Engaging customers with Instant Win solutions:
a guide to best formats and practices
reading time 5 minutes
Introduction
People love games and love winning prizes! The combination of these two elements gives companies the opportunity of achieving important strategic goals. Traditional lotteries are very effective in gathering information to create customer databases and increasing web traffic, but two fundamental elements are missing: repeated interaction and instant gratification. This is where the Instant Win Contest comes into play, a real promotional machine capable of improving enthusiasm (for example for the launch of new products) and creating incentives for involved people.
We can then define the Instant Win Contest as an engagement solution that allows companies to increase brand awareness, create a loyalty process and interact with users.
Chap 1.
INSTANT WIN CONTEST: LET’S UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY ARE
Before talking about the various types of Instant Win Contests and what are the best practices to build them in a correct and engaging way, it’s necessary to understand what they are. After all, there are more and more people interested in new forms of competitions and winnings that above all require minimum effort and maximum yield. Instant Win is generally a service that allows you to define a program of draws, which take place instantly and on a multichannel level. We are talking about all those contests where the user has the opportunity of immediately finding out if they have won or not and the outcome is completely random. Therefore, the participant isn’t required to have any kind of skill but for the win can rely exclusively on luck.
Are classified as instant win all those online contests that, for example, with the purchase of a product issue a code to be included in a form or accessed via receipt.
There are no winning codes but the software randomly assigns the winnings.
The software used for user registration is programmed to assign a predefined number of prizes and have a declaration of compliance for the award of the win, without the need of a notary.
Now, you are probably wondering how to recognize or communicate this type of contest. Online Instant Wins are usually promoted through advertising banners or links shared on web sites, social networks, blogs, forums, with a claim that invites web users to participate by announcing the awards.
Chap 2.
INSTANT WIN OFFERS BENEFITS TO COMPANIES AND CUSTOMERS
The Instant Win Contest can have a positive impact on a company’s communication strategy and allows it to achieve various objectives. Let’s think about the word of mouth they can generate and the visibility a company would get. So, we are talking about brand awareness, but there’s more. Thanks to the Instant Win Contest, brands can promote new products or services, encourage the community to take action and engage in specific activities, improve lead generation to acquire new customers and win their trust. Just like Mustela did for her 70th birthday. With the creation and launch of a Buy&Win contest, the brand has managed to involve more than 11,700 people and generate more than 2,200 new leads. Thanks to a form that allows access to the competition, the company had the opportunity of earning new contacts in target and activating conversion strategies to turn them into loyal customers. Improving lead generation is definitely among the most important advantages of an instant win contest, but the benefits don’t end here.
Increased traffic on the website
By creating an Instant Win contest and placing the game on the company website, the visits to it will increase exponentially. Let’s imagine that the competition offers users the possibility of participating several times (once a day, unlimited entry, etc.). This is the perfect opportunity to increase traffic on your website. In addition, if the prize offered is relevant and related to the company, useres who will visit the site to participate in the competition will represent exactly your target audience.
Instant gratification
The answer to the question “what are consumers looking for today?” is surely immediacy. For this reason, Instant Win contests are a really effective tool to satisfy your users. The possibility of immediately knowing the outcome of the competition triggers in the participant a sense of euphoria that is not common to traditional lotteries. Instant gratification is a distinctive aspect of the Instant Win contest, since it pushes the user to participate voluntarily. Why? The reason is simple: no effort or commitment is required, the data requested are simple and shareable, the result is immediately verifiable.
Virality potential
Making your content go viral is one of the goals behind any communication and marketing strategy. Content is viral when it generates such strong word of mouth that the company could stop any sponsorship of the content because users voluntarily promote the initiative.
More interaction
Everyone loves fun! And having the opportunity of having fun while winning a prize is even better. Incorporating a game into the Instant Win contest is a great way to increase interactivity by providing an activity that is more appealing to the public than simply asking them to type in their name and email address into a form. In addition to the allure of a fun game enticing more entries, it can also make participants more likely to share the promotion by challenging friends and family via posts on social media.
Chap 3.
BEST PRACTICES
So, now you know that Instant Win solutions can actually benefit your company. But how should you implement them in your business? Are there any guidelines to follow to leverage them and choose the best format according to customers’ needs?
In this paragraph we want to share with you some best practices that may help you in adopting Instant Win solutions in an efficient way.
Let’s start!
Avoid delays and clearly describe the entry process
Instant Win are competitions regulated by the law. If consumers find out that they have won a prize with delay, this is something you could be prosecuted for.
Especially if participants have to go online to find out if they have won or not, it is best to specify that. For example, you could use claims such as “type your code online to instantly find out if you have won” or a simple “online instant win” could be a great idea.
Explain how prizes are allocated
Sometimes, explaining that the full terms and conditions of the Instant Win are available on the company website it is not sufficient. In fact, participants could still be confused about the process. In this case it is better to base the advertising process of the Instant Win on a clear and simple communication. Define and tell from the beginning how prizes will be allocated, because this kind of information could actually influence consumers’ participation.
