OT - What would motivate you to participate in a contest?

[k2bdeutmeyer]

I recently ran a contest for my photography business. It basically asked people to post on their Facebook wall that I was having a contest and for every time they posted it (1x/day allowed) they got an entry into a drawing for a free session ($50 value). The idea was that it would go viral VERY quickly, but.....it did not. I had ONE, yes that's right ONE person enter and it was a friend of mine. Total FAIL!

 

I've sat and tried to figure out why it didn't work. It should have. I've had photographer friends say they "don't get it" (regarding why it didn't work). But, in the end, none of that matters - what matters is that the potential clients didn't like it. Why? I don't know!

 

So, what would motivate you to participate? I'd love to hear your comments. They can be about format, prizes, length, whatever comes to mind.

 

I appreciate your input! Thank you!

[eternalknot]

I think many people believe that the session isn't the pricey part of the Family Photo .. it's the prints.

 

Others are fine going to Sears or Walmart, and have no interest in a personal package - whether it's due to precedent, convenience, or perception of what a personal package might cost.

 

Digital cameras have greatly impacted the small-time photographer's business, too. There's a MWAC on every corner -- why pay for something the consumer believes she can do herself "well enough" for no money at all?

 

Promotion-wise, my sister runs a giveaway blog. And she had to work hard to make a name for herself, investing as much time visiting and commenting on related blogs so that others would do in kind. A photography giveaway would differ in that it's limited geographically, but that's how the whole networking thing goes - right?

 

I'm sorry this one went bust :( I imagine work is harder to come by, and I hope the next one proves more successful!

[WTMindy]

Well, I'm not usually motivated to do something (fill out a survey, etc...) if I am going to be entered into a drawing. I just figure I won't win. So, I'd be more motivated if I got something specific for entering.

[k2bdeutmeyer]

Oh, the MWAC thing is totally true. I've been in business for over 3yrs....and it's tough.

 

I was giving away free mini sessions weekly and a grand prize of a full session plus $30 print credit at the end. I guess I figured by giving away the session the risk was gone. You come, do your session - you don't love the pics?? Don't buy any. Whereas with free prints, they still have to take the risk of spending money on a session first.

 

My prints are all a la carte right now....and reasonable/competitive for our area (5x7 - $9, 8x10 - $16, etc...).

[k2bdeutmeyer]

Interesting Mindy! So....if I offered a free print (say 8x10) for every entry and then did a drawing for a free session at the end, would that be better?

[k2bdeutmeyer]

By the way....if anybody is interested, my website is www.bellatuphotography.com and my blog is www.bellatuphotograph.blogspot.com . Just cuz, I know when I hear about other photography businesses having things fail I question the quality of their work.

[milovany]

I think part of it too is that people don't want to use their Facebook accounts for this kind of thing -- they don't want to come across as trying to sell something to their friends (i.e., using their friends to get something).

[ChristusG]

I'm a photographer....though I do not have an official business up and running yet. I just don't have the time for that right now. But I have had clients and I have researched for the day when I begin my business.

 

That said, I'd most definitely give away a small print package with the free session fee. That way people will have something to look forward to even if they feel they cannot afford to spend more money for prints with a custom photographer. But of course the goal is for you to take awesome pics so they will want to purchase more.

 

I dont think I'd give away something with every entry....that would be too difficult. But you need to make entering very very simple. I know that if I have to do anything in depth to make an entry into something, I will just skip it.

[Food4Thought]

I don't use my Facebook to advertise, so I probably wouldn't have entered either. I've seen other giveaways where you get 1 entry for a blog post, 1 for posting on twitter, 1 on facebook, etc... Maybe you could spread it across the social media next time?

 

Is your Facebook your own personal one, or one specifically for your business that people can "like" and get updates? I could see running a promotion from a business page, but not a personal one.

 

As to the actual prize, I'd rather have the chance at a free print (or small set of prints, worth $50 or so) than a free sitting. It would be easier to take one print and go than to go to all the trouble of a sitting. And yes, I'd pay for the sitting to get the free prints, as strange as it sounds. But I've seen a lot of those "free sitting" promos (usually from JCPenney), and I'm skeptical about how much they want me to pay afterwards. I hope that helps you know at least one person's mind! :tongue_smilie:

 

Your photos on your site are really nice. :)

[k2bdeutmeyer]

It was all conducted from my business Facebook (fan page) and my blog.

[Brilliant]

I think part of it too is that people don't want to use their Facebook accounts for this kind of thing -- they don't want to come across as trying to sell something to their friends (i.e., using their friends to get something).

 

This. I wouldn't have posted it, unless you were a *really* good friend of mine and I wanted to help you out. (which it sounds like your friend did!)

[k2bdeutmeyer]

So would you be more apt to participate in a contest where you submit a photo of your own (maybe of your children) and people vote on the "cutest"?? Or one where you submit an "essay" of sorts (about your mom on mother's day, a soldier or vet around the 4th, etc...)?

 

ETA: What I'm going for here is name recognition and exposure. I have 513 friends on FB and probably over 1/2 are local. If I could get their friends to see I exist, and then their friends, etc.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I don't think that the reward was deemed to be of value. Gently, because of course your time has value, but there seem to be a lot of free sitting offers out there. So maybe it seemed like something that was just designed to get them in the door and buying photos.

 

Maybe a free sitting and a free 8 x 10. Or something else tangible so that the winner has "something" not just an opportunity to buy photos.

 

You might also want to seed it with several of your friends and family who will get the ball rolling by making the posts on their walls.

 

And how did you get the word out to potential entrants?

[k2bdeutmeyer]

Well the grand prize free session also included $30 in print credit. That's an interesting perspective though, because I thought I was taking away the "risk" of hiring somebody you've never hired before by offering the session for free. I guess I figured it might be the session fee that was holding some peoiple back from booking and that by eliminating the session fee they might be more encouraged to try me out and therefore enter the contest.

 

DH has been out of work for about a year (though he just started a new job last week) and we certainly don't have any extra money in the budget. I desperately want family pics done of our family (we haven't had one since DD1 was 4yr - she's 10 and we have 2 more kids now). If I saw that my chosen photographer was giving away a free session I would be ON IT and praying that I win, LOL! Because it would make what wasn't affordable to me, affordable. I could have the pics done and then spend whatever it is that can afford on prints. I'm in control of the amount I spend on prints, but I can't change the session fee.

 

ETA: I got the word out via my Facebook fan page and my blog, as well as telling a few friends.