How to create a contest on YouTube?

YouTube contests are among popular marketing practices because they increase brand awareness, gain new followers or customer contacts, but above all, they work very well. Marketing on YouTube is mainly about building a community, and contests are a great tool to help with that. We've prepared a few simple steps for you to create a great contest on YouTube that will help you build your brand's community.

SET YOUR GOALS

Goals clearly define what you want to achieve with the given competition. Is it to increase the audience for a brand's YouTube channel, or is it in your interest to collect leads? Whatever your goals are, don't forget their clear wording that will help you achieve them. Clear and specific goals are achieved much easier than general ones.

STUDY THE CONTEST RULES ON YOUTUBE

Before you start running a contest on YouTube, review the platform rules. The most important condition is that any contests on YouTube they must not violate the privacy policy, terms of service or community guidelines. The platform has very clear rules in this regard that must be followed. When creating "giveaways", check whether you meet the general restrictions and requirements, which are as follows:

1. You are solely responsible for your contest.

2. Your YouTube Contest must comply with all applicable federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations, including US sanctions.

3. Your contest may not violate or encourage the violation of third party rights or engage in any illegal activities.

4. You may not ask viewers to grant you rights to their Uploaded Content or to transfer ownership of their Uploaded Content to you.

5. Participation in the contest must be free of charge.

6. You or any third party may not manipulate metrics on YouTube in order to misrepresent viewers' actual interactions with YouTube. These metrics include views, likes, dislikes, or subscribers.

7. Unless YouTube gives you prior written permission, youmay not link YouTube to your contest. This rule prohibits, among other things, actions or statements that would imply that YouTube is part of or in any way endorsing your contest.

REACH YOUTUBE CREATORS

Research by Google shows that collaborations with YouTube creators are up to 4x more effective in building brand awareness than collaborations with celebrities. Take this opportunity to choose the right influencer for your brand, create great contests for your audience and achieve your marketing goals. If you need advice on choosing a YouTube influencer, don't hesitate contact.

CHOOSE A GREAT PRICE

An important motivational element in your competition is the main prize. Make sure the prize has the potential to engage your target audience and is relevant to both the brand and the work of the YouTube creator you are working with. Simply if you want to promote floristry in cooperation with an influencer who creates game content and the main prize of the competition will be a stay in the Tatras, there is a high probability that the competition will not work effectively. On the other hand, if a computer accessory brand were to create a contest together with a YouTuber with gaming content, and the prize was a set of accessories for the gamer, we can almost certainly say that this type of contest has the potential to achieve very good results. Therefore, choose a price that is relevant to your brand, influencer and audience.

COMMUNICATE THE RULES CLEARLY

In addition to general requirements, YouTube also defines clear The rules of your particular competition, which read as follows:

You must have official rules that:

1. They include links to guidelines for the service community YouTube and state that submissions that do not adhere to them will be disqualified.

2. Provides all information required by applicable laws, rules and regulations, including US sanctions.

3. They meet and comply with all YouTube Terms of Service.

4. Your Contest must be conducted under your Official Rules and all prizes must be awarded as described in your Official Rules.

5. You are responsible for the rules and the entire administration of the competition.

6. Your rules must clearly state that YouTube is not a sponsor of your contest. They must also require viewers to release YouTube from any liability associated with the contest.

7. You must include a privacy noticein the Official Rules that complies with the law. This notice explains how you will use the personal data you collect for the purposes of the competition and that you will comply with the rules for this use.

When creating already specific competition rules, make a checklist and make sure that they contain:

☑ A clearly defined competitive task.

☑ Information on how to participate in the competition.

☑ Information about who can participate in the competition.

☑ Information about the competition prices.

☑ Information on how long the competition will last.

☑ Information on how many people can win.

☑ Information on when and in what form the winner will be announced.

☑ Information where the winner can contact you.

☑ Built-in requirements from the YouTube platform.

In addition to the above points, it is necessary to "exonerate" YouTube from responsibilityfor the competition and publicly declare that it does not participate in any way in the creation of this activity. How to do it? All you have to do is add a YouTube disclaimer to the description of your competition, for example it could look like this:

“This contest is not affiliated with YouTube or any social media platform on which it is promoted.”

“The competition is sponsored by (brand name) and is in no way associated with the YouTube platform on which it is promoted.”

“The prizes in this competition are sponsored by (brand name) and are not sponsored by YouTube in any way.”

We recommend publishing the complete list of competition rules on your website. Thanks to a comprehensive and transparent list of rules, you will avoid problems that could arise due to their lack of clarity.

ANNOUNCE THE LAUNCH OF THE CONTEST

Let your target group know about the contest. The more people know about the contest, the more people can participate. Use your communication channels and introduce your marketing activity to your audience. A great way to announce an upcoming competition is the so-called A “teaser” or short video where you introduce your audience to the pricing and launch date. Make sure the video is short, dynamic and has the potential to immediately engage.

ANNOUNCE THE WINNER TRANSPARENTLY

Today there are already many online tools like Wooboxor Comment Picker, which will simply draw a winning comment for you. For complete transparency, you can record the process of generating results on the screen either using the built-in tools on your computer or using the application Gyazo and publish them on the site or social networks. Thanks to these few extra steps, you build the credibility of your brand. 

YOUTUBE CONTEST TIP

At the end, we have also prepared a tip for a YouTube contest, which is simple, effective and supports community building.

Invent a name for the photo/video

The basic rule of this competition is very simple. The person in the video presents various photos or videos, and the audience's task is to come up with a creative caption for them. They can write their ideas in the comments, which will also increase the engagement of the video, or they can send them via a pre-created online form. It is a simple and fun way of competition that will not only reach, but also encourage the engagement of your target group.

Competitions can really bring great results if done right. Follow our 7 recommended steps to create successful contests. We hope this article was helpful for you, and if you have any further questions or advice, don't hesitate to contact us to contact.