Contests vs. sweepstakes: What’s the difference?

You may have heard about Sesame Sweepstakes™, one of the latest ways to leverage social media as a marketing tool for your practice. Online sweepstakes and contests on Facebook help grow your social media base, get more Facebook likes and acquire new patients. On average, Sesame Sweepstakes has tripled the amount of Facebook “Likes” for our practices. Sweepstakes and contests are a great channel for building your online audience. Whether your practice is starting with 100 or 1,000 “Likes” on your Facebook page, contests and sweepstakes offer a proven way to significantly increase your number of contacts.

But, what, exactly, is the difference between a contest and sweepstakes?

A basic enter-to-win sweepstakes with a low barrier, easy to enter process, often provides the best option for those just starting out with social media contests or with a small audience base. Campaigns with an appealing prize allow your web presence to go viral as web savvy patients share the contest details with their respective networks.

Contests, on the other hand, allow you to engage in non-clinical, fun dialogue with your patients. In addition to increasing the number of people who interact with your brand, a contest provides the ability to deepen your connection with your patient base. Audience generated content such as photos, videos or essay based contests is a great way to do just that. This type of contest drives serious participation, and provides an opportunity for your patients, and their friends and family to experience their “15 minutes of fame”. Most importantly, when participants upload their personal content to your promotion, they are naturally more invested in your practice brand.

Facebook has a lot of rules when it comes to the “right” way to run a contest and it’s really important to not get in trouble with their terms of service. Sesame Sweepstakes™ is fully compliant with federal and state regulations, as well as Facebook’s Terms of Service.

If you’d like to learn more about Sesame Sweepstakes, please email [email protected]!