Launching a contest is not just about creating a fun and engaging concept. Its success depends above all on how to announce a contest and promote it effectively. Without a clear and well-targeted communication strategy, even the best contest can go unnoticed. To reach the right audience, generate engagement, and achieve your goals, a solid communication plan is essential.
This article shares practical tips on how to announce and promote a contest effectively. From the teasing phase to post-campaign follow-up, every step plays a key role in maximizing your campaign’s visibility and impact.
How communication boosts a contest’s impact?
A well-designed communication plan is key to maximizing the visibility of a contest. Today, platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Facebook are among the most effective for reaching marketing goals, especially when it comes to traffic, engagement, and audience growth.
Communicating through the right channels helps reach the widest and most qualified audience at the moment when they are most receptive.
Repeating messages creates a reminder effect, strengthens message retention, and encourages participation. A well-promoted campaign also multiplies touchpoints with the target audience and stimulates word of mouth.
Post-contest communication is just as important: clearly announcing the winners and sharing the results strengthens trust in the brand.
Each stage of the communication process enhances the overall impact of the contest, increasing not only participation but also long-term engagement.
How to create a communication plan for a contest
For a contest to truly reach its audience, it’s not enough to simply choose the right mechanics or offer an attractive prize. The organizer must support every stage of the event—before, during, and after the campaign—with targeted and impactful communication actions.
This overall strategy helps maintain attention, optimize participation, and extend the impact on the brand. Here are practical tips to effectively announce a contest and communicate throughout and after the campaign.
How to promote a contest?
Announcing a contest should spark interest without revealing everything. Effective teasing builds curiosity with eye-catching visuals and messages that make the audience want to learn more. For example, a countdown or a message like “A surprise is coming soon” helps create genuine suspense and sets the stage even before the marketing contest officially launches.
1. Vary marketing channels to announce a contest
Using various marketing channelssuch as social media, newsletters, or temporary stories allows you to reach a diverse audience. This variety maximizes the chances of connecting with the right people at the right time while increasing touchpoints with potential participants. Well-timed reminders help improve recall and sustain interest over the medium term.
2. Leverage influencer marketing and co-branding
To amplify the impact of a contest, brands can also engage influencers, ambassadors or implement a co-branding strategy.
Influencer marketing offers a more authentic relay that builds credibility for the contest within their community. For greater impact, it’s recommended to co-create content with influencers, such as personalized teasers or presentation videos that encourage spontaneous engagement from their followers.
Co-branding, on the other hand, helps expand the message and reach a wider audience, including those who may not yet know the brand organizing the contest.
3. Build excitement by teasing the prize details
Offering a pre-registration phase before the official launch helps gather qualified contacts and build anticipation during the pre-launch stage. Supporting this step with clues about the prize (teasing the nature of the gift, blurred photos, or a puzzle to solve) stimulates curiosity and encourages sign-ups.
Finally, having a small group of participants test the contest allows you to fine-tune the mechanics in advance and improve the experience before reaching a wider audience. Carefully planning this announcement phase lays the foundation for a successful launch and helps boost the number of participants.
How to communicate about a contest?
During a marketing gamification campaign, it is essential to tailor the message to each channel used for promotion.
- In email marketing: use a clear and compelling subject line, with regular reminders to re-engage subscribers and remind them of the participation deadline.
- On social media: vary formats (posts, stories, reels) to keep the audience engaged.
- At physical locations: leverage in-store channels. For example, the brand can set up interactive kiosks to allow visitors to play directly in-store. Another option is to include a QR code on receipts to simplify participation.
Creating a sense of urgency is also a powerful lever to amplify the impact of a marketing contest. Emphasizing the contest’s imminent end or limited number of entries encourages the audience to act quickly. Well-timed reminders also reinforce the chance to win without overwhelming the audience.
Finally, it is crucial to track contest KPIs in real time. Analyzing participation rates, post engagement, and generated traffic allows for communication adjustments throughout the campaign. For example, if one channel underperforms, efforts can be increased on others.
This agile approach, combined with tailored messaging, ensures optimal visibility and a high participation rate throughout the contest.
How to announce the winners of a contest?
Announcing the winners of a contest is a crucial moment that requires clear and transparent communication. It is important to comply with regulations by publishing the results promptly after the contest ends. To protect the winners’ privacy, it is best to mention only their first name and the initial of their last name (with their consent, of course).
This stage is also an opportunity to warmly thank all participants. A sincere message from the brand shows appreciation for their engagement, which helps build loyalty and encourages participation in future contests.
Beyond simply announcing the winners, it is strategic to leverage this post-campaign phase to create authentic content. The brand can share photos, videos, or testimonials from the winners. In the case of a creative contest (video or photo contest), the brand can also publish User Generated Content (UGC) generated throughout the campaign. This kind of content humanizes the brand and extends the contest’s visibility well beyond its end.
Finally, the post-contest period is an ideal time to tease an upcoming campaign or event aligned with the marketing calendar. This helps maintain attention, engage the community, and set the stage for the next initiative.
Creating a solid communication plan is essential to maximize a contest’s impact and sustain your community’s engagement. Socialshaker helps you distribute your campaigns across all your channels (social media, email, website, and mobile app) at the right time. With our all-in-one solution, you can also track the performance of your campaigns and optimize them in real time!
Key takeaways: FAQ – Annoucing and communating about a contest
1. When should you start teasing a contest?
Start teasing a contest at least one week before the launch, using a countdown, intriguing visuals, or messages like “A surprise is coming.” This helps capture participants’ attention and build anticipation around the event.
2. What are the best channels to communicate about a contest?
- Social media: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube
- Email marketing: newsletters, automated reminders
- Website & mobile app (push notifications)
- Physical locations: POS, QR codes on receipts and interactive kiosks
- Influencer marketing: co-created content with brand ambassadors
The ideal way to communicate about a contest is to combine multiple marketing channels to reach a broad and qualified audience.
3. How can you effectively follow up with participants?
To effectively follow up with contest participants, consider the following:
- Send reminder emails before the contest closes
- Regularly share stories and posts on social media to keep attention live
- Create a sense of urgency with messages like “Only 2 days left!” or “Only 100 entries remaining!”
4. How to tease a contest prize without giving everything away?
To capture participants’ attention in a contest, you should:
- Use blurred or mysterious visuals of the prizes
- Share clues or riddles
- Offer a mini contest within the contest (e.g., a puzzle to solve to guess the prize)
5. How to build a communication plan around a contest?
Communication around a contest should be planned as follows:
- Before: teaser, pre-registrations, internal testing
- During: regular messages, varied content, creating a sense of urgency
- After: announcing winners, thanking participants, sharing user-generated content (UGC), teasing the next event
Be sure to measure the contest’s performance (traffic, engagement, participation rate) and adjust your communication strategy in real time.
6. How to promote a contest with influencers?
- Select influencers who align with your target audience
- Co-create exclusive content such as videos, demos, and Q&A sessions
- Allow them freedom of tone for greater authenticity
Their reach helps strengthen credibility and sparks natural word-of-mouth promotion.
7. How to announce winners while complying with GDPR?
To announce contest winners while respecting GDPR, you should:
- Publish only the first name + last name initial, unless you have explicit consent
- Obtain consent before sharing any images or testimonials
- Communicate transparently immediately after the contest ends
- Highlight the winners with authentic content such as photos, videos, or quotes
