Engagement describes the heart of the interactive marketing value proposition, a brand’s ability to have a conversation with its consumers.
But engagement is not a singular moment but rather, it should be thought of as a series of touch points to create a desirable and repeatable action between the consumer and the brand. Each time in a more meaningful and valuable way.
Contests play a prominent role in the engagement cycle because they excel at moving consumers from one touch point to the next and they offer ample opportunity for direct measurement and learning. They further brand goals, identify customers, segment customers, learn about customers, gain feedback and help target products to consumers. In short, contests can create a true two-way conversation on a mass scale and provide real value to both parties.
The first task of any marketing program is to make consumers aware of its existence. Contests are designed to grab attention. While advertising tries to create impressions, change attitudes, contests have a far more specific consumer action in mind, and therefore more flexibility to do whatever it takes to grab attention. As a result, interactive marketing has to be more promotion-oriented than advertising-oriented. In order to drive engagement, consumers must choose to participate – soft impressions don’t count, and therefore promotion contests that generate a significant lift in awareness are an important tactic.
An online contest may touch a 100,000 consumers, helping to start all those little conversatons, but it can also deliver a 100,000 stories about the engagement. When you run the right kind of contest to engage consumers you can then identify where you found them, what got their attention, how they are the same and different from each other, what else they’d like to buy and more.
This is why contests have to move from drive thru to sit down. From fast food to a sit down meal. Make your next contest a place where your consumers can hang out and engage with your brand and you’ll increase the ROI on you next contest.
Tags: consumers, Contests, engagement