Don’t exaggerate consumers chances of winning
Be sure that the campaign you use to advertise your Instant Win would mislead eventual participants by exaggerating their chances of winning a prize.
Some Instant Win are based on algorithms that randomly choose the winner. So not all prizes will be awarded eventually. To avoid creating an exaggerated impression of customers’ chances of winning, it is best to clearly inform consumers on how likely they are to win. For example, you could explain how winners will be chosen and what is the number of prizes that will be awarded.
Chap 4.
DON’T YOU KNOW WHERE TO START? LET US HELP YOU!
Bit2win’s offer consists in an Omnichannel Sales Suite that guides companies through their digital transformation journey. Its components are three platforms made of modular and tailored solutions, ready to satisfy any business need.
The Engage Platform is what you need to improve Customer Engagement and generate new leads and it’s the one that offers different formats of Instant Win solutions.
We guarantee you contests within Italian, European and worldwide legal regulations, in line with general data protection regulation (GDPR) and with a custom creative approach for websites and landing pages, based on your brand’s graphics.
Take a look at what we offer:
4.1 Buy&Win
Buy&Win is one of the most popular Instant Win contests. Why? Because it helps companies reach goals such as lead generation, sales growth and customer loyalty while satisfying and engaging clients.
With our Buy & Win module, the participants can upload their receipt after a purchase and discover whether they have won a reward right away.
Here’s how it works:
- Your customer can upload their receipt immediately after shopping;
- After uploading the receipt, the participant immediately discovers whether they have won a reward;
- Send out a personalized email with all information about how to receive the reward
Bit2win’s Buy&Win module is:
- BASED ON OCR TECHNOLOGY:
The Optical Character Recognition technology reads and validates customer receipts; - EASY TO EMBED:
The module is easily embeddable into your website, landing page and WhatsApp account; - A CERTIFIED SOFTWARE:
Prizes are randomly assigned by our certified Instant Win software
4.2 Instant Games
Here at Bit2win we don’t just talk about Customer Engagement, but also about Gamification.
Gamification means adding gaming elements and activities to the customer
experience, since they manage to motivate more consumers to get in touch with the brand.
These gamification solutions automatically distribute randomized instant rewards and benefits and include:
- SCRATCH & WIN:
You can create a personalized scratchable digital card and let your participants win rewards instantly. Users fill out a form inserting personal data, then they “scratch” away on the virtual card using their finger or cursor and they immediately find out whether they have won through a message.
- RUSH & WIN:
First come, first serve! With this format you can generate new leads and reward the fastest participants with exciting prizes.
Users receive a call to action to participate in the Rush & Win contest, then they can fill out a form and try to be the first to win the prize and they immediately discover if they were fast enough to win or not. - SPIN & WIN:
Who doesn’t love the spin of fortune?
Users fill out a form inserting personal data, then they “spin” the virtual wheel and wait for it to land on specific fields to which prices have been assigned. Eventually, they instantly discover whether they have won through a message.
Bit2win Instant Games offer you:
- CONTEST MANAGER:
A contest manager dashboard with rule engine for a quick and easy Instant Win configuration; - EASY TO EMBED SOLUTION:
All modules are easily embeddable into your website, blog, or landing page; - CERTIFIED SOFTWARE:
Prizes are randomly assigned by our certified Instant Win software
4.3 Instant Poll
We saw how Customer Engagement activities help companies to meet clients’ needs and important business goals. But some of them actually do a lot more.
It is the case of our Instant Poll module. It sounds like a simple solution and it really is, but it can help you do the most important thing customers expect from you: listening to them! Every customer has a specific need and wants to be heard. Demonstrating you can do this makes you look really caring and efficient.
With Bit2win Instant Poll solution you can incentivize participants to partake in polls and express their opinions, making them feel heard and rewarding them for their efforts with exciting prizes. In addition to them, you will use this solution to make user profiling activity easier.
How does it work?
- Let your participants choose their answers according to their preferences. Offer them two or multiple options to choose from;
- Using a social media log-in, the participants can register quickly and with zero effort;
- They instantly discover whether they have won a reward and how to obtain it
4.4 Instant Quiz
Last but not least, Instant Quiz could be a great engaging activity to both know your customers better and strengthen their relationship with your brand.
With Bit2win Instant Quiz module you can gain insights on your leads through personalized questions. Your participants answer questions and in exchange receive exciting rewards and benefits.
How does it work?
- Let your participants answer questions and showcase their knowledge. Include images and videos;
- Create an online form that your participants have to fill out. It’s fast, easy, and supplies you with all the data and the information you need;
- They discover instantly whether they have won a reward and how to obtain it
Want to surprise your customers and improve your sales?
We will help you stand out from your competitors and choose the best fitting and innovative solutions in our offer.
Get to know more about our Engage Platform
