We hear the phrase, “Go Big or Go Home,” all the time, whether it has to do with sports, a leap of faith or just life in general. Lately I’ve noticed that social media campaigns are doing the same – going big. They’re pulling out the big guns not only when it comes to the quality and consistency of posts, but also in the way they reward their Following, whether it is on Facebook, Twitter or a location-based social media site like foursquare. These incentives, whether they’re gift cards, concert tickets or even all-inclusive vacations, are keeping these followers coming back for more and most importantly, engaged with the brand.
I was always a little bit skeptical of these online giveaways; you always have to enter your e-mail address or another form of personal information and I just wasn’t interested. It wasn’t until I actually won something through a social media contest that I became a believer. My first win came from the Fairmount Hotel in Dallas, and I won a prize valued at $1,000 just by following them on Twitter as a part of their campaign to hit 1,000 Twitter followers. A few weeks later, I won Lady Gaga tickets just by Twittering the response to a fashion question from InStyle magazine. After collecting my winnings, I was hooked on the idea of instigating a social media giveaway campaign for a client.
There's little a client respects and appreciates more, than setting a realistic and accurate expectation of the services you intend to deliver. Want to damage your reputation the easy way? Promise someone something you can't deliver on. Chances are, your client is going to keep an eye out for someone new to provide your services. The following is a few basic fundamentals to meeting your client's expectations.
