, then you’ve succeeded.
.-= Bjorn @ iCan’t Internet´s last blog ..Blogging: 8 Elements for Grabbing and Keeping Attention =-.
Is getting sponsors really that easy? I imagine one’s particular niche also has something to do with it.
Thanks for the post.
.-= iMark´s last blog ..On serving others =-.
Getting sponsors might not be ‘that’ easy but asking surely is. And asking is the first step.
Niche might affect the nature of the prize. A designer community might like Books or Software (which will be easier and more relevant than adverts) and a cat blogger might give away new cat food (that’d be so easy if you ask.)
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
Finally the secrete behind attracting sponsors is revealed here.
.-= NEELMONEY´s last blog ..Holiday Airfare Deals from my Friend in Paradise! =-.
I know, right? I am getting those ‘wicked’ feelings.
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
I recently started a contest at my blog and although it has garnered a little interest, it certainly lacks some of the points expressed here. The problem is for a blog start-up, getting valuable sponsors is hard.
Bizarrely my contest has brought in a little traffic due to it’s unique nature, so having a very unique idea for a contest seems to be an inadvertent way to boost your blog’s profile.
.-= James Rayers´s last blog ..5 Letter Social Media Domain =-.
Saw your site, and it’s really unique. For a start-up it’s really suggested to start building relationship with related bloggers well in advance. That should be the part of pre-launch. So when you launch you have good ‘friends’ (and I mean it) who will support you in endeavor.
All the best with the contest. Remember to shoot Blogussion a mail about your contents. They might give you a place in their Weird Weekend Series
.-= King Sidharth´s last blog ..World Aids Day – I Will Be Human =-.
You are right, don’t panic and not be shy while you contact sponsors. I have done this and got 5 One Theme V2.0 licenses free for life for my first contest and will keep doing so for my next contests. T
.-= Tinh´s last blog ..What is The Best Performing Banner Size for AdSense? =-.
I haven’t really ever gathered up any sponsors for my contests, I usually sponsor them myself but this is a great idea for any new blogger with a little bit of traffic to grow from. Great post, thank you.
.-= Extreme John´s last blog ..14 Ways to Get More Blog Engage Votes =-.
Your blog is informative,Great tips for planning a contest which will help us to reach our blogging goals.I am also thinking of having contest on my blog.Thanks Liane for sharing such a useful article.
Well, is it reasonable to do a contest if your (actually my) blog doesn’t get more than 10-15 unique visits a day?
.-= Davor Gasparevic@Cheap internet marketing ebooks´s last blog ..Niche/money making ebook #5 – The Law Of Attraction! =-.
Great Tips Yes Contest Gives another power of blogging Boosts Traffic, Readership and Income too.
.-= Gurpreet Singh´s last blog ..Big Mazza Helps to Make Money With their Social Network =-.
Lol, but what am I supposed to hold contest about?
You will understand why I ask this if you check my blog…
.-= Davor Gasparevic@Cheap internet marketing ebooks´s last blog ..Niche/money making ebook #6 – ATV Made Easy! =-.
Totally agree with you that a contest on our blog can lead to massive brand exposure, sharp increases in sales not only get traffic.Good content is the only way for blog improvement.Thanks for sharing ,waiting for your next post.
.-= albuquerque attorney´s last undefined ..(Enjoy 10 returned posts for Christmas) =-.
Wow thanks a lot for giving great ideas to get sponsors for the contest.I will try my best to have contest on my blog too.I got good information and opportunity to learn more.You did great job dude by sharing fabulous things with us.
.-= albuquerque web development´s last undefined ..Response cached until Mon 8 @ 10:32 GMT (Refreshes in 23.96 Hours) =-.
very nice tips. next I’ll try to use your tips to make killer blogging contest
.-= food recipes´s last blog ..Hello world! =-.
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