Engage New Advertisers With Online Promotions Like Contests, Ballots, Deals and Cards
A common goal of all media companies is to grow their base of active advertisers and, once they’re active, to keep them active. One of the best ways to do this is with online promotions. Promotions can serve as the centerpiece of a larger marketing campaign with an advertiser, and can often lead to a long-term relationship. They’re also the perfect way to get a foot in the door with new advertisers, as they offer a targeted audience and drive the results that advertisers want (new leads, foot traffic, email and social database growth) with a limited investment.
Promotions also lend themselves well to creating ongoing campaigns that can be designed to meet specific needs. Contests, ballots, deals and cards can serve as perfect entry points for creating new relationships and renewing old ones, all while showing off the power of one’s platform. It’s important for one to remember that their goals and their advertisers’ goals intersect. As a media company, it’s all about growing an actives list and bringing in revenue. Meanwhile, advertisers want access to the media company’s audience (as well as the new leads, “likes,” email addresses, and visitors it can bring). Promotions are a way for everyone to win.
Here Shweiki teams up with Second Street Promotions Lab to present strategies for using promotions to engage and retain new advertisers.
Promotions That Appeal to New Advertisers and Deliver Results
Facebook Advertiser Contests
Many SMB advertisers are trying to grow their presence on Facebook and generate leads on their own, but they can do this much more effectively with the help of a publisher. By leveraging assets to activate the audience with a really strong call to action to engage, one can drive measurable ROI for an advertiser. Erin Galant, the Digital Director at Max Media, shared in a Facebook Promotions webinar that a local mall started working with the radio group simply because the promotions they offered were something new. The Facebook contest administered by Max Media was so successful that the mall began working exclusively with this station!
Ballots
The people who take the time to vote in a ballot are the people who are engaged, care about a particular category, and are likely to have money to spend in said category. Selling a business an expanded listing or sponsorship of a category on a ballot promotion is a great initial way to get them in the door and spending money with one’s media company.
Sponsored Contests
Photo, video, MP3, and essay contests are viral promotions that advertisers can piggyback on to reach a large niche audience and get people buzzing about their brand. Michael Korr, the Local Sales Manager at KVVU-TV, shared that the station’s “Burger Wars, Pizza Wars” custom bracket usually leads to 20 percent of the promotion’s sponsors becoming long-term customers! Plus, as a result of a “Cutest Baby” contest, a local retailer increased their annual contract with WQNU-FM by $20,000.
Deals & Cards
Since there is no upfront investment, deals and cards are a great opportunity for advertisers to try out one’s media outlet and see how its promotional power can bring people into their place of business (and how they can keep those customers coming back for more).
According to Jeff Shabram, Senior Director of Digital for BH Media, 40 percent of deals customers will purchase an ad package from their media properties, and for participating properties, about 10 percent of new advertisers sign on through their deals program. If one runs enough small promotions, over time they will not only bring in meaningful revenue, but they will also help one grow their list of active advertisers and expose them to the power of one’s platform and the results one can deliver. Since promotions can be the centerpiece of a larger marketing campaign, once one has demonstrated that they can drive results for advertisers, the relationship can continue to grow.
