Hosting An Effective Blog Contest
I’ve seen a lot of blogs that host contests of one manner or another and usually the main motive for doing so is to gain readership. Sounds like a good idea but I figured there must be more involved than doing a post about it and getting good results. I was lucky enough to come across Prizetastic’s How To Host An Effective Competition as it contained certain information that had never crossed my mind.
I mean have you ever thought about the legalities of the competition you are holding? I know the legal aspect of a competion would never have crossed my mind. Honestly the six steps posted by this Aussie blogger, yep us Aussies are a clever lot, could really prove to be quite useful to anyone planning on hosting their own competition.
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Tagged with: Aussie • Competition
Filed under: Blogging Tips
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Hey Sire,
Thanks for that link. I’ve hosted some pretty big contests on my own blog. In fact, I’m running a pretty big one now: http://www.winningtheweb.com/ranksense-seo-launch-contest.php
I haven’t really thought about the legalities as well nor have I written and terms and conditions for my contests. I hope that doesn’t come back to bite me later on.
As for promoting the contest, you’re definitely right. Simply posting about it won’t be enough. It takes a lot of creative marketing and hard work to get it going.
Gyutae Parks Last blog post..Motive Interactive Advent 2.0 Review – Just a Great Interface?
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I don’t usually enter blog contests, but I will have a look at yours. Who knows, perhaps yours will be the one to change my old habits.
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Wow Sire… Thanks for sharing this article.. Gave me quite a bit of knowledge about holding contest on blog. Never thought of that..
Make Money Bloggings Last blog post..Search Engine Copywriting For SEO Without Losing Readability
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No worries, who know perhaps I will hold a contest one day and it will come in handy for me also.
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Wow I am glad to see my comments on finally. Sorry for the trouble Sire.
Make Money Bloggings Last blog post..Search Engine Copywriting For SEO Without Losing Readability
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Sire Reply:
October 14th, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Not a problem Ben and it was no trouble at all. BTW, rather than using keywords could you please use a name in your comments. Thanks
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Well, you and I have been a part of contests, albeit without knowing about it up front, and the prizes have been okay, but truthfully I don’t have much idea how much they were worth. I figure that as long as you’re not giving away $1,000 at a shot you’re probably doing well, even if the regs say otherwise, because you’re probably going to stay under the radar.
Of course, we still come back to that big topic of traffic, don’t we? You know, maybe it’s time to start concentrating on some of those traffic generating ideas and seeing how they work. What say you?
Mitchs Last blog post..Blog Action Day Tomorrow
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Mitch, I reckon it still all comes down to how good your blog is. If you run a crappy blog then not amount of contests is going to make it a good blog. I do not enter blog contests because I just don’t have the patience to go through all the BS to collect all the points needed to win.
Most of them require you to subscribe, but if I like the blog I subscribe anyway, and if I don’t like the blog no contest is going to compel a subscription out of me.
Sires Last blog post..Series II Of Catching Water Drops
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Mitch Reply:
October 15th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
I’m just talking about traffic in general, not only for contests. I think we’d both like our websites to grow; I think it’s a goal I’m going to start shooting for.
Mitchs Last blog post..Blog Action Day Tomorrow
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Sire Reply:
October 15th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Nothing wrong with having a goal mate. I reckon I’ll just hang loose and see what you come up with.
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Mitch Reply:
October 15th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Sure, I’ll do all the work. Don’t break a sweat.
By the way, are the Smileys a plugin?
Mitchs Last blog post..Blog Action Day Tomorrow
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You actually need two plugins for it to work. You can read all about it here.
Sires Last blog post..Series II Of Catching Water Drops
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Sweet timing. Just ended one contest, with plenty more in the plans. :)
Dennis Edells Last blog post..Contest Over: Prizes Coming – Link Love First!
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Cool, I must come over to see how it all went.
Sires Last blog post..Series II Of Catching Water Drops
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Thanks for dropping by! This was actually my first ever contest….I explained the possible confusion in my response :)
Dennis Edells Last blog post..Contest Over: Prizes Coming – Link Love First!
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No worries Dennis, it was probably me that jumped the gun in the first place.
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Thanks so much for the mention…. It’s amazing what knowledge you learn about competitions and how they are run when you spend time every day entering them…….
Of course blog contests are a little different than huge corporate competitions, but the basics are still the same…. Hopefully the info helps some bloggers :)
Prizetastics Last blog post..Stop Sheltering our Children – A Childhood Lesson in Poverty
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Sire Reply:
October 16th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
I think it will and as for the mention, don’t mention it.
It was an instructive post that I thought deserved a bit more exposure.
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There sure are a few key factors that should be in place for an effective blog competition, and these include items such as having reasonable awards and having a general purpose or theme behind the procedure. People are generally favorable to competitions and so there is little reason not to have a blog competition if one desires to.
Armen Shirvanians Last blog post..Spoken/Written Words vs. Intent
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That is so true Armen and while I have held competitions on my games site I have yet to hold one for any of my blogs. Perhaps this may change one day but for now I am quite content following the path I have chosen.
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It’s still not late Sire. Go on and hold a contest on your game site, looking for something interesting to do.
Els
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I reckon I will, when the time is right ;)
Sire´s Last blog post..Dragon Over Skyline With Some Simple Editing
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Aussie, huh? What is it about you guys – do they teach you blogging at school or something?
I ran a little contest awhile back for a couple of AdWords vouchers I didn’t need – not very successful though. Combination of too little traffic, and possibly the prize wasn’t enticing enough. I think I’ll wait awhile before I try it again.
Rodney´s Last blog post..WordPress Roles and Capabilities
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Nah, we are just naturally talented.
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