How Giving Away an iPad Can Boost Your Bottom Line
Until a few days ago, I'd never heard of tech blog Erictric. Now I follow it on Twitter and read its RSS feed regularly. How did the site -- one of countless thousands that cover technology news and trends -- land on my radar?
Simple: It held a contest. And gave away a prize that was guaranteed to generate buzz: an Apple iPad.
For bloggers and businesses looking to attract new visitors, contests are an easy, affordable, and effective solution. I spoke with Erictric founder Eric Calouro about the iPad giveaway: why he chose that prize, what makes for a good contest, and whether the outcome was everything he expected.
Business Hacks: Your site just turned one year old. Is this the first contest you've ever run?
Eric Calouro: It isn't, actually. We've run a few contests before. Such things as business products, exclusive access to software, and the like.
BH: What was your chief goal in giving away an iPad? More Twitter followers? Increased site visibility and traffic?
EC: You know, it was actually just to celebrate our first birthday, but I thought it [would] be wise that I try to get Erictric more Twitter followers. I'll admit it, we've been lax when it came to promoting our Twitter account, so I felt this was a good way to attract more followers. I specifically chose Twitter because it (to me, at least) represents what I call the "domino traffic effect." The more followers we get, the more people (that follow them) see our stories. The money we paid for the iPad was well worth it.
BH: Did the contest achieve your desired results? What kind of traffic boost did you see, if any?
EC: I made it clear to myself that the bottom line with regard to the contest was fun. I wanted to make someone's day. But as a result of requiring [contest entrants] to follow us on Twitter to be eligible, we attracted roughly 800 new followers in the short timeframe the contest was open.
BH: It appears the contest ran for only about two and a half days. Why not stretch it out to attract more attention?
EC: I wanted to give my readers a good chance of winning. Myself, I always hated contests that had thousands of entries and were open for weeks -- it made me feel like I had no chance. I never won those contests.
BH: Now that the contest is over, how do you feel about the outcome? Think you'll do more contests down the road?
EC: The contest was great. We're happy, the winner is happy, it's smiles all around at Erictric. It was an absolute success. As far as more contests down the road, I say absolutely. Of course, I don't think we'll be giving away an iPad every week.
BH: What advice would you give other businesses/bloggers looking to increase their visibility? Are contests an effective, affordable way to do that?
EC: Contests are a fantastic way to increase visibility, although they're not always cheap to set up. They give people a reason to come back and bookmark your website, and that's the idea.
(Interview ends.)
As it happens, I went searching for iPad contests for a post I wrote over at iPad Atlas, and that's how I discovered Erictric -- proof positive that giving away a prize that's Google-friendly is almost certain to drive traffic to your site.
And, hey, you never know: Some journalist might decide to interview you, thereby sending even more traffic your way.
Needless to say, I'm a huge proponent of contests. While a $500-plus iPad might be too pricey for some, you could potentially accomplish the same thing with, say, a Kindle or iPod Touch. Food for thought.
What are your thoughts? Do you agree with me that contests are pure marketing gold? Or do you think they don't measure up to other marketing/PR efforts?