New Update: Boost Social Proof with Reviews & Automation
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New Update: Boost Social Proof with Reviews & Automation
Stacey Corrin
Stacey Corrin
John Turner
John Turner
Let’s be honest, everyone loves free stuff. And during the holidays, people are even more eager to win goodies. That’s why brainstorming Thanksgiving giveaway ideas and running one is a no-brainer for your business.
In my experience, a giveaway can make your brand more popular, attract new customers, and skyrocket sales. It’s a way to say “thank you” to your current customers while welcoming new ones with open arms (and awesome prizes).
That’s why I’m sharing my favorite Thanksgiving giveaway ideas to help you boost sales and spread holiday cheer.
Thanksgiving Giveaway Ideas:
Running a Thanksgiving giveaway can help you generate leads and increase brand awareness. Plus, when people share your giveaway, it expands your brand to a much wider audience.
I’ve seen this firsthand when running giveaways on my own website. They’re like magnets for engagement!
Giveaways are a fun way to improve customer engagement and loyalty. They encourage your followers to interact with you and build a stronger connection with your brand.
And if it’s planned well, a giveaway can boost holiday sales and revenue. Contests have a conversion rate of almost 34%, higher than other content types, making giveaways ideal for increasing sales.
Ready to start planning your Thanksgiving giveaway? Let’s dive in and look at my top creative ideas.
Let’s be real. We don’t all love cooking a big meal, even at Thanksgiving. But everyone does love to eat a delicious Thanksgiving dinner. That’s what makes this giveaway idea a winner.
Imagine winning a complete Thanksgiving feast delivered to your doorstep. Talk about a stress-free holiday!
This prize could include a fully-cooked turkey (ready to pop in the oven) or all the ingredients and easy-to-follow recipe cards for a mouthwatering, homemade meal.
I really like how Prestige ER did its own take on this:
Winners received an uncooked turkey, two sides, and a pie for dessert. And entering was as simple as following its socials or popping along in person.
For your giveaway, you can partner with local grocery stores or restaurants that offer prepared Thanksgiving meals. It’s a great way to promote local businesses and make the giveaway extra tempting.
Promote the giveaway on social media with pictures of a Thanksgiving spread to get people excited. Don’t forget to use a catchy giveaway hashtag so people can follow along and share with their friends.
Want to really wow your audience? Offer them a chance to escape the holiday hustle and bustle (and maybe even the dishes!) with a relaxing Thanksgiving weekend getaway.
This prize could be anything from a cozy cabin in the mountains to a hotel stay in the city or even a travel voucher so the winner can choose their own adventure.
It might be longer than a weekend, but this example from Destination Weddings was a real hit with its audience:
Think about partnering with travel agencies, hotels, or rental companies. They can help you create a fantastic prize package and even cross-promote the giveaway to their audience.
Thanksgiving dinner can get pricey. So give your audience a helping hand with a practical (and always appreciated) giveaway: gift cards to a local grocery store. This way, the winner can stock up on everything they need for their Thanksgiving feast without breaking the bank.
To maximize this giveaway, contact local grocery stores or supermarket chains about a possible partnership.
You could even run a social media contest or offer an extra giveaway entry for those who sign up for the store’s loyalty program. This is a great way to drive traffic to your store and boost your brand awareness.
Want to spice things up? Encourage your audience to unleash their inner chef with a Thanksgiving recipe contest.
Ask participants to submit their most prized, tried-and-true Thanksgiving recipes (the more creative, the better). You could even have different categories like “Best Side Dish,” “Most Creative Dessert,” or “Best Turkey Day Cocktail.”
The winner (or winners) receive a prize package related to cooking or baking. For example, high-quality cookware, fancy spices, or a gift card to their favorite kitchen supply store.
To get everyone excited about this contest, use your social media platforms to collect recipe submissions (photos encouraged). You can even create polls to encourage voting and get people engaged.
My favorite way to do this is using a giveaway tool with an image submission feature. That way, all of your entries are in one place, making it easy to manage. In fact, you can see this guide to learn how to run a photo contest, which has all the steps.
Everyone loves a good slice of pie on Thanksgiving, but only some have the tools to bake like a pro. Give your audience a chance to win everything they need to create delicious pies at home with a pie-themed giveaway basket.
Put together a basket overflowing with everything a baker needs. For example, a classic ceramic pie dish, a high-quality rolling pin, a beautiful pie server for elegant slicing, and a variety of popular pie fillings (classic apple, spiced pumpkin, and decadent pecan).
To make this giveaway extra enticing, take photos of the basket for your social media posts. While you’re at it, share some easy-to-follow pie recipes or even host a poll asking your followers about their all-time favorite Thanksgiving pie flavors.
Alternatively, give away a free pie! It’s a simple approach that anyone can enter while keeping with the festive theme.
Dinner with friends before the official Thanksgiving feast? Yes, please!
This fun and festive giveaway package will help your audience throw an unforgettable “Friendsgiving” bash.
I’m talking about everything they’ll need: quirky tableware, fun decorations, a tasty selection of snacks and drinks, and maybe even a party game to keep things lively.
I really like this approach from Recess. Instead of a full hamper, they offer the chance to win their own non-alcoholic drinks.
To get people excited, use bright and colorful imagery in your social media posts. Highlight the fun, social side of Friendsgiving and encourage people to tag their friends and share their Friendsgiving plans.
Who needs a Friendsgiving crowd when you can have the perfect cozy night in? This giveaway is about embracing those warm and fuzzy vibes that make Thanksgiving so special.
Give your audience a chance to win a collection of items that create the perfect atmosphere for a relaxing night at home. For instance, scented candles with warm, inviting aromas, a super-soft, plush blanket, gourmet teas, and a book to curl up with.
Now, I couldn’t find an example of this type of giveaway for Thanksgiving. However, this example from White Arrows Home fits the vibe perfectly with a cozy bedding prize:
Teaming up with local home goods stores or lifestyle brands is a great way to source unique items for the giveaway and reach a wider audience.
Thanksgiving is a time for family, food, and fun. Help your audience create lasting memories with a giveaway package filled with games for the whole family to enjoy.
The giveaway prize can include various board games for different ages and interests, a few decks of playing cards, and a couple of puzzles.
When promoting this giveaway, focus on the message of spending quality time with loved ones. Partner with local game stores or family-friendly businesses to promote the giveaway and offer additional prizes.
In their post on how to prepare a Thanksgiving game night, Craft and Sparkle have some excellent ideas of what you can include in your prize package.
Want to make a real difference this Thanksgiving? Partner with a local food bank or charity and host a giveaway.
The prize can be a donation made in the winner’s name. This allows you to provide Thanksgiving meals to needy families while spreading the spirit of generosity.
Promote this giveaway by focusing on the charitable aspect. Explain how the donation will help those facing food insecurity, especially during the holiday season. Encourage your audience to participate and feel good about giving back to their community.
This giveaway is a fun way to keep children entertained over the Thanksgiving weekend. Create a prize bundle with materials and instructions for various Thanksgiving-themed crafts and activities.
The kit might include construction paper, markers, googly eyes, and other supplies for making turkeys, decorations, and more.
This example from WooJr was for Children’s Book Week, but you could create something just as fun for Thanksgiving:
Target this giveaway at families with young children looking for easy and engaging activities to enjoy together over the holidays.
Show your appreciation for educators with a giveaway for all the hard-working teachers out there.
This giveaway can feature a variety of prizes that teachers will love, such as classroom supplies, gift cards to educational stores, or even a relaxing spa treatment.
Partner with local schools or teacher organizations to spread the word and encourage nominations for deserving teachers. It’s a great way to give back to those who dedicate themselves to shaping young minds.
Our guide on how to do a gift card giveaway is a great place to start.
Give the gift of culinary knowledge with a virtual Thanksgiving cooking class. Partner with a talented local chef or a cooking school to offer a live, online class where participants can learn how to prepare delicious Thanksgiving dishes.
Focus on a virtual class’s convenience and educational value, especially for those who want to improve their cooking skills or learn new recipes.
Alejandra of Always Order Desert ran a similar giveaway to thank her audience for their support. To enter, all users had to do was leave a comment on the blog post:
Get your audience snapping and sharing with a Thanksgiving photo contest. Encourage participants to get creative and capture their favorite holiday moments.
Maybe it’s a perfectly plated Thanksgiving feast, a candid shot of family laughter, or a silly selfie with their pet wearing a pilgrim hat—the possibilities are endless.
I love the spin that SM Center Ormoc took on this classic giveaway idea. By inviting visitors to snap a selfie on their visit, they could enter the brand’s photo contest.
To get the ball rolling, create a catchy hashtag specifically for the contest and ask people to use it when they share their photos on social media. You can even offer bonus entries for those who refer a friend by sharing the contest with their followers.
Who says the fun has to end after one day? Keep the Thanksgiving spirit alive and kicking with a multi-day giveaway extravaganza.
“12 Days of Thanksgiving” is all about building anticipation and excitement. You can reveal a different prize each day leading up to Thanksgiving.
Get creative with your prizes. You could offer gift cards to popular stores, handy kitchen appliances, cozy home goods, fun experiences, or even larger items like a new TV or tech gadgets.
In this example, Traci Hunter Abramson celebrated the 12th day with a book giveaway. Users had to answer a simple question in the comments for a chance to win.
To keep people coming back for more, announce the theme for each day’s giveaway in advance. Then, reveal the actual prize at a specific time each day to create a sense of mystery and excitement. This will keep your audience engaged and coming back for more throughout the entire 12-day period.
Who doesn’t love a little intrigue? Tap into people’s curiosity and love for surprises with a Thanksgiving mystery box giveaway.
Fill each box with a unique and delightful assortment of Thanksgiving-themed goodies. You could include gourmet snacks, festive treats, small gifts, and maybe even a few fun surprises.
The key to success here is to keep the exact contents of the box a secret. Tease your audience with hints and clues on social media, but don’t reveal everything.
This “what’s in the box?” element will create a buzz and encourage people to participate for a chance to win their own mystery Thanksgiving treasures.
Now that you have some inspiring Thanksgiving giveaway ideas, how do you actually make your giveaway happen?
You could try manually running it through social media or using a basic giveaway tool. But, these methods often lack features, limit your control, or lack customization.
For the best results, I recommend running your giveaway directly from your WordPress website with RafflePress, the best WordPress giveaway plugin. This gives you much more control and flexibility.
You can fully customize your giveaway to match your branding so it looks right at home on your site. Additionally, this method allows you to set up specific entry methods that align with your goals, easily track entries, pick random winners, and integrate with your favorite marketing tools.
This is exactly how Smash Balloon grew its email list by 3,584 subscribers.
To create a Thanksgiving giveaway with similar results, follow our guide on how to do a giveaway in WordPress.
Hopefully, this list has inspired you with plenty of creative Thanksgiving giveaway ideas to try.
Remember, a well-timed, well-executed giveaway can:
So what are you waiting for? This Thanksgiving, give your audience (and your business) something to be thankful for.
Get started with RafflePress today and create a Thanksgiving giveaway that’s a true recipe for success.
You might also like the following guides to level up your giveaway marketing:
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