Articles
Why Do People LOVE Cash Prizes
When asked what prize they want, most people entering sweepstakes and contests overwhelmingly say they want cash prizes. Why? Why not a trip, or a car, or jewelry? Here are the three big reasons: 1. With cash prizes, you can buy exactly what you want. With most prizes, the sponsor customizes the choices or options for a prize, such as selecting the make and model of the car offered as a prize, or the flights and hotels for a trip. With cash, the winner can control how the money is spent, and whether they take a trip or use the … Continue reading
Mexico Sweepstakes Basics
Are you thinking of running a sweepstakes in Mexico? If the answer is yes, then you should note that the Mexico sweepstakes laws and regulations regarding promotions (e.g., games of chance and/or contests of skill) differ from US law and other countries. We compiled a list of frequently asked questions we typically receive regarding promotions in Mexico that should provide you with some general information during your planning stages. Is it permissible to run a game of chance in Mexico? Yes, as long as the sweepstakes and/or instant win games meet certain requirements. Contact us so we can review your … Continue reading
Ideas to Build Brand Equity in Times of Crisis
Before we dig into the nuts and bolts, let’s define what it means to build brand equity. By definition brand equity is the commercial value that derives from consumer perception of the brand name of a particular product or service, rather than from the product or service itself. Companies use advertising and other methods to build brand equity and make their products more memorable, recognizable, and desirable, over other similar products and brands. Good examples of brands with great brand equity are Kleenex or Pampers, whose brand names are more recognizable than the name of the product they are (facial … Continue reading
6 Creative Ways to Market Your Business on a Budget
Having a small budget doesn’t mean you can’t market your business. Here are 6 creative ways to market your business on a budget to new and current customers! 1. Put a Sign On It When you can’t pay for local advertising, rely on word of mouth and a sign or two. Put a sign in your yard, on your car, in your neighbors’ yards – you get the idea. For a variation on a theme, pay someone to dress as your mascot and hold a sign directing people to your store. 2. Customer Referrals Offering customers some sort of … Continue reading
11 Small Business Social Promotion Ideas for the Shutdown
Small businesses, especially those considered non-essential right now, have to come up with creative ideas to retain loyal customers and ensure that they will have a business to reopen. For most small business this is definitely not “business as usual,” but rather, “business unusual” that keeps you in the black. For each of these small business social promotion ideas, please remember that each social platform has promotion guidelines that still apply and the FTC is still watching to make sure you are running your hashtag promotions legally. For Retail: Make your customers into your brand ambassadors during these challenging … Continue reading
Work From Home Security Tips
In these days of social distancing, lock-downs, and shelter-in-place directives, far more people are working from their home offices, wherever those may be. As always, though, it’s necessary to protect yourselves from potential threats, cyber and otherwise. The following are a few mostly common-sense work from home security tips. Make sure your devices are physically safe (shut down or locked, as with a mobile phone you use to check potentially-sensitive work-related email or messages). Keep them out of sight of children, family members, or roommates that may be tempted to snoop. If you are sharing a computer or device between … Continue reading
8 Creative Employee Incentive Ideas to Inspire Your Work From Home Staff
COVID-19 has turned many companies upside down in how they approach their work and the engagement of their employees. Here are 8 employee incentive ideas to inspire your work from home staff to work harder than ever, even when the new normal is not so normal. 1. Encourage Self Care How are you encouraging self-care for employees that are working from home? Run a promotion on Facebook asking your employees to share how they are taking a break. Maybe it is taking a quick walk outside, throwing in a tub of laundry, taking the dog out, putting dinner in … Continue reading
Prize Fulfillment Considerations for Your Next Sweepstakes or Contest
Prize fulfillment is the part of the sweepstakes or contest that consumers may love the best, but for the promotion administrator there is a lot more involved than putting a prize in the mail. Here are 6 things to consider when putting together a plan for prize fulfillment for your next sweepstakes, contest or instant win game. 1. Prize sourcing Giving away the latest goods, services, and experiences takes planning — and potentially lots of vendors and contacts, especially if an item is hard to find or in high demand. Cars given as prizes need to be sourced locally … Continue reading
Use Unique Codes for Your Next Instant Win or Sweepstakes
Using unique codes can enhance your next sweepstakes, giveaway, or instant win game. With unique codes incorporated into your promotion you can: Provide tracking of entrants back to a region or store. Give your sales team a specific range of codes that can be tracked back to their sales, which can give you the opportunity to reward the highest producers. Pinpoint game participation to a specific geographic area. Determine which products are the biggest drivers in the promotion. Unique codes on printed game pieces given out at stores or on products, or obtained online or via email, can be … Continue reading
McMillion$ and the Importance of Instant Win Game Security
If you aren’t sure why instant win game security is that big of a deal, you might want to watch the new HBO docuseries called “McMillion$”. It details the strange, and almost unbelievable, true story of how an employee at a promotional marketing company called Simon Marketing, a former competitor of Marden-Kane’s, committed fraud in the McDonald’s Monopoly games between 1989 and 2001, bilking McDonald’s and their customers out of $24,000,000 in prizes. The first episode of a six-part HBO documentary series aired on Monday, February 3, 2020. When the story of the McDonald’s fraud case first broke in 2001, … Continue reading
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Recent Articles
- Why Do People LOVE Cash Prizes
- Mexico Sweepstakes Basics
- Ideas to Build Brand Equity in Times of Crisis
- 6 Creative Ways to Market Your Business on a Budget
- 11 Small Business Social Promotion Ideas for the Shutdown
