It’s no secret that we’re dog mad at Prizeology. Pet parties, pampered pooches, we are those bonkers hound owners that you read about in THE POKE and think ‘who’ and ’why’? However, combine our competition agency mastery with our love of dogs and you basically get the finest advice the interweb can offer on how to run a pet prize promotion. There’s no need to be a pet product manufacturer to get involved, almost any brand or business owner can tap into this pet-ential to engage their customers. Let’s get started.
- Before you begin what is the purpose of your prize promotion? Do you want an interesting Facebook feed? Do you want to improve brand awareness? Your objective will determine which platform and entry mechanic to choose for your participants. For example, if you’re looking to create user generated content, you might decide to run a Pawsome pooch photo competition but if you wanted to increase your social media following, you might opt for a purr-fect pun promotion on Twitter.
- Terms and conditions are needed so consumers are clear on entry mechanic, limitations, prize pool and any other significant conditions that will influence their participation. Don’t scrimp here, and never patch it together from terms you find on the Internet. Invest in a well written set* that you can adapt and use over again for future prize draws. (*yes, we can write these for you).1. Terms and conditions are needed so consumers are clear on entry mechanic, limitations, prize pool and any other significant conditions that will influence their participation. Don’t scrimp here, and never patch it together from terms you find on the Internet. Invest in a well written set* that you can adapt and use over again for future prize draws. (*yes, we can write these for you).
- Do you want your winner to be randomly selected? Then you’re running a prize draw. The CAP code (the UK rule book for marketing communications) stipulates this must be supervised by an independent person or via independent means, and you must also guarantee that everyone who participated was included in the draw itself. A prize draw is a cost efficient and quick technique which allows you to announce the winner without delay after the promotion closing date.
- Do you want your winner to be selected based on skill or creativity? For example, the best costume, or the cutest kitten? If so, this is a competition and entries need to be judged fairly and with input from one individual independent to the promoter (promoter in this instance being you). Again, this is a CAP code requirement, and if you, or your colleagues choose a winner without this input, you will be in breach of the code, and annoy all your participants.
- The outcome of any prize promotion, be it prize draw or competition should be positive. Avoid controversy, therefore. If your campaign requires participants to upload a photo, CHECK THE WINNING PHOTO. I cannot shout this loud enough. Regardless of whether the winner has been selected randomly or judged, you must verify the photo before contacting the winner. It’s a sad truth for any promoter that people cheat. For every 5 genuine photos entered, you are likely to receive one ‘borrowed’ from the internet.
Good luck!
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