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Everyone loves free stuff, right? That’s why Instagram giveaways or contests are a powerful way to get people’s attention.
You might have noticed the Instagram giveaways that many Instagram users run to gain more followers. Since Instagram contests have the potential to do this, the main focus should therefore be on how to do a giveaway on Instagram.
Instagrammers host giveaways in a variety of ways. Some of them offer coupons for their products and services, some offer free packages, memberships, or products. Also, many Instagrammers start using the best Instagram giveaway pickers to select the winners immediately.
The best way to learn how to do an Instagram giveaway is to get acquainted with the most creative Instagram giveaway ideas. So, it is essential to know how to host a giveaway on Instagram efficiently and know what giveaway tools, strategies, and ideas help you run a successful Instagram contest.
As it is really important to use the best giveaway picker, I also introduce you to the best Instagram giveaway picker, AiGrow, which provides you with an efficient tool to choose the winner.
Want to know more? Read on to find out!
Why Are Instagram Giveaways Beneficial
You may believe that offering coupons or hosting giveaways is a waste of money. But, as previously stated, people enjoy freebies and will go to great lengths to win Instagram loop giveaways and receive prizes. So, if you want them to invite and mention their friends or whatever, they will. On the other hand, with 90% of Instagrammers following at least one brand, it is clear that hosting giveaways on Instagram will increase your chance of social media success. It can help you effectively grow your Instagram organically, increase brand awareness, and generally achieve your goals in a short period!
In essence, Instagram giveaways can help you gain more followers if you know how to host a successful contest properly. So, now that you know how much it helps you to gain new followers, let’s learn why you should host one and how to do a giveaway on Instagram.
Why Should You Host an Instagram Contest or Giveaway
Instagram giveaways are a great way to engage your audience, reach new potential customers, and boost your brand image. You should host an Instagram giveaway for several reasons, such as:
- To increase your engagement rate and grow your Instagram followers by asking them to follow you, like your post, or tag their friends to enter the giveaway.
- To raise brand awareness with new audiences by collaborating with other brands, influencers, or hashtags that are relevant to your niche.
- To promote new products by giving them away as prizes or asking users to share their feedback or photos with your products.
- To increase website traffic by asking users to visit your website, sign up for your newsletter, or enter your giveaway through a landing page.
- To create user-generated content by asking users to post photos or videos with your products or using a specific hashtag.
- To partner with other brands, influencers, or causes that share your values and audience. By co-hosting a giveaway, you can cross-promote each other, increase your reach, and build trust and credibility.
Types of Instagram Giveaways
To enter a giveaway, you may ask your participants to do one or more of the following things:
- Like, comment, and follow your account,
- Tag a friend in the comments section,
- Create and share some content related to your brand using a specific hashtag or tag,
- Or use the features of Instagram stories, such as polls, quizzes, stickers, or filters, to create an interactive and fun experience.
Some of the most common types of giveaways that you can run based on your goals, audience, and platform are:
1. Sweepstakes: These are giveaways where the entries are randomly drawn to pick the winner. They are simple to set up and can attract a lot of entries.
2. Contests: These are giveaways where the winner is selected based on some criteria, such as originality, skill, or popularity. They are more difficult to run and may demand more effort from the participants, but they can also generate more engagement, loyalty, and user-generated content.
3. Conversion giveaways: These are giveaways where the participants have to perform a specific action, such as buying a product or completing a survey. Conversion giveaways help increase conversions, leads, and sales.
4. Instant-win: These are giveaways where the participants instantly know if they have won a prize or not. This type of giveaway is fun for the participants and can motivate repeat visits and referrals.
5. Referral programs: These are giveaways where the participants can improve their chances of winning by inviting their friends to enter the giveaway. They are effective for growing your audience, reach, and word-of-mouth.
You can also mix different types of giveaways to create a more engaging and rewarding experience for your participants. For example, you can run a contest with a sweepstakes element, or a conversion giveaway with an instant-win feature.
How Do Instagram Giveaways Work
Instagram giveaways are limited-time promotions where participants complete specific actions for a chance to win a prize, aiding brands in meeting their objectives.
The setup typically involves brands selecting prizes relevant to their audience and defining entry criteria, such as following the brand, liking the post, tagging friends, or sharing to stories.
A clear end date is set, and an engaging post is created to announce the giveaway.
During the giveaway, the brand shares the post on its feed and potentially in stories, while also utilizing various promotion efforts like stories, influencer collaborations, or ads to reach a wider audience. Engagement is maintained by responding to comments and questions from participants.
After the giveaway period ends, a random winner is chosen using online tools to ensure fairness. The winner is then announced in a separate post or story, with gratitude extended to all participants.
For businesses, Instagram giveaways offer numerous benefits, including increased brand awareness and exposure to a wider audience, boosted engagement through likes, comments, and shares, lead generation for future marketing efforts, and the promotion of new products or services to generate excitement.
However, it’s crucial to adhere to Instagram’s guidelines and avoid violating policies by establishing clear and transparent rules for the giveaway. Practices like using fake accounts or automated entries should be avoided to maintain brand reputation.
By effectively executing Instagram giveaways, brands can achieve their marketing goals, attract potential customers, and provide an enjoyable experience for their audience.
How to Do a Giveaway on Instagram
Hosting giveaways on Instagram might seem straightforward, but there is much more to it. I did extensive research on what you need to hold a giveaway on Instagram and found the essence of considering more details to be successful.
Holding giveaway contests can present new, overwhelming challenges that require much of your time and energy. However, if you know how to do a giveaway on Instagram and what steps to take, you can successfully manage it!
As of now, the most crucial step you must take is to ensure that you know all the tips and information on ‘how to host a giveaway on Instagram.’
Then, you need to brainstorm, figure out how to reward your followers, use the best Instagram giveaway ideas, and then select the winners using the best IG giveaway tools.
To run excellent, fruitful giveaways on Instagram, follow the steps below!
#1 Set a Goal for Your Instagram Giveaways
Before starting your giveaways on Instagram, you have to define your goal. Only by setting a goal, can you tailor a specific strategy! That is to say, your giveaway strategies and prizes all depend on your objective.
“It’s my first giveaway, how can I determine my goals?” you keep asking. Well, that depends on you. But, some common objectives encourage brands and businesses to run giveaways on Instagram.
For instance, you may aim for:
- A great increase in your Instagram engagement rate
- Instagram/ Facebook/ Twitter followers growth
- More Email subscriptions
- More website traffic
Learning how to do a giveaway on Instagram will help you with the mentioned goals for sure! But it’s not magic. That is, if you have ten followers right now, gaining 1 million followers after 2 or 3 days of an Instagram giveaway contest is impossible and irrational! So, make sure your goal is not far-fetched!
#2 Choose the Prize for Your Giveaways on Instagram
Now that you have defined your goal, it’s time to determine the prize. Your prize depends on your purpose and your budget. Of course, the more valuable the prize, the more users will participate!
But, don’t go overboard trying to please everyone with a grand prize! Pay attention to your limitations and your target audience’s needs and expectations.
Undoubtedly, sharing Instagram coupons as your giveaway prize is one of the cleverest ideas! Generally, presenting your products and offering decent discounts on your products are among the best giveaway prizes. They help increase your sales and grow your brand on IG!
LoveYourMelon is an apparel brand selling sweaters, beanies, and caps. And as you can see, they have picked out packages of their products as their giveaway prize! Let’s take a look at one of their giveaways on Instagram:
#3 Specify the Rules for Instagram Contests/Giveaways
The next step on ‘how to do a raffle on Instagram’ is specifying particular rules and terms of entry for the participants. Make sure that your audience is fully aware of the rules for your giveaways on Instagram.
These eligibility rules can range from age, location, tagging several friends, or following certain accounts. For instance, in most giveaways on Instagram, participants should do double or triple activities. For instance, audiences should follow the IG account, tag 2-3 friends, and share the post to enter the contest. Let’s look at a more specific example.In the @cuddleandkind giveaway, entrants must follow their account, like the post, and tag a friend in the comments. Also, for an extra chance to win, users must enter their Facebook page:
Bear in mind that the steps must be easy to follow and undemanding. Few will participate if it’s too long and complicated, and subsequently, you won’t see the desired outcome.
#4 Announce the Deadline for Your Giveaways on Instagram
You should always announce the time limit for your giveaways on your accounts on Instagram. You don’t need to overthink this step, though. You just need to set an appropriate deadline.
