Beginners Guide to Using Rafflecopter to Host Giveaways Rafflecopter, a widely known giveaway website, helps businesses and people promote their products and services. The primary method they do this is through hosting free gifts. When I initially started to run giveaways to promote my writing, I had no idea what service to use. The first one I came across was Rafflecopter. Below is a sincere evaluation of their services. Pros 1. Free to host a giveaway Features of Rafflecopter Free Account The totally free hosting capabilities are standard but do finish the job. I highly suggest opting for the free choice for your first giveaway and then choose later on if you wish to update. Also, all of the free gift linky websites understand Rafflecopter and this makes sharing your free gift details easier. 2. Relatively easy to browse Hosting your very first trip is pretty easy to understand, although there was a discovering curve that I'll get into later in this post. Rafflecopter's website is split into 3 areas-- setup, installation, and entries. In the setup section, you add the reward description, decide how individuals can go into, add the terms, and start/end dates. In the setup section is where you find the links and code to embed the Rafflecopter widget on your blog/website or sneak peek on your Facebook fan page. The last area is the entries area. You can see a report showing who has actually gone into the giveaway and what choices they picked. You can also download the report into a stand out spreadsheet. Another terrific feature is that you can include a widget to select a winner at random when the free gift ends. 3. Incorporates with Facebook I discovered this to be a substantial advantage because as soon as it's setup, the changes you make to the free gift on Rafflecopter are automatically upgraded on your Facebook fan page. Also, you can enhance your posts on Facebook to reach more individuals. Not to discuss there is always a direct widget to your giveaway. You can also schedule posts on Facebook to remind people of the free gift as it goes on to increase traffic.
4. Great Q&A Articles Hyperlinks to Q&A Articles As I pointed out in the past, there is a discovering curve when using Rafflecopter, but they do provide a field manual about a range of subjects worrying in the ins/outs of utilizing their services. I discovered them clear and to the point. 5. Capability to copy the settings of a free gift I found this function truly helpful since I hosted three similar free gifts in a short quantity of time. Essentially, I copied the setup from one previous free gift to a new one. This made it easy and fast. https://www.socialleadfreak.com/rafflecopter-vs-upviral-which Cons of Rafflecopter 1. Free account has actually restricted features You can easily host a giveaway, however some crucial functions aren't included. The main one for me was that you can't personalize your entry form by adding a picture of your reward. A great quality image really boosts traffic to your giveaway and the free account does not include this alternative. After my very first giveaway, I updated to a standard account for $13 monthly to have this option. I likewise wanted to incorporate my mailing list with the free gift and have the ability for the entrants to refer a pal. Integrating your e-mail list is only consisted of in the Grow Plan. Being able to refer a good friend is only consisted of in the Premium plan. 2. Setup is pretty easy, however there are a couple of complicated areas. The very first one is deciding how people can enter. For my giveaway, it was vital that the entrant chooses my unique, to go into the free gift. To do this you require to develop your own choice and make this compulsory. If you read about free gifts they advise not making an entry choice obligatory due to the fact that it can deter people from entering, however considering that this was the entire function of the giveaway, I ignored this recommendations. I did read that including more than one alternative is a clever method to go. Some other options consist of: tweeting about the free gift, visiting a website or discussing a post. I included a few of these too. I was puzzled by the number value you can provide each choice. 1-5 are the options. I instinctively knew to provide the Invent Your Own Option a greater value and the others a lower value to make this option more attractive, but it wasn't up until later on when I took a look at who entered the free gift that it ended up being clear that the numbers represented the total variety of entries each person can make for finishing the different entrant choices. So it appears like you've had a lot more entrants than you've had.
I was confused by the number worth you can offer each choice. 1-5 are the choices. I intuitively understood to offer the Invent Your Own Option a higher value and the others a lower value to make this alternative more attractive, however it wasn't until later when I looked at who went into the free gift that it became clear that the numbers represented the overall variety of entries each person can make for completing the various entrant alternatives. So it appears like you have actually had a lot more entrants than you've had. Another confusing location is the terms and conditions area. For the complimentary account you don't have access to a template that develops your terms and conditions for you. And for a giveaway rookie, I had no concept what my terms must state. I had to do some serious research study to find the best language and to include all the essential terms. As soon as you upgrade to the fundamental account you have access to a template. However if you don't want to spend for this, you need to figure this out yourself. The last confusing location is that you can set your start/end dates however the start/end times should be at midnight. Being able to alter the time your free gift begins is a feature of the standard account, not the totally free one. I found this doubly frustrating because I read on a Rafflecopter's Q&A post that there are better times to begin and end a free gift to increase traffic. And midnight is not one of those times. 3. Rafflecopter Utilizes JavaScript Usually, this would not be a con unless WordPress hosts your website. WordPress does not support JavaScript when you have a complimentary account and utilize a free theme. Initially, I wasn't sure why the embedding code wasn't working on my site until I read multiple articles about this on WordPress and Rafflecopter. JavaScript is what makes the giveaway appearance slick and expert. Otherwise, you need to create a link to an image or tag in your post. This is what I did, and is a good workaround, but I like things to be perfect, so I found this a drawback. 4. Integrating the Facebook App There is a finding out curve when incorporating your giveaway with Facebook. Initially, you require to create the connection on your Facebook page. Basically, link your Facebook account with your Rafflecopter free gift. As soon as this is in location, you can then develop a post advertising your giveaway on Facebook. But you have to use the Facebook generated link, not the one provided by Rafflecopter. This took some time to understand. However, once the parameters were clear the procedure easy to execute. Overall, when I discovered the standard ropes of utilizing Rafflecopter, I decided it was best to stay with them for further free gifts. The widget is terrific overall. I highly suggest it. Let me know what your experience resembled with Rafflecopter below. I would love to hear them.
Take a look at How to Host a Giveaway. This useful blog will assist you begin in hosting a giveway.