Instagram is home to a quarter of the world. With a huge user base of over 2 billion, Instagram is a perfect place for your brand to increase its footprint. When it comes to leveraging the true potential of Instagram, Giveaways are the foremost and optimal choice as they spread the word wide and far riding on the algorithm of Instagram. Running a giveaway on Instagram can be an excellent way to grow your following and increase engagement with your brand. However, as your follower count grows, managing all of those Instagram giveaway entries can quickly become overwhelming. Hence, having a grasp of how to track Instagram giveaway entries can increase the chances of success of the giveaway.
Tips on How to Keep Track of Instagram Giveaway Entries
Here are some tips for keeping track of Instagram giveaway entries and keep them organized so you can easily pick a winner and keep your followers happy.
Use a Giveaway App
There are a number of apps available that are designed specifically for running Instagram giveaways. These apps allow followers to enter by commenting, liking, tagging friends, or following – whatever parameters you set. The app then collects and stores all of the entries in one easy to access place so you don’t have to dig through hundreds of comments to find who entered. The most popular Instagram giveaway app to check out is Rafflekey. The app makes it much simpler to have an Instagram Contest winner picker. It uses the most advanced Instagram giveaway picker tool to choose the winner fairly and squarely. The huge pile of entries makes it complex to pick the most deserving winner. Also, the task in hand is to somehow maintain the legitimacy of the contest. The use of an app and picker tool not only gives you an edge over those who are not using them but also makes the whole procedure of the contest more transparent.
Require Users to Tag Friends
Asking entrants to tag friends in their comments can make it easier to keep track of entries. You can simply scroll through your tagged photos and count the entries. Requiring tags also encourages entrants to spread the word about your giveaway, generating more exposure for your brand. Just be sure followers know they can tag the same friend more than once to maximize their entries. This is the easiest and most comprehensive method to keep track of entries. Once you have noted down the number of entries, you can compare it to your last giveaway and gauge the health of your reach and vitality. Critically analyzing the data will provide you with key insights and infographics about your brand’s overall value on Instagram.
Assign Each Entry a Number
As followers enter your giveaway, assign each a number and keep a running list with their Instagram handle and corresponding number. When it’s time to pick a winner, you can simply use a random number generator or a picker tool to select the winning number. This is an old school but effective way to keep Instagram giveaway entries organized, best suited for smaller giveaways. Though not suited for large giveaways, it is one of the easiest and simplest solution to your question of how to keep track of Instagram giveaway entries?
Leveraging Instagram Analytics
Check out your Instagram Insights during and after your giveaway. While utilizing creative Instagram giveaway ideas for maximizing reach is a good thing, the data from the Instagram analytics should not be ignored. The “Comments” section will show you which posts received the most comments – likely your giveaway posts. Here you can scan the hundreds of entries, export to Excel for organization, look for duplicate or fraudulent entries, and select a winner based on the total number of entries received. Instagram Analytics is a strong tool that shows you your growth trajectory. It is evident that with each giveaway you should have more entries and more participants.
Use a Spreadsheet
For moderate or larger sized giveaways, keeping a spreadsheet of entrants is a simple way to stay organized. Create columns for their Instagram handle, full name, email address if collected, and entry details like whether they tagged friends or followed you. Filtering and sorting make it easy to find and verify entries when selecting a winner. It is one of the time-tested and old ways of recording the entries. Different spreadsheets for every giveaway will also provide you with strong analytics where you can compare the performances of different giveaways you run. Just be sure your spreadsheets stay private.
Enable Comment Moderation
Turn on comment moderation for your giveaway posts so entries don’t autopublish. This allows you to manually approve each one, keeping close track of entries and checking that users are following all rules. Unapproved comments remain visible only to the user. It’s extra work for large giveaways but ensures every entry is verified. When a brand establishes its name in the public domain, it becomes its duty to uphold ethics. Moderating comments will help you weed out inappropriate comments or illegitimate comments. Only the bonafide comments remain their for the public to see. Moderating also promotes the good social health on platforms.
Follow Entry Rules Closely
To be fair to all entrants, carefully follow your giveaway rules when choosing winners. For example if a user has to like, comment and tag 3 friends, be sure to count only entries meeting all criteria. Disqualify incomplete entries or users trying to game the system with duplicate posts. And don’t forget to have fun with your giveaway. Building genuine engagement should be the top priority.
Why Should You Track Instagram Giveaway Entries?
Tracking entries of Instagram giveaways is essential for several reasons:-
Preventing Fraudulent Entries
It is challenging to differentiate between genuine entries and fraud ones, without properly tracking Instagram giveaway entries. By tracking the entries closely, you can identify and remove any suspicious or spam entries, ensuring that the Instagram giveaway is open only to legitimate participants.
Measuring Success
A part of your campaign success does depend upon how you track Instagram giveaway entries. By analyzing indicators such as the count of giveaway entries, engagement levels of the participants, and growth in follower count, you can conveniently measure the success of giveaway efforts and figure the areas of improvement for future giveaways.
Fairness and Transparency
Knowing how to keep track of Instagram giveaway entries ensures that all participants have an equal opportunity towards winning the campaign. By tracking count of giveaway entries, you can check that every participant has followed the Instagram giveaway rules and regulations, thus ensuring a fair selection process.
Selecting the Winner
In the end, keeping track of Instagram giveaway entries is important for choosing the giveaway winners. By doing so, you can make sure that the winners are selected fairly and the process follows giveaway rules, enhancing the credibility and integrity of your Instagram giveaway.
Engagement
Tracking Instagram giveaway entries provides an opportunity to engage with participants throughout the giveaway. By acknowledging and responding to entries, you can create a sense of community and encourage further participation, and strengthen relationship with the audience.
Conclusion
Staying organized for Instagram giveaways takes some effