Running a photo contest on Facebook can be a great way to engage your audience and get more likes, comments, and shares on your page. With over 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook provides a huge platform to gain exposure. Photo contests are visual and interactive, making them perfect for social media. In this article, we’ll walk through how to host a successful Facebook photo contest from start to finish.
Why Run a Facebook Photo Contest?
Here are some of the main reasons to consider hosting a photo contest on Facebook:
- Increase Likes & Followers – Photo contests give people an incentive to like your page in order to enter or vote.
- User-Generated Content – You get fresh visual content from users you can reuse in future posts and ads.
- Engagement – People will comment on contest posts and interact with your page.
- Brand Awareness – With proper use of hashtags and sharing, contests spread brand awareness.
- Lead Generation – Photo contests can collect email addresses and other info from entrants.
- Website Traffic – You can drive traffic to your website by requiring entry there or hosting voting there.
Overall, photo contests allow you to leverage your audience to create visual content and engagement that promotes your brand or product.
Types of Photo Contests
There are a variety of photo contest formats and themes you can use. Here are some of the most popular contest types:
Themed Contests
Ask entrants to submit photos around a specific theme, such as “Dogs wearing Halloween costumes” or “Recipes made with our granola.” Themes focused on your brand or products can work well.
Caption Contests
Provide a photo and have entrants submit funny or clever captions. This works best with amusing images.
Photo Filter Contests
Supply a filter or editing style and have people submit edited versions of the same base photo.
Repost Contests
Entrants repost a photo you provide and hashtag it to enter. Great for user-generated exposure.
Product Photography
Have users submit photos of themselves with/using your product. Gets visual product exposure.
Hashtag Contests
Ask for photos tagged with a specific hashtag. Easy for discovery and aggregation.
Choose a contest format that fits your goals. A themed or product contest works well for branded engagement. Caption contests and hashtags can help with shares and discovery. Provide clear contest guidelines so entrants understand what you want.
Contest Rules and Legal Requirements
Your contest rules establish how the contest will work. They also address important legal and regulatory requirements. Here are key elements to cover in your official rules:
Eligibility Requirements
Spell out who can enter. Geographic location, age, employment, and other limits are common. Make sure any limits comply with Facebook contest policies and local laws.
Entry Period Dates
Define the contest’s start and end dates/times. An entry period of 1-2 weeks is typical.
How to Enter
Explain exactly how to enter, including post privacy settings and hashtags. Specify if there are limits on number of entries.
Submission Guidelines
Detail requirements for the photos: subject matter, size, orientation, filters, etc. Prohibit inappropriate or copyrighted content.
Judging Criteria
Explain exactly how winners will be selected and what criteria will be used if it involves any subjective elements like creativity.
Prizes
List the exact prizes, quantities, and approximate retail values. Describe how winners will be notified.
Rights Granted
State that entrants grant you rights to use submitted photos. Get a signed release if using photos of people.
General Terms
Include any other rules or legal requirements like taxes, liability, cancellation policy, etc. Have entrants agree to the official rules.
Post the full rules where entrants can easily access them, like a blog post or website page. Also provide a summary in the contest post or images.
Promoting Your Photo Contest
To drive awareness of your contest, you’ll need to promote it across Facebook and other channels. Here are some tips for spreading the word:
Post in Facebook Groups
Join relevant Facebook groups and share a post about your contest. Look for groups focused on photography, your industry, or contest prize themes.
Facebook Ads
Run ads targeting people who like pages related to your contest theme and promoting your contest posts.
Hashtags
Research hashtags related to your theme and include relevant ones (up to 10) in your contest posts so they appear in searches.
Instagram and Twitter
Cross-promote the contest on other social platforms like Instagram and Twitter.
Email Marketing
Send a dedicated contest email to your subscriber list with entry details.
Blog and Website
Post an article about the contest on your blog and promote it on your website.
Influencers
Partner with relevant influencers to help spread the word to their audience.
Promote the contest heavily at launch and have occasional reminder posts throughout to keep it top of mind.
Managing and Judging Contest Entries
Once your contest is running, you’ll need to collect and review submissions. Here are some tips for managing entries:
Use a Hashtag for Entries
Require entrants to use a specific hashtag like #YourContestName. This makes finding and compiling entries much easier.
Facebook Albums
As entries get posted, save them into dedicated Facebook albums to keep them organized.
Spreadsheet
Track entries in a spreadsheet with columns for entrant names, Facebook profile links, captions, and any other relevant info.
| Name | Facebook Profile | Photo | Caption |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Doe | https://facebook.com/john | [link to photo] | “Having fun with our product!” |
| Jane Smith | https://facebook.com/jane | [link to photo] | “Doggy loves the new toy!” |
Have Clear Judging Criteria
Use your pre-defined criteria to judge entries fairly and consistently. Bring in others to help if needed.
Notify Winners
Once winners are picked, notify them via Facebook messenger or email. Confirm eligibility before announcing publicly.
Carefully managing and selecting winners helps ensure a smooth contest wrap up.
Announcing and Featuring Winners
You’ll want to announce winners in an engaging way. Here are some ideas:
Winners Post
Share a post showcasing the winning entries and tagging the winners. This is a key part of the payoff for entrants.
Facebook Live
Go live to announce the winners and showcase their winning photos. Interact with commenters during the broadcast.
Facebook Stories
Use Facebook Stories to reveal winners over multiple days to draw out the announcements.
Website and Blog
Announce winners on your channels like your website, blog, and newsletters.
Repost Winning Entries
With permission, repost winning photos to your page again with congratulatory messaging.
Make the most of your winning entries with creative announcements. Feature and interact with the winners in a positive way.
Post-Contest Follow Up
Your work isn’t done when the contest ends. Be sure to complete these follow up items:
Collect Releases
Get a photo release or permission from all winners if you plan to reuse their photos.
Send Prizes
Ship out any physical prizes promptly and confirm digital prize delivery.
Thank Entrants
Post a thank you message tagging all entrants. Also thank partners and sponsors if you had any.
Analytics
Review Facebook Insights and other analytics around contest posts and engagement.
User-Generated Content
Download and collect all the submitted photos to potentially reuse in marketing.
Reflect
Look at what worked well and what could improve for your next contest.
Following up properly gives your contest a satisfactory conclusion for everyone involved.
Facebook Photo Contest Best Practices
Here are some top tips for running successful Facebook photo contests:
- Have a compelling prize related to your brand, like product packages or gift cards.
- Make the contest visually interesting with a fun theme.
- Keep the entry period short, around 1-2 weeks to drive urgency.
- Promote heavily, especially right at launch for momentum.
- Post reminders throughout contest and notify followers who haven’t entered yet.
- Follow Facebook’s contest rules and properly disclose rules.
- Feature user entries on your page throughout via albums or video compilations.
- Share behind the scenes judging and winner selection process.
- Announce winners in a public post and reshare their winning content.
- Follow up with all entrants afterwards with thanks and next steps.
Using best practices maximizes the impact of your Facebook photo contest for engagement, word of mouth, and fun!
Conclusion
Launching a photo contest on Facebook provides a creative way to engage your audience. Implement the steps here to run a smooth contest from start to finish. From defining rules, managing entries, judging, announcing winners, and following up, every part of the process requires careful coordination. Put in the work upfront to set up an effective contest. With compelling prizes and promotions, you can run a contest that converts for your brand.