This month, Marden-Kane employees share their stories of the best sweepstakes they ever worked on.

Here’s a quote I haven’t heard nor used in a long time, “Good, better, best, never let it rest, until your good is better, and your better is best.” Needless to say, as a Mom I cannot pick a favorite child nor in this case a favorite promotion as they were all the Best in Show!

However as a marketing professional I can provide you with an exceptional example that truly deserves that title and surpassed the better and the best…The WesternUnion.com “American Dream” Sweepstakes ran for 11 months in 2015; received over 13,000,000 eligible entries; awarded 48 prizes totaling $182,500; reported a 40% volume growth while the campaign ran; and, won a total of 29 Industry and Marketing awards.

What made this promotion stand out and be recognized? It engaged their consumers via a very relatable topic; was advertised on all available social media platforms; connected with their community; used actual entrant videos to further enhance and drive the inspirational messaging forward; and it fortified the connection between their aspirations towards the American Dream and Western Union. It was truly a remarkable campaign and we were honored to be a part of it.

Fae, SVP

 

This is a tough one as there are so many to consider that offered prizes ranging from t-shirts to a million dollars. That’s right: a million dollars! Although it was very exciting notifying the winner and advising them that they won a prize of this magnitude, I recall another sweepstakes that was great too and also helped the environment. The prize was unique in that it was a working prize. Meaning that twenty individuals were afforded an opportunity to travel to Costa Rica and do hands on work alongside scientists assisting in their research. The Winners were assigned daily chores and had the opportunity to live as field researchers live, eat what field researchers eat, and work like field researchers work. This wasn’t your average trip prize to an exotic destination for rest and relaxation. This prize you were put to work, albeit rewarding, and each winner was so excited for the opportunity to participate on the research team.

Cheryl, Account Director

 

Maybe not the “best” but the most interesting at the time was probably the #BlameMucus promotion for a client. Aside from the wonderful, snotty kid picture, I believe this was our first promotion that had true Twitter and Facebook integration. We stored the entrant’s intended post, sent it through moderation, and later posted (or not) on their behalf to either Twitter or Facebook.

Eric, Senior Programmer

 

The best Sweepstakes I worked on was for a wholesaler – as part of an online promotion the sponsor’s customers got to spin a wheel for a chance to win amazing prizes – trips, electronics, cash, etc.! To kick off the promotion we attended an event where we set up an actual spinning wheel and gave the attendees a chance to “spin the wheel” and win a gift card. Just the sound of the clicking wheel brought crowds to the table. I enjoyed interacting with the customers – their excitement and enthusiasm as they were involved in the promotion was contagious!

Beth, Account Executive

 

The best Sweepstakes I worked on was a promotion to encourage going to paperless billing one of our clients ran. This sweepstakes was successful due to the easy entry process, short promotion period and the high value prize that was offered. What made this sweepstakes so great though were the many interactions I had with the Grand Prize Winner. He went from shock and awe to being extremely grateful. When he finally received his prize he sent me a picture of himself with a big smile holding the $50,000 check!

Jenn D. , Account Executive

 

My favorite sweepstakes was a national promotion with a treasure hunt theme. It was my favorite because of the team effort by consumers/participants all over the country that didn’t even know each other. Even if players lost out on going to the next level they would start helping the other players.

Peggy, VP

 

My very favorite sweepstakes was one from almost a decade ago that introduced me to a new client that would become a brand with whom we still work with today. The premise for the sweepstakes/instant win game was to make customers happy by giving them lots of prizes, including a “Happy Place” decked out meditation/Zen shed for the Grand Prize Winner’s backyard. As we ran the sweepstakes we had some challenges as the client had never run an online instant win game of this magnitude before, but the client listened as we worked through (at the time) cutting edge technical solutions with them. It became clear that the brand really cared about going the extra mile and doing right by their customers, who LOVED and stayed loyal to the brand because the brand was so good to them. It was so rewarding to work with people who lived the happy mantra of the brand. I always look forward to whatever new idea they come up with because it’s always fun!

Jenn H, Interactive Account Director

To contact Marden-Kane to help you on your first, and our future favorite sweepstakes, contact us!

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