Even though Instagram has recently made changes to their algorithm that will affect how your posts show up in their news feed, you can still entice your followers to engage with your brand by running Instagram contests.

Instagram has transformed from a place to share personal experiences to a showcase where businesses can promote their products and create buzz around their brand.

There is nothing Instagrammers love more than free stuff, so contests allow your business to increase engagement, participation and promotion, and reach potential new customers.

You can ask your followers to share your photo, tag a friend, hashtag your brand, or simply like your post. Your followers will do the promoting for you!

This allows your Instagram to be fun, engaging, and sharable. If contests are in your marketing budget, then this should also be included in your social media strategy.

There are a few different ways to run an Instagram contest:

Like to Win

“Like to win” is simple, it instructs users to like your Instagram and encourages users to follow you so they don’t miss out. Post a captivating image of what you are giving away to entice them to “like to win.” Be sure to include any stipulations, like whether there are restrictions on age, location, et cetera, in your caption.

Post Your Own Photo

Instruct your audience to post a photo that follows the instructions you set. Make sure you ask users to tag their posts with your Instagram handle (ie @possesocialmedia) and contest hashtags. In the image below, LifeProof used #LifeProofExplore, #WhereIGottaGo, and #LiveLifeProof as their contest hashtags.

This kind of contest gives you the ability to repost their pictures and connect by giving your brand a more personalized feel — that means FREE CONTENT and tons of engagement!

Tag a friend

Asking your followers to tag a friend allows your brand to be promoted to a whole new group of participants that could turn into potential customers and followers. Make your image and post engaging and enticing, so that people will want what your company has to offer.

In the example below, Big Rock Tournament asked that users tag three friends in the comments to enter be entered into the contest.

Repost & Hashtag

When users repost your ‘gram on their feeds, it gets your brand in front of a whole new audience that you didn’t previously have access to. Make sure you ask that each repost include your contest hashtags so that you are able to track all the reposts to choose the winner.

Helpful Tips

Cross-Promotion

  • Promoting your social media is key to inbound marketing. Sharing your contests and content on other platforms is critical to getting the word out.
  • Promote your contests on Twitter and Facebook, and include an image on those sites as well. Driving traffic to your contest will once again help with engagement, gaining followers and converting those strangers into customers.

Choosing A Winner

  • Choosing a winner can be easy. Use a number generator and enter the number of comments/likes/reposts to help you come up with a winner quickly.
  • Once you have chosen your winner, make a post announcing the winner and tag them in your caption. Remind everyone else that there will be a next time and be sure to thank them for entering. It’s best to contact the winner through a direct Instagram message to ask for their contact information.

Don’t forget that YOU are the real winner here because you have exposed your brand and product to a new audience of potential customers.

Attracting followers can be difficult, but with contests, your followers will engage more with you and your product.