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It seems like this is the season for contests. And there’s good reason. In this worsening economy, contests provide websites with a cost-effective way to generate traffic, build a mailing list, and gain inbound links. And for the visitor, he gets the chance to win something for nothing (or for very little work).

But there is a skill to creating a good contest. So before you go out and create something that doesn’t work, pay attention to these tips. Otherwise, you might find that your contest doesn’t help you boost traffic at all.

4 Characteristics of a Good Web Contest

1. Entrant Requirements Should Not Be Hard To Meet.

Entrant requirements are the set of criteria which determine whether someone can enter your contest. In most cases, contests or giveaways simply require someone to sign up for a mailing list or newsletter. Sometimes, entrants will have to submit something which is used to judge them against the other entrants. But whatever is required, make sure that it easily allows visitors to enter.

2. The Prize Needs To Be Worth The Effort.

Have you ever seen those contests which require you to complete several tasks to become eligible for a prize which is worth very little? This is a bad contest, because few people will enter.

It is important to remember that a contest does not give an entrant a guarantee. So if a prize is small, there is very little motivation to complete any required tasks.

3. It Needs To Be Well Publicized.

One of the biggest reasons for creating a contest is for the traffic. In order to get this traffic, your contest needs to be well publicized. Some ways to get the word out include:

creating a blog entry about the contest and syndicating it
distributing a press release
publicizing the contest on forums or social networking websites
inviting any contest sponsors to promote the contest
giving advantages to entrants that refer friends or write about the contest on their websites or blogs

4. The Contest Should Run for a Reasonable Length of Time.

We all like instant gratification. So the longer a contest runs, the less likely that it will appeal to many people. So we suggest that your contest not exceed 1-2 months. In some rare cases, contests may run longer, but there should be regular milestones and status reports so that contestants do not lose interest.

Have we missed anything? What other characteristics do your web contests have?

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Tags: traffic generation, website contests

7 Responses to “Boost Traffic With A Website Contest”

Kurt Avish January 25, 2009 at 5:28 am
If I am not wrong I think only once I organized a little competition for fun with no gift and it turn out into a battlefield on my blog
The tips you have given are really good. I got some idea about contests but as you know the main problem is to get the sponsors. The overall popularity of the blog will also determine whether the sponsor will accept to sponsor the contest.
On the other side, I am waiting for a contest on Velvet Blues. I missed the one on Dollar Shower as I was not using GA since December. Waiting for a next one. Contests are really amazing and challenging.
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- Velvet Blues January 25, 2009 at 5:09 pm
  That’s funny. Yeh, your regulars seems to be the type that get rowdy every now and then. Didn’t you recently mention that you edit your comments for profanity?
  Yes, getting sponsors is difficult. As for a contest here, you might see one within the next month or two. But contests do take a while to plan. So don’t expect one too soon.
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Blog for Bloggers January 26, 2009 at 12:25 am
Kind of helps me with my contest planning to see what people (other bloggers) think a good contest consists of.
Right after number 3, 1 is the most important one there. I have turnd away from countless contests just cause it was too much of a hassle to enter. I don’t want to have to jump through flaming hoops and teach a dog to use a god damn toilet to win a blog theme.
lol, before I get any more off topic, nice post…
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- Velvet Blues January 26, 2009 at 1:38 am
  haha. Well said. Too often, contest hosts don’t ask themselves the question: ‘Would I enter a contest like this?’
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Kim Woodbridge January 27, 2009 at 3:27 pm
My contest worked out pretty well for me although I didn’t get as many entries as I would have hoped. But them a lot of my readers know how to upgrade WordPress
I did get some new readers though, which is good. The winner was ecstatic and 3 people took advantage of the discount, which brought in a little bit of extra work.
I did run into problems with people not knowing how to add the link to their tweet in the comments so I just did that for them after verifying it was tweeted.
I would never enter one of those contests that makes you go through 7 steps for a silly prize. It can’t be too much work for the person to enter..
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- Velvet Blues January 28, 2009 at 12:05 am
  Yes, your contest was nice because it worked out well for you as well as the entrants, and it required very little work to enter.
  And yes, I rarely work hard for any contest. Actually, the contest that I’ve probably done the most work for is DollarShower’s SEO Challenge… Although, I haven’t been able to put in much effort, so I’m making a poor showing over there. lol.
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Holy Events March 17, 2011 at 3:16 pm
We’ve had some good contests that worked out pretty well. Planning is key, and knowing exactly how to promote the contest is also key. If your site doesn’t get a lot of traffic and you know this, then get other sites to advertise for you.
Any insight on how OFTEN you should run contests?
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