Just remember not to cut it too short or provide too much time! Why? Because if it’s too short, it won’t receive due attention and engagement, and if it’s too long, the audience will grow uninterested and bored.
The best practice is to select a period of 3 to 5 days for small giveaways and prizes and a period of 1 to 2 weeks for bigger, more engaging giveaways that offer better prizes. And according to studies, the best months to hold giveaways are June and November. But then again, it depends on you and your goals! Here you can see that @witchcasketuk has set a ten-day-long giveaway, which seems an excellent length for achieving what they want:
#5 Create a Good Instagram Giveaway Post
For a successful Instagram giveaway post, focus on visuals and a captivating caption. Use high-quality images or videos to showcase the prize, and add eye-catching graphics for attention.
Plus, your caption should start strong, explain the prize clearly, and provide easy entry instructions. Don’t forget to include the giveaway end date, a branded hashtag if you like, and a disclaimer about Instagram.
Promote your Instagram give away in your stories, engage with comments, and announce the winner transparently. With these elements, you’ll create a post that attracts participants, expands your audience, and meets your marketing objectives.
#6 Use Relevant Hashtags
If you want to know how to do a giveaway on Instagram, I suggest that you use the best hashtags on Instagram. Unquestionably, hashtags help you reach your target audience on Instagram. But not all hashtags are helpful for your purposes! Make sure to choose the ones related to your campaign, content, products, and prize. Also, some giveaway tools may help you find and save hashtags on IG to save time.
The most general Instagram giveaway hashtags include #giveaway, #giveawaytime, #instagiveaway, #contest alerts, #freegiveaway, and #contest. However, you could get more creative and specific and use your brand or product in the hashtag! For example, @animalpak has used hashtags related to their prizes and products while exploiting some creative, unique hashtags as well:
To see the best result, you could also use a tool for identifying the best hashtags. The best tool for this purpose is AiGrow which I will discuss at length in the following sections.
#7 Create Reminder Posts & Stories
To maximize participation in your Instagram giveaway, use reminder posts and stories strategically:
1. Reminder Posts:
- Frequency: Aim for 2-3 reminders spaced throughout the giveaway period.
- Content: Showcase the prize, emphasize remaining time, reiterate entry instructions, and include a clear call to action.
- Optional: Add a branded hashtag to encourage participation.
2. Reminder Stories:
- Frequency: Share reminders once a day or every other day to avoid overwhelming viewers.
- Interactive elements: Use polls, quizzes, countdown stickers, and swipe-up links (if available) to engage viewers. Offer behind-the-scenes glimpses of the prize to generate excitement.
By using these strategies, you’ll keep your giveaway top-of-mind, boost engagement, and drive more entries.
#8 Partner With Influencers for Your Giveaways on Instagram
Giveaways on Instagram can be more successful when new brands partner together or with influencers. What does this partnership mean? Imagine that your market produces and sells cake ingredients. In this case, you can ask for help from a bakery account. Then that bakery brand might post a recipe and then mention some specific products of your brand in the ingredients section!
This way, both partners will benefit from the giveaway! You can also find Instagram influencers in your niche and ask them to collaborate with you. Collaborating with influencers means you can also run successful Instagram loop giveaways.
But, don’t get carried away and text every influencer: “Let’s make a deal for giveaways”! Remember that collaboration with influencers can quickly go wrong if those influencers don’t produce content in your niche!
Ainfluencer is an influencer marketplace that assists businesses in growing their Instagram presence through Instagram influencers. This platform is completely free to use and is the quickest, easiest, and safest way to promote your brand on Instagram.
Ainfluencer assists you in quickly finding Instagram influencers who fit your niche. Using Ainfluencer, you can increase your number of followers by partnering with nano and micro Influencers based on your needs.
This platform is a quick and easy way to get your brand name out there, click here to start.
#9 Promote Your Giveaways on Instagram
Once you have determined your goals, prizes, potential partners, best hashtags, and the deadline, you are ready to post the giveaway! But remember to launch and promote your giveaways on Instagram during the best times to post!
Additionally, share announcements everywhere you can. But keep in mind that your giveaway images need to stand out and capture attention immediately. So, you can check out and choose an Instagram giveaway template to ensure that your post is good enough.
To create the best templates, search the internet and get inspiration from Instagram giveaway template examples created by other brands to invite people. This will enable you to be more inventive. However, if you don’t have enough time, Instagram services such as AiGrow can assist you in scheduling, designing, and sharing the best content.
#10 Pick the Winners of Your Giveaways on Instagram Using AiGrow
No matter how small your community is, you will realize that several users have complied with your specific rules by the end of the giveaway. Now, you need to go through a long list of followers and pick only a limited number of winners.
In this situation, you’re presented with two options. You can either do it manually, which is impossible if you have a considerable follower count. Or, you can use the best Instagram comment and giveaway pickers to automate the process.
In the following sections, I will introduce the best tool to end your search for the best giveaway picker. However, for now, remember your followers should be aware of how you chose the winners and who won.
#11 Announce the Instagram Giveaway Winner to Your Audience
This stage involves publicly revealing the chosen winner of a contest on Instagram. This process includes selecting the winner fairly, crafting an announcement post or story, sharing it on your Instagram account, and following up with any necessary instructions for the winner.
Engaging with responses from participants is also essential to maintain positive interaction. Overall, it’s a way to celebrate with your audience, generate excitement, and reinforce engagement with your brand.
So, let them in on the process; put up screenshots and screen records to inform them.
Now before I get into the best Instagram giveaway picker, note that once the giveaway is finished, you must archive the post or edit it and add words indicating it’s finished, such as <Closed> <finished> and so forth.
Automate Your Giveaways on Instagram With AiGrow
Now that you’ve learned how to host a giveaway on Instagram, let’s see how to facilitate the process! You have probably noticed that the big problem with Instagram competition and giveaways is that they take up the bulk of your time. It might take hours to go through entries to see who fits your criteria and make sure there are no duplicate comments!
Doing all these manually looks difficult. But you can’t back down so easily! You can simply automate almost all the steps mentioned above. But how?
To automate your giveaways on Instagram, you can exploit the AiGrow giveaway picker! It practically makes the whole process of choosing the giveaway winners effortless! So, let’s see how it works.
AiGrow Giveaway Picker
Once you’ve learned how to do a giveaway on Instagram, you must use the best tool to automate it. With AiGrow’s smart automation, you can easily pick winners based on comments, likes, tags, and follows. Here’s how it works: just copy and paste your giveaway post link, and AiGrow does the heavy lifting for you. For more info, watch the following video:
AiGrow analyzes your Instagram giveaway rules and randomly selects the winners from eligible Instagram users. So, no more manual headaches! In the following picture, you can check out all their different giveaway packages tailored to fit your needs.
How to Use AiGrow Giveaway Picker
The giveaway picker feature on AiGrow is the best tool you could ask for. Whether you run a small giveaway or a large one, this tool finds your giveaway winners in a blink of an eye. But how can you access it?
Just follow the steps below:
- Sign up for free and connect your IG account.
- Then, select ‘Manage account.’
- Among the tabs available, pick ‘Giveaway Picker.’
- Once it opens, choose ‘Start a Giveaway Contest Now’ and enter the link to your giveaway post.
- Finally, tap ‘Get started.’
You can specify the number of winners and substitute winners and your rules, including the number of hashtags or mentions the participants should have.
Finally, enter the deadline and press ‘Submit Contest Settings.’
And you are done! It’s impressive what a few clicks can do, right? Don’t waste more of your valuable time.
Finally, you know how to run a giveaway on Instagram efficiently.
Sign up for AiGrow now to gain access to its fantastic features!
Conclusion on How to Do a Giveaway on Instagram
According to recent studies, accounts holding Instagram contests or giveaways grow their followers 70% faster. That’s why giveaways on Instagram present the best opportunity for those who would like to make remarkable progress!
In this article, I provided you with steps on how to host a giveaway on Instagram. But before hosting Instagram giveaways, make sure to reread the article to find out how it works. And if you wish to save time and choose your winners randomly without any difficulties, don’t forget to consider using AiGrow!
FAQs on Instagram Contests/ Giveaways
Anyone interested in organizing an Instagram competition is likely to have many questions. Some of your questions about giveaways for Instagram may have already been answered here.
1. What Is the Easiest Way to Do an Instagram Giveaway?
If you want to run a great contest on Instagram, you need to learn how to do a giveaway first. Then, to make your work easier, you should use the best Instagram Scheduler service to create your posts and host giveaways. AiGrow can help you with that and also give you the best comment picker to select the winner.
