The advertising landscape has changed considerably as our internet usage has evolved, but despite the fact that many of us like to do our shopping online and we are perhaps not as monogamous with our shopping habits as we used to be, some things don’t change that much.
Customers love a giveaway. This has always been a great way of attracting shoppers and keeping those buyers coming back for more.
If your website features giveaways and makes the most of its branding, there is every chance that this old advertising method will deliver results in a digital age.
The Science of Giveaways
The obvious question to ask is why do giveaways work?
It is not difficult to answer that question if you consider that many of us find it hard to resist something that is being offered for free, but there is more of a payback for your business than the cost of your giveaway, if you get the structure and components of your offer spot on.
The concept of getting something for free, will often encourage your existing as well as new customers, to visit your website and find out more about you, as a result of the positive impact made with your giveaway offer.
There are many different ways to employ a giveaway within your business, but the science often remains the same, which is that it encourages people to think and talk about your business and consider what else it has to offer.
It is almost in our DNA to be attracted to the opportunity of winning free products or services, which is why giveaways have worked for so many years.
Employing a Successful Strategy
The key to making the most of your giveaway promotion, is to ensure that you employ a strategy that is proven to be successful and works for your type of business.
What you need to consider is why you are using a giveaway and what you want to achieve from this type of promotional campaign. Your ultimate aim, is mainly to use a free product or service as a way of driving consumer action and behavior.
The traditional objective of giveaways in the eyes of marketers is to use them as a way of generating interest and awareness of the products and services that you have to offer and to raise brand awareness.
This traditional marketing method is in fact arguably more relevant today than it has ever been, as you can now take advantage of technology in order to get the most out of online opportunities and to gain maximum leverage of social media and the concept of shareability.
Planning Your Giveaway
As with any marketing strategy, you need to plan your giveaway carefully, as simply giving your customer something for nothing is not enough on its own, without an underlying methodology to give your campaign shape and direction.
If you are going to feature your giveaway on your website, you will need to make sure that the landing page you create is properly structured and optimized to make the most of the opportunity and to ensure that your customers are clear about what you are offering.
Many giveaway campaigns utilize social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. If that is your intention, think about which platform would be the best host for your giveaway and concentrate on that is the hub for interacting with your customers.
Giveaway Ideas
There are many different types of giveaway and you just need to decide which one is most appropriate to the campaign you are running or the type of business you run.
Some simple giveaway ideas include offering free printed goods with your brand, special discounts on certain products or for a limited period, and gift cards to be redeemed against the next purchase.
If you sell products through a site like Amazon, you could even use the giveaway platform created by the internet giant, allowing you to create a promotion using a proven format and established platform for delivering the offer.
Once your giveaway is up and running, you will need to keep on top of the campaign by ensuring that if you are running a competition for example, customers are made aware of how long they have left before the closing date, and to keep the buzz going for as long as possible.
There are many ways to attract and retain customers, but giveaways still work for consumers today and are just as effective as they have ever been as a way of growing your business.
Author
Brian Perry is the founder and acting director of Dynamic Gift, a promotional product supplier located just north of Sydney, Australia. Brian has been working in the industry for 10+ years, With a specialty in importing and exporting large volumes of products at a time and meeting tight deadlines he knows everything about how to make an event or conference successful.
