Okay, you’ve got your online marketing underway, with a regularly updated website and Facebook page and original, engaging visual content. What next? It’s time to promote a little extra social media engagement! Trust us: whatever prize(s) you may offer, you’ll end up spending fewer marketing dollars for a lot more visibility than you would doing more old school marketing. Added bonus: You might just have fun doing it, too.
Encourage Creativity from Your Family of Followers
One way to run a Facebook contest is to encourage your studio or school’s students to basically do some advertising for you! The benefits are many. To the students, the benefits will include honing skills and enjoying online fame. For your studio, it can mean added interest and an increased client base. Consider the following requests:
• Upload your own instructional video relating to a skill you’ve learned at our studio
• Create an original infographic or meme, using a photograph you took at our studio
• Write an original inspiring poem or vignette relating to the field
So basically your followers do all the heavy lifting. Once they’ve done the creating, all they need to do to submit their entry is to send the link or entry to you or your social media associate. Be sure to clearly communicate contest rules and parameters — as well as your chosen reward for the top entry! Then simply post each entry to your studio’s Facebook page, and let the fun begin! For maximum impact, make sure your settings allow only those who “Like” your studio’s page to comment on, Like, or share a post.
Give Your Studio Family a Say
An alternative to the contest hosted on your social media page is to simply use your website and Facebook page to promote a contest that’s open only to your studio family. The word will still get out, but the main aim is to encourage connectedness and enthusiasm within your existing clientele. Solicit a panel of “judges,” comprised of instructors, parents, and students, that will remain outside the contest and will vote on the top submissions.
You could use this kind of contest to gain submissions for a new logo or slogan, a water bottle design, or an event theme or next year’s theme.
Amplify Publicity for Your Contest
After your contest is complete, be sure to post about the winner on your website and social media, but don’t keep it all in cyber space. Consider submitting press releases to local media outlets, along with a photo of the winner and their submission and prize — in front of your studio or school, of course! You can then print and frame the clipping on your studio wall—and snap a photo of that for your website and Facebook page as well.
From the Jackrabbit Class blog:
• Strategy for Dealing with Class Disruptors
• Helping Your Gymnast Develop Confidence
• The Forgotten Muscle: The Hip Flexor
JackrabbitClass
Jackrabbit Class software provides gym studios with smart online solutions for billing, sign ups, registration & business management. Jackrabbit’s leading online class management software delivers an unparalleled combination of speed, reliability and smart customer-focused solutions. Learn more at www.JackrabbitClass.com or call them at (704) 895-4034.
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