How to contact the winner
Contacting the winner may also be a bit of a challenge, so we’ll start with that. It depends on the type of promotion, which user information you have from the participants. If it’s sweepstakes with registration or any other type of promotion that includes registration (Photo Contest, Video Contest, Promotional Codes etc.) then you have as a minimum the email address to contact directly on email. You should always include in the terms and conditions of the contest the time frame the winners have to answer to the notification that they’ve won.
If you’ve run a Facebook sweepstakes with comments (without registration), you can reply directly to the winner’s comment. The app includes the tool to do this directly from the platform. You can read much more about that here and in this tutorial we explain the whole process of announcing the winner as part of the fulfillment process. With the Instagram Sweepstakes app it works almost the same, the app posts a new comment where the winner is mentioned.
We also suggest you activate the Claim your Prize system to expedite the process if you’re running a sweepstakes without registration. With this tool, you configure a registration form that the winners have to fill in to accept the prize. You can ask for the all the data you need in order to be able to manage the process and send the prize: Postal address, telephone number for the courier etc. In this article we explain a lot more about this tool.
And need we say: Be 100% sure to contact the right winner!
Rules and regulations on prize management
Another thing to keep in mind is if there are specific regulations on the subject depending on the country where the contest is run. For example in the UK, you need to follow the CAP Code that says “Promoters must award prizes as described in their marketing communications…normally within 30 days”. In Italy the organizing brand has to present a proof of both despatch and receipt of all prizes to the authorities as part of a formal Closure Report. In the US, each state has laws that may require that you make disclosures, seek licensing, or post a bond. Since state laws vary, you should check with the Attorney General’s Office in the state(s) in which you plan to run a prize promotion or contest.
You also need to know if the organizing brand or the winner has to pay taxes of the prize. In this link you can read more about the taxes of sweepstakes prizes in the US. In the UK, on the other hand, the winners don’t have to pay taxes of their prizes as long as it’s not considered an income to a professional business.
Get the prize to the winner
You’ve spent time and money planning the perfect promotion, so why lose all the credibility and engagement that the contest was aiming to create in the first place because the prize is sent late, isn’t personalized or is substituted with an alternative prize. First of all, it’s important to know who has the responsibility for this part of the promotion – the prize fulfillment management; is it the brand, the marketing agency who set up the promotion or someone else?
For it to be a good experience for the winner, the correct prize should be sent to the correct address within a short timeframe with a personalized message. If sent by mail, it should be sent with tracking and if sent by delivery courier, make sure the courier gets the winner’s contact details, so they can arrange the best time for delivery.
If nobody in the company or the agency can pay the needed attention to this task, maybe it would be a good idea to hire someone to handle it. PromoVeritas offer Winner and Prize Management as part of their services. They handle the whole prize fulfillment process and make sure every aspect of it is covered. From notifying the winner to the customer service after the prize has been sent.
Now you know, getting the prize to the winner is as important as setting up the promotion as it can create loss of credibility and undermine the whole aim of the promotion. Remember, it’s easier to keep up a good reputation than it is rebuilding it. And now, go create your promotion!