2. What Information Can We Collect From Participants in Instagram Contests?
The least you can collect is the profile name and its link. However, you can use some rules to collect more information. For example, you can include a link in your bio and ask them to enter their email, gender, age, or anything else they need to participate in the contest.
3. How Many Times Can I Run an Instagram Giveaway?
The frequency of hosting an Instagram giveaway varies based on your objectives, budget, audience, and strategy. Here are some general recommendations:
1. Avoid running giveaways too frequently to maintain the value of prizes, quality of entries, and follower satisfaction. Just hold them once every few months or during special occasions like holidays or product launches.
2. Keep the duration of giveaways moderate to sustain interest, excitement, and urgency. Typically, one to two weeks is ideal, adjusting for smaller prizes or less relevance.
3. Ensure simplicity in giveaway rules to encourage participation and comply with Instagram guidelines.
4. How Long Should You Run an Instagram Contest or Giveaway?
The duration of an Instagram giveaway can vary depending on your goals, audience, and the complexity of the giveaway. However, here are some general guidelines to consider:
1. Short-term Giveaways: 24 hours to one week for quick engagement boosts.
2. Medium-term Giveaways: One to two weeks for a balance of urgency and participation time.
3. Long-term Giveaways: Two weeks to a month or more for extensive audience reach or complex promotions.
5. Are Instagram Giveaways Legal?
Instagram giveaways are allowed if you follow the rules of Instagram and the laws in your area. You should:
- Make clear rules, who can enter, and follow all laws.
- Make sure Instagram isn’t blamed for any problems with your giveaway.
- Don’t tag things incorrectly or ask others to do so.
- Fairly pick a winner and give them their prize openly and honestly.
6. What Are Some Good Instagram Contest Ideas?
Here are some concise Instagram contest ideas grouped by their objectives.
Boost Engagement
1. Comment to Win: Pose a relevant question and reward the most creative or insightful responses.
2. “Caption This” Contest: Share an intriguing image and ask followers to provide the best caption.
3. Instagram Story Challenge: Prompt users to engage with your Stories through specific actions like polls or using branded stickers.
Expand Audience
1. Hashtag Challenge: Create a unique hashtag and encourage users to share content fitting your brand or a specific theme.
2. Follow to Win: Ask users to follow your account for entry, attracting new followers.
3. Tag a Friend to Win: Encourage users to tag friends who might be interested in your brand or prizes.
Generate User-Generated Content (UGC)
1. Photo Contest: Invite users to share photos showcasing your product or a relevant theme, collecting testimonials and UGC.
2. Reels Challenge: Inspire users to create engaging Reels videos around a brand-related theme.
3. Scavenger Hunt: Organize a virtual or real-world scavenger hunt with clues posted on your Instagram account.
Remember that Instagram contests are a great way to connect with your audience and reach your marketing goals. You just need to choose the right type of contest that suits your purpose.
7. How to Promote Instagram Giveaways?
Promoting Instagram giveaways involves a strategic blend of free and paid methods to maximize visibility and engagement.
For free promotion, use organic posts and Instagram Stories to announce the giveaway, engaging users with clear instructions and enticing visuals.
Cross-promotion with relevant accounts and encouraging user-generated content can also expand reach without additional cost. Utilizing hashtags helps increase discoverability, targeting both general and niche audiences.
On the paid front, Instagram ads offer targeted reach through various formats like feed ads and Stories ads. Collaborating with influencers or sponsoring content can amplify the giveaway’s exposure to their followers. Utilizing giveaway directories and leveraging email marketing to reach subscribers are also effective paid strategies.
By employing a mix of these approaches, businesses can effectively promote Instagram giveaways, driving participation, engagement, and brand visibility.
8. How to Win Instagram Giveaways?
Winning Instagram giveaways is easier than you might think! First, keep an eye out for giveaway posts from accounts you follow. Once you find one you’re interested in, make sure to read the instructions carefully.
Usually, you’ll need to like the post, follow the account, tag friends, or leave a comment to enter.
Then, simply follow the instructions provided and complete the required actions. Remember to engage with the post and the account hosting the giveaway to increase your chances of winning. Finally, stay tuned for the announcement of the winners – you could be one of them!
