Here they are! The 10 (actually 11, since the #10 spot was a tie) highest trafficked posts this year!

1. Updated YouTube Contest Guidelines: 5 Things to Know

Earlier this year, YouTube issued a 2015 update to their contest guidelines. Basically, it explained that they were phasing out their contest gadgets that have been in place for a few years and that contests are now being governed by their simplified guidelines. The YouTube contest guidelines give the usual contest verbiage shared by other social platforms, like Facebook and Twitter. Continue reading →

2. Fall into an Autumn Promotion

With the official start of fall coming up, it is the perfect time to put on your (warm) thinking cap and reach out to your consumers with a great promotion. The cooler weather will be bringing them back inside the house and onto your website or Facebook page where they will start to accept the fact that summer is over. Keep them in good spirits by reminding them how great the fall is and how your brand is getting in on the action. Continue reading →

3. 10 Hot Summer Prize Ideas

Need an escape? Your customers do! Summer is on their minds — and you can make their dreams come true by offering the prizes they want in your upcoming summer promotion.   Here are some summer prize ideas for your next sweepstakes. Continue reading →

4. 2015 Digital Marketing Survey Results

In May of 2015 we ran a Digital Marketing Survey and asked respondents to answer thirteen questions about their company’s digital marketing practices, both current and in the near future. For completing the survey, we offered a chance to win $100. A few things we discovered that we weren’t expecting… Continue reading →

5. Responsive Microsite or Mobile App…Which One Is Better For a Promotion?

If you are planning on running a contest, sweepstakes or instant win game, and are wondering whether or not you need a responsive microsite or a mobile app, you are not alone.  This is probably one of the most asked questions we get from clients who want to run a promotion but don’t want to exclude mobile users. First let’s start by understanding the differences between them. Continue reading

6. MISSING: Star Wars themed 1977 Toyota Celica GT

A long, long time ago, in the ancient Marden-Kane offices in Manhattan, we gave away a car in a sweepstakes. But not just any car. This was a tricked out 1977 Toyota Celica GT, with a Star Wars custom paint package, powered by The Force. These are not the droids you’re looking for, but have you seen this car? This sweet ride was the Grand Prize in a STAR WARS Space Fantasy Sweepstakes run by the “Star Wars Corp.”, Twentieth Century Fox, and Wonder Bread, and administered by Marden-Kane. Continue reading →

7. Age Matters When Planning a Promotion

When planning a promotion, age definitely matters. To fully understand this concept, we first need to define what the age of majority (legal age) means. The age of majority is the legally defined age at which a person is considered an adult, with all the attendant rights and responsibilities of adulthood. The age of majority is defined by state laws, which vary by state, but is 18 in most states. Rights acquired upon reaching the age of majority include the rights to vote and consent to marriage, among others. Continue reading →

8. 6 Tips for Creating a Contest Winning Entry

As a promotional agency, Marden-Kane has helped our clients judge and moderate hundreds of thousands of contest entries over the last 57 years. We have seen great entries. And we have seen terrible ones. Be one of the great ones! Creating a winning entry isn’t hard. Just follow these simple tips: Don’t use, mention or show any copyrighted materials! Thousands of entries are disqualified every year for not following this one simple: don’t use any copyrighted material in your entry. Continue reading →

9. YouTube Updates Contest Policies AGAIN

In March we published a post about YouTube’s changing contest policies. The changes at that time outlined specific age and platform guidelines. These changes have since been revised again, but no official date that the changes went into effect was published by YouTube. As of 8/7/15 these are the new guidelines: They can also be found here. Continue reading →

10. (tie) Taming Your #Sweeps with Instagram Promotion Guidelines

Once upon a time, Instagram had no formal promotion guidelines. And it was like the wild, wild west in promotion land, just like on Pinterest and Facebook and Twitter a few years ago before there were rules. Brands did whatever they wanted. Hashtags were untamed and unfiltered, and people wildly tagged anyone and everyone in their posts for fun. Until the law came to town to clean Instagram up. #TheresANewSheriffInTown Instagram quietly formalized their promotion guidelines sometime in the last year. Here is what you need to know before you run a sweeps or contest on the Instagram platform. Continue reading →

10. (tie) Sweepstakes Rules…. Make Them Official

While many online articles and posts about Sweepstakes and Contests offer great insights and suggestions on ways to increase sweeps engagement or allow you to increase sales by running promotions, there is usually one glaring best practice missing from the majority of these articles; the need for and importance of Official Rules. If the sweeps is on Facebook or other social channel, some articles smartly reference Facebook’s Promotion Guidelines or the best practices for the channel, and communicated the importance of familiarizing yourself with them before creating a contest or sweepstakes. Continue reading →

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