MarketingSherpa Blog

After writing a Special Report and a Case Study about online video contests, it’s time to draw a few conclusions about what promotional tactics successfully drive them.

Tactic #1. Incentivize — big or small

To get people to go through the trouble of getting off the couch, grabbing their camcorder and then editing their work, you absolutely have to incentivize. For instance, eBillme allotted $24k in five prize giveaways for their campaign. The investment resulted in 46 submissions in six weeks, spurring gobs of viral and media attention (insert hyperlink to the story when it’s available).

At the same time, after running a pair of online video contests as well as other UGC efforts, Daria L. Colner, Internet Marketing Manager, Columbia Sportswear, says modest, incremental prizes have worked best for her brand. “We’ve seen smaller prizes, such as a pair of boots, get [tons] more entries than higher-dollar incentives. It’s because people think they are winnable.”

Tactic #2. Short videos

Another reason why eBillme got so many submissions were due rules limiting videos to 30-60 seconds. (The policy wasn’t mandatory, though.)

Simply put, it’s smart to encourage short submissions because they are easier to finish. For most consumer marketers (but certainly not all), setting the participation bar as low as possible makes too much sense.

Tactic #3. Fun concepts with strong CTA

eBillme’s “Shopping Confessions” campaign showed what a quirky but relevant theme could do. But, there’s more to it than that.

Colner of Columbia Sportswear adds that the overall concept needs to be strong from big-picture ideas like slogans and themes to smaller parts, such as copy, images, offer, etc. “When the call-to-action is strong, the response can be immediate.”