RafflePress Logo
RafflePress announcement for review actions

New Update: Boost Social Proof with Reviews & Automation

Introducing RafflePress's new leave-a-review giveaway actions. Boost customer engagement and build trust effortlessly by incentivizing reviews in WordPress.
20 Simple Contest Ideas Proven to Promote Your Business

27 Quick and Easy Contest Ideas to Instantly Boost Engagement

Written By: author image Stacey Corrin
author image Stacey Corrin
Stacey has been writing about WordPress and digital marketing for over 10 years and on other topics for much longer. Alongside this, she's fascinated with web design, user experience, and SEO.
     Reviewed By: John Turner
reviewer image John Turner
John Turner is the co-founder of RafflePress. He has over 20+ years of business and development experience and his plugins have been downloaded over 25 million times.

Looking for contest ideas that are quick, easy, and effective?

Running a contest is a great way to get more people to know about your brand and attract potential customers. Studies indicate that contests on social media can help you gain up to 34% more followers and get many people to interact with your content.

But it’s not always easy to think of giveaway ideas that grab people’s attention.

In this article, I share my favorite simple contest ideas to boost engagement and increase brand awareness.

How to Create a Simple Contest

Creating a giveaway contest for your business is easier than you might think. You have several options to choose from:

  • Your own business website
  • Social media platforms
  • Dedicated giveaway websites

While all these methods can work well, we highly recommend hosting your giveaway on your own website. It gives you more control and allows you to use special giveaway tools that make the whole process easy.

RafflePress best WordPress giveaway plugin

RafflePress, for example, is one of the best giveaway plugins for WordPress. It lets you create any giveaway contest from your WordPress site without a complicated setup.

You can start with a giveaway template, then add your prize details and entry options, and embed your giveaway on a distraction-free landing page. Even better, the drag-and-drop giveaway builder is a breeze and offers pretty much every entry action you can imagine, including:

  • Social media sharing
  • Social media following
  • Newsletter subscriptions
  • Website promotion
  • And more

You can also use its rules generator to create simple contest rules quickly.

Follow this step-by-step guide to create an online contest with RafflePress.

Best Simple Contest Ideas for Beginners

Now, let’s look at easy contest ideas you can use to grow your business and increase engagement.

1. Surprise Random Followers

One of the easiest and simplest contest ideas is to pick one of your followers and surprise them with a free gift. It’s a wholly unexpected gesture that shows your audience you value their support.

You could turn this creative social media contest into a regular, monthly contest where anyone who registers for your giveaway is automatically entered into your prize draw. That way, it takes minimal effort for them to take part.

Here’s an example of this type of contest in action from WPForms. They post a new giveaway for their members to enter every month.

WPForms monthly simple contest ideas

By using RafflePress to run their monthly giveaway, they can embed the giveaway widget right inside their WordPress website. Then, it’s merely a case of sharing the giveaway page URL to encourage users to register and enter.

2. Comment to Win

Another of my favorite social media contest ideas is to run a comment contest and choose a winner randomly from all commenters.

Ciro UK ran this type of social media giveaway on X, where users had to leave a comment using the hashtag #tomatotuesday.

Comment to win simple contest idea

While this is a great way to drive tons of Twitter engagement, they could make their Twitter contest easier to manage by hosting it on their WordPress site with RafflePress.

With RafflePress’s “Grow Your Twitter Following” template, you can create a Twitter giveaway with actions to boost your Twitter profile automatically. By default, it includes the option to follow you on Twitter and tweet a custom message.

twitter giveaway template

You can then use the “Leave a Comment” action to encourage users to comment on a specific tweet. Just paste the tweet’s URL and tell visitors to comment to enter. After, ask them to post their comment link to verify they entered.

Leave a comment to enter the giveaway

Taking this approach makes it easier to see who entered your contest correctly and choose a winner. That’s because RafflePress keeps track of giveaway entries inside the plugin.

3. Multi-Platform Campaign

Next is a social media contest idea to get your giveaway in front of your target audience. Host it on your website and promote it on multiple social media platforms.

With social media contests like this, participants can then perform actions such as:

  • Visiting your Facebook page
  • Following you on Twitter
  • Watching a YouTube video
  • Following you on TikTok
  • Posting a message on LinkedIn
  • Following you on Pinterest
  • And more.
social media contest actions

As a result, you can grow your social media followers on more than 1 social network while driving traffic to your business website. It’s also a creative way to connect with influencers.

4. Refer a Friend

Refer-a-friend contests are a fantastic way to encourage word-of-mouth marketing for your business. They work by requiring people to share your giveaway with friends for a chance to win your grand prize.

rafflepress refer a friend entry action

The more people that enter your giveaway, the more that people will see it and also enter. This can significantly improve your contest’s reach and introduce more people to your business from a simple social media post.

Check out this article to learn how to run a referral contest.

5. Simple Photo Contest

This simple contest idea is a great way to collect user-generated content (UGC). Just ask your customers to snap a photo that highlights your product or service and get them to share it.

You can choose the best photo as the winner or pick one at random to keep things fair. This type of contest is an excellent way to engage your existing customers, and it also promotes your brand to new potential customers.

RafflePress has an easy giveaway action to make photo contests like this super-easy.

Submit an image photo contest

You can host your giveaway on your WordPress site and allow users to submit photos using the “Submit an Image” action.

6. Photo Voting Contest

You can make your photo contests even more enjoyable by letting your followers decide the winner for you. It works in 2 stages:

First, run a simple photo contest, as we described above, to create a winner shortlist.

Once everyone has shared their photos, you can create a second contest and ask people to vote for the winner.

This is where RafflePress’s “Polls and Surveys” action can help.

polls and surveys action

Simply upload a photo grid of the shortlisted images and ask people which one is best. They can then submit their favorite through the giveaway widget.

The photo contest winner could receive your grand prize, whereas you could pick a random winner for a smaller prize for anyone who voted.

7. Short Video Contest

Video generates a lot more interest on social media than images, so running a short video contest can skyrocket your engagement. It’s also an excellent way to boost YouTube likes and followers. For a chance to win, you can ask people to film a quick product review, testimonial, or even a funny home video.

Then, they can upload their videos to a video hosting website like YouTube or even Facebook Live and post the link in your giveaway widget.

invent your own giveaway action

The “Invent Your Own” giveaway action in RafflePress is a great way to do this. You can edit the action title to “Post a Video” and write a description asking people to share their video link to enter.

RafflePress video contest ideas for customers

8. Selfie Contest

A selfie contest is one of the best ways to promote your brand on Instagram and other photo-based social networks. They require asking participants to snap a photo or selfie and share it for the chance to win a prize.

selfie contest

Typically, people share the selfie in their Instagram stories or other social media posts. But this is often messy and confusing.

Instead, host your selfie contest on your WordPress website and ask people to upload photos directly to it. That way, you can see all the photo submissions in one place instead of hunting for them on social media.

rafflepress image entries

You can still easily promote your contest on social media. Just publish your contest on a giveaway landing page and share the link with your audience.

9. Pet Costume Contest

Running a best pet costume contest can attract a lot of attention, especially around holidays like Halloween. Pet owners love to share photos of their pets, making this a highly engaging contest.

Pet costume contest simple contest idea

Participants can submit photos of their pets in costumes, and the cutest or most creative costume wins. This type of contest is great for driving social media engagement and can create a fun, festive atmosphere around your brand.

10. Product Customization Contest

Do you have a product that’s easy to customize and make your own? If so, why not run a customization contest? Ask your fans to customize or personalize your product and upload the result via your giveaway app.

Product customization contest

You can then offer a prize to the most creative or original idea or ask your fans to vote for their favorite.

11. Fun Photo Caption Contest

A creative social media contest idea that’s almost always guaranteed to give your followers a good laugh is a caption contest.

facebook caption contest

Caption contests work by sharing an image with your audience and asking them to write a caption. You can then reward the funniest or best caption with your grand prize.

Pro Tip: Caption contests are perfect if you want high engagement with minimal effort.

12. Do it Yourself (DIY) Contest

This simple contest idea is sure to get the creativity flowing, especially if people can use your products in DIY projects. It’s also a great way to get people to demonstrate things they’ve learned from your online courses or webinar.

Create a social media post and ask people to upload a photo of their completed DIY project for the chance to win a prize. The prize could be a high-value gift card for your store or materials to help with their future projects.

DIY design contest idea

You can even turn this type of contest into something requiring more effort by asking users to film their DIY as a tutorial. Then, you can highlight the winning entry on your website and promote it on social media.

13. Logo Redesign Contest

Want to give your brand’s logo a refresh? Here’s a fun way to do it while increasing customer engagement.

Get your fans involved with your brand and ask them to design a new logo for the chance to win a prize.

logo design contest idea

Entrants can upload their designs via your contest widget, making it easier for you to draw a winner. To secure more giveaway entries and increase incentives, you can ask them to share the contest on social media.

If you like, the grand prize could be seeing the winning logo used on your website and other online properties.

14. Blog Post Writing Contest

If you want more people to talk about your brand online, why not host a blog post writing contest? Participants have to write a blog post about your chosen topic and publish it on their websites to enter.

This is an excellent solution for brands looking to promote their affiliate program, and it’s easy to implement with RafflePress.

Simply use the “Write a Blog Post” action and tell users what you’d like them to write. You can then ask them to post a link to their published blog post to qualify.

Write a blog post to enter the giveaway

You can even use these simple contest ideas for work events. You can learn how to run a blog giveaway here.

15. Recipe Contest

Here’s another creative contest idea your audience will love. Engage foodies by asking them to create a recipe using your product. This not only promotes your product but also encourages creativity and interaction among culinary enthusiasts.

recipe contest

Participants can submit their recipes, and you can choose a winner based on creativity, presentation, or taste. This type of contest can help build relationships with potential shoppers by providing them with unique and creative ways to use your goods. You can also add it to your list of simple contest ideas for students.

16. Check-in to Win

If your business has a physical location, you can create an online contest asking people to check in in person on Facebook for a chance to win a prize.

This is a great way to boost your Facebook page’s visibility to new people and engage your existing fans.

check in to win: simple contest ideas

To verify their entry, you can ask contest participants to take a screenshot of their check-in post and upload it to your website via the Submit an Image action.

17. Simple Trivia Contest

This simple contest idea is one that any business can create.

Run a trivia contest where the correct answer wins. If more than 1 participant has the right answer, you can randomly choose a winner from valid entries with RafflePress’s random winner generator.

pick a giveaway winner

But make sure the answer isn’t too easy; otherwise, people can Google to find the answer in a pinch. You should also ensure the question is related to your business to keep people focused on your brand.

18. Guessing Game

Similar to the giveaway above, a contest that requires people to guess the answer to win is a great way to test your fans’ analytical powers and give them something fun and exciting to do.

For instance, you could fill a large jar full of jelly beans, take some photos from different angles, and ask users to guess how many are inside.

The winner with the correct guess could win the whole jar.

guessing game simple contest idea

Try to keep the guessing game relevant to your brand. For instance, if you’re a beauty brand, you could fill a jar with individual eye shadows. Or, if you’re a sports brand, you could use golf balls.

19. Fill in the Blank

Here’s another simple contest idea anyone can enter for a chance to win. A fill-in-the-blank contest is a simple sentence or phrase with a word missing. Users have to guess what that word is to complete the sentence.

This type of contest is super-easy to create with RafflePress.

Fill in the blank contest idea

Just add an image of your phrase with the “blank” to your giveaway widget’s prize image section. Then, use the “Answer a Question” action to ask users what their caption is.

answer a question giveaway action

20. Seasonal Holiday or Sales Contest

Many brands use seasonal sweepstakes and contests to generate excitement for holidays like Christmas, Easter, and Black Friday. At these times, people are usually looking for great deals, so a sales contest is a fantastic way to scratch that itch.

Christmas giveaway contest idea

The nature of your sales contest depends on the season. Here a just a few holiday-themed contests you can run for your brand:

You can use RafflePress for all of these sales contest ideas. To enter, ask people to upload their photos via your giveaway widget. Yet, make sure the giveaway prize you offer is worth the effort.

Here are some more summer contest ideas you might like.

21. Sports Event

Is there a big sporting event coming up, like the Super Bowl or the Olympics? If there is, you can use the opportunity to create a marketing strategy with a sports-related giveaway contest.

sports event contest idea

You can ask people to:

  • Predict the winner of the event
  • Guess which team will score first
  • Predict who will get the most gold medals
  • And much more

After the event, you can randomly choose a winner from all the correct predictions and show the winners right inside your giveaway widget. Dont forget to offer a great prize, like a new product, Amazon gift card, and more.

See our list of the best WordPress event calendar plugins to display these events on your website.

22. Digital Scavenger Hunt

Create a series of challenges that users complete online. Participants can submit photo or video proof of each completed challenge.

Digital scavenger hunt example

This type of contest is exciting and encourages continuous engagement. You can tie the challenges to your brand or products, making it a fun way for participants to interact with your business.

The winner can be the first to complete all challenges or the one who submits the most creative entries.

23. Branded Lens/AR Contest

Platforms like Snapchat now offer branded lenses and AR filters that users can play with. For example, Oreo used these features to create “Oreoji” themed lenses, filters, and stickers.

Oreo Squish Lens

Source

Users could use these features in their daily snaps or unlock a mountain zorbing game in which they dodge obstacles while flying down a slippery slope. As prizes, players won free packs of cookies.

This type of contest is great for connecting with a younger audience and getting their attention with something new and exciting.

24. Co-Promotion

Having a co-promotion contest is an excellent way to collaborate with other businesses and reach new customers. All you need to do is team up with another brand that caters to a similar group of customers as yours does.

co promotion contest

Then, decide on the type of contest, get creative with the prize package they’ll appreciate, and promote it on all your social channels. Boldly collaborating in this way can significantly expand your reach and introduce your brand to new, engaged audiences.

25. Cause-Driven Contests

People are motivated by purpose, which is why so many personal accounts on social media choose a charity for birthday donations.

Charity contest

Generate goodwill from your followers by giving away supplies or funds to a charity that your audience supports. This not only helps a good cause but also enhances your brand’s image and attracts participants who value social responsibility.

26. Milestone & Event-Based Contest

Contests that focus on major life milestones and events can resonate deeply with your audience. For instance, running a graduation-themed contest where participants share their favorite graduation memories or a wedding-themed contest where couples share their engagement stories can be highly engaging.

Graduation milestone contest

Similarly, back-to-school contests where families showcase their school setups or outfits can draw significant participation. These contests celebrate important events in your audience’s lives, fostering a stronger connection with your brand.

27. Product Suggestion

Want to grow your product line but don’t have any new ideas? Why not let your customers decide what you make next?

Run a giveaway asking users what products they’d like you to offer, and reward the best idea with a prize. You could even award the winner with the specific product they chose.

If you want people to use their creativity, have them design the product themselves and submit the image to enter your contest.

There you have it!

We hope this article helped you find some simple contest ideas to inspire your next giveaway and promote your business.

Ready to run your first contest?

You might also like the following marketing tips:

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook for more great tips and tutorials.

author avatar
Stacey Corrin Writer
Stacey has been writing about WordPress and digital marketing for over 10 years and on other topics for much longer. Alongside this, she's fascinated with web design, user experience, and SEO.

Disclosure: Our content is reader-supported. This means if you click on some of our links, then we may earn a commission. We only recommend products that we believe will add value to our readers.

Let's Connect

Join Our Newsletter

Subscribe to get Free WordPress Tips and Resources

We do not sell or share your information with anyone.

Comments

Comments are closed.

Copyright © 2024 SeedProd LLC. RafflePress® is a registered trademark of SeedProd LLC

WPBeginner Verified Badge