Recruiting Contest - A Social Media Viral Post Example
Hi, Everyone...
A quick update on our recruiting contest...
We are live now after a 2 1/2 day delay due to a software problem (not on our side)...This is a beta version of the tool and it is not available on the market at this time...
Not too much you can do when this happens, as there is no Plan B like I normally always try to have...
Oooof...What to do? Here's what: Stand up and keep marching!
Since this was a trial effort with a viral campaign, no harm done...
We also built some flexibility in on dates, so what we were able to do is to extend the contest by four days...
Now I can show you how this works...
WHAT DOES THE PROSPECT SEE FIRST?
Of course you need to present your offer. To do this we created what we hope will be a viral post. There are certain things that need to be included, such as the offer, the CTA, and a further sharing/tagging/liking CTA...
We want to keep the MOST important elements where viewers can see them when they first see the post. We also want to draw attention to the CTAs through using visuals that will unconsciously lead them in the direction we want them to go (taking action)...
I like to call this setting up the post so that this crucial information appears first and ABOVE THE FOLD...
This means there is more information below what they will see, but the MOST important info that will draw them in appears without any further action ono their part...
Here is what a sanitized version of what the post looks like on the social platform:
Key Points:
(1) Notice the arrows that point the viewer to the CTAs?
(2) Notice that this all is ABOVE the fold to capture their attention?
(3) The picture is also congruent with what they see when they click on the link and go to the landing page...
(4) If they want to know more they can click on the 'see more' and then they see more details about the contest:
They will then get more details on the contest or offer and there will be those people that want to read more before taking any further action...This is what I like to call BELOW THE FOLD...
This is your chance to briefly sketch out the main and important points from your offer, with more detail being provided once they get to the landing page (if they require it). Just the facts here, you want to keep it relatively succinct...
Here is what they will see then:
This first portion of the 'below the fold' gives them more details of the contest rules...Dates, what is to be won, who is eligible, etc.
Note that this contest is designed to not only get attention to the website, but also we are hiring two people...So we are asking for CVs/Resumes...
So the next section covers that...
Note that it also includes a final CTA at the end of the post...
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
When they click on the link(s) they will be sent to a landing page...That landing page details more about the contest, what they can win, etc. The images match the image from the post...
The viral campaign tool we are using does several things:
(1) It collects the name and emails of entrants.
(2) It sets in motion a planned series of browser notifications that pop down unobrusively updating entrants when their referrals sign up, and what additional prizes they have qualified for...
(3) It also sends out a sequence of emails automatically as they get more referrals and in that email there are options to immediately share from that page to more of their friends.
(4) At the conclusion of the contest, the entire list of entrants can be exported for a third party then to select a winner randomly.
Planting the Seed...
To make this go viral faster, you need to plan on having, if possible, a set group of people who will join the contest and then also share with their friends (preferably 10 at least). Chances are that these shares will result in more referrals and they too will share, and so on...
HOW CAN THIS HELP YOUR BUSINESS?
I likely do not have to tell you this, but I will mention just a few things such a campaign can do for you:
(1) Brand Awareness
(2) Leads
(3) Sales
(4) Authority
(5) Name Recognition
etc.
CONCLUSION
This is not that hard to set up, and it complements affiliate marketing nicely. Have a product or service that you want to get some free traffic to see what you are offering? Do you need to get your name out there with other niche members? I think you get the idea...
I will let you know how we do, the contest is running into next month...
What do you think? Is this something that would help your onine marketing business? Do you think this is too hard to do? Perhaps you have had some experience and could share it with us in the comment section?
UPDATE:
After 2 hours we have gotten 10 shares already and just through ONE we have 138 views! I think this is going to work?!
UPDATE 2
We are experiencing the pains of trying something new...
(1) The landing page sign up is not showing properly (this is from the banner strip tool we are using)
and
(2) The pages themselves have made themselves not accessible for editing as we see we need to change a few things...
(3) People running through the funnel are having delays on load times...
We have so far had over 2000 folks see the contest (with 0 paid ad)...
I am liking this...
Anyway...
I believe in ALL of you!
Cheers!
Dave : )
Recent Comments
22
I agree with you totally...We are working out the kinks with this first one...It is a process...We have bigger plans for such contests down the road, so learning how to use this properly is crucial...Cheers! Dave : )
Very nice Dave. I know you put a lot of energy into putting this together, but it should definitely be worth it!
Thanks, Debby...
We will see...I just slept for about 4 hours, and now am checking on the progress...Because we were late getting started, it is the weekend here, so I have to catch up with some of the friends who are going to seed the contest...
Our reach has been fantastic so far, well over 1000 people to this point, in less than 15 hours...I am a bit concerned about the CVs (0 so far), so we will definitely be testing 2 versions (second landing page will go live today)...
Testing is the key on this I think...
Cheers!
Dave : )
Great, Jay...Our reach has been fantastic, so far though no CVs..I am relooking at the funnel and having some friends go through it for choke points...This is a learning exercise for us, and the cost is low, so I am as interested in finding mistakes as having success! Cheers! Dave : )
Now, this is something great! I am happy you develop something that people like myself can follow. It is linguistic with many steps to learn and apply.
Thanks for sharing, and best to your online success.
Hi, Louisa....This one is not too difficult, but the tricky thing is making sure all the pieces are working. Since the software we are using is in beta, I am sure we will help them work out some glitches hehe...But the payback can be huge for the front end work on this...Cheers! Dave : )
Wow Dave - this is incredibly comprehensive - should reap you all of what you have set out to do, I would say. It does seem do-able although a lot of hard work obviously went into it. I wish you great success with your efforts and sharing.
Thanks so much for stopping by Katharina....Yes, this was a bit of work hehe...But I think the benefits are well worth the effort...We shall see! Thanks much also for the wishes, I am now in the weekend mode and need them! Cheers! Dave : )
Thanks, Mike...We will see how this goes, but I think most people like something for free, or for a name and email...Plus getting more chances to win with a push of a button and an additional 10 seconds of your time is not too hard...Let's see how this goes! Cheers! Dave : )
Thanks, Brad! It is after 5 PM here in Dubai and the weekend has started...*pop* the beer opens, like magic! Cheers! Dave : )
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Hi there Dave:
How did the contest go? I hope you had great success with it.
Cheers from México this weekend mi amigo.
Eugenio.