A primer on Twitter Contests from the Madrona Ventures conference on real-time marketing and twitter on November 19th, 2009 in Seattle, WA. I gave a brief overview of the key benefits of Twitter promotions, case studies, and covered the primary tactical considerations.
2. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Contests are an effective mechanism to build & enhance your Twitter influence
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Why Twitter Contests?
1. Acquire followers
2. Drive traffic or user actions
3. Engage followers & customers
4. Gather feedback/spot research
3. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Moonfruit created a simple, relevant structure that aligned with contest goals
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Acquiring Followers + Traffic: Moonfruit
Relevant prize for target
audience
Participants required to
follow @moonfruit to win
Retweet copy includes link to
landing page (drives traffic)
Dead simple CTA for users to
participate
4. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Moonfruit’s contest was a massive win driving huge spikes in followers & traffic
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Moonfruit Success Metrics
Pre-Contest:
~800 followers
Post-Contest:
30K+ followers
480K+ Clicks to Landing Page
Top Trend
FOLLOWERS TRAFFIC
http://bit.ly/info/96bxC
5. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Big Traffic spike was followed by a sustained increase
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Moonfruit Success Metrics Continued
Pre-Contest 3 month average:
177K monthly UVs
Post-Contest 3 month average:
205K monthly UVs
Traffic data from Compete.com
6. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Contests can be an effective mechanism to drive interaction with followers
• Typical 48 hrs period = 5 @ replies
• During contest = 70 @ replies
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Engaging Followers: Justin.tv
7. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Twitter contests are a quick method to solicit customer feedback
• Incentivized single question surveys
• Responses to product or feature launches
• Start a customer dialog
• Align responses with public twitter data for
deeper insight – location, bio, affinity
• Prize = optional
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Feedback/Spot Research
Good option for B2B
companies with small
follower base
9. --CONFIDENTIAL--
Have a plan to create initial awareness and measure results
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Other Tactical Considerations
Driving Awareness
– DIY vs. Partnership
– Media
– Influencers
Measuring Results
– Follower growth, @mentions, hashtag use, clicks
– Bit.ly, Tweetmeme, Twitter counter, on-site analytics
10. --CONFIDENTIAL--
How could Avelle use Twitter contests?
• Followers?
• Engagement?
• Traffic & Registrations?
• Match CTA to goals
• Keep it simple
• Relevant prize for audience
• Let users be creative
• Partnership with Fashion
bloggers/writers? Celebrities?
• Push in established channels
• Follower growth and participant
demographics (are they targeted?)
• Click through, @replies/RTs
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Hypothetical Use Case: Avelle
STEP 1:
Set Goals
STEP 3:
Promote
STEP 2:
Structure
STEP 4:
Measure
There are 4 primary objectives that can be achieved with Twitter contests….
1.) Acquire followers.
2.) Drive traffic or user actions away from twitter (leads, registration, email subscribe, etc)
3.) Engage followers and customers – a fun activity to get people talking to you or about you
4.) Gather feedback or spot research – incentive response to a question, review a product or feature, etc.
Moonfruit – a website creation tool.
Ran a contest for 7 macbook pros in 7 days.
Excellent execution to drive followers and traffic
Prize was relevant for target audience + timed perfectly with buzz of new macbook launch
VERY simple structure. Either retweet a pre-set copy OR do something creative with #mooonfruit. Open to creativity was beneficial
Retweet copy includes link to drive traffic.
Participants required to be a follower – drives follower increase.
It worked!
Followers went from a few hundred to 30K+
Massive traffic on bitly link – 480K+ in ~1 week
Top Trending topic on twitter
Traffic spiked during the promotion and moonfruit saw a sustained increase. Result of the promotion?? Could be…
increased exposure to the moonfruit brand via twitter contest, trending topic, press coverage, etc
new channel to leverage with 30K+ followers. Assume 2% CTR… increase from 16 clicks/tweet to 600 clicks/tweet
SEO benefit to coverage… links pointing to the promotion from media and individuals
Justin.tv using twitter promotions to engage their community
Goal is @replies and user interaction
Existing follower base of 45K+. Need ways to keep them entertained and engaged with the brand
Increase @ replies significantly during promotion
While this interaction may superficial, it opens the door for further discussion. “Hey, thanks for playing our contest. I noticed you just started streaming… love you channel design ”
Looking for quick feedback or anecdotal data from your followers? Try incentivizing it or making a game out of it.
Flybymusic – favorite song. No prize. Weekly event. Understand user preferences.
We’re working on passively acquiring some of this customer insight/data
Prize value of less than $600 = super easy. No 1099s. No registration. Simple rules stating who can play (country, age, etc) what is required, and specifics about prizes, winner selection, and timeline
Prize value of >$600 but less than $5,000 = 1099s needed for winners of $600 or more
Prize value of >$5,000 = 1099s needed + bonding & registrations in states. Have to be aware of state laws. Florida, New York, and Rhode Island require bonding (this means fees).
Good FAQ of sweepstakes and contest rules can be found here: http://www.readthefineprint.com/mainpages/faq.htm
Driving Awareness… Need to find the initial spark… After that it is about creating a viral loop in the contest structure.
Do you have an established email subscriber list, blog, facebook page, or twitter followers to leverage?
Are there natural partners that have an existing presence with your target audience?
Bloggers, celebrities, non-profits, vendors, customers, etc…
Measuring Results…
Align with primary goals.
During Contest: entries, RTs/replies, participant demographics.
Post contest: did you get Followers or targeted followers? sustained traffic? sustained increase in CTR?
Tools: bit.ly, tweetmeme, twitter counter, your on-site analytics (GA, etc) – tag links and compress w/bitly
One of the great benefits of contests is the BI/reports we see at the end… who entered, timeline, participant demographics, participant influence, etc.
Steps to create a successful giveaway…
Avelle as an example. LV iPhone case? Free week with the bag of your choice? Tweet about your handbag obsession? Handbags vs. Shoes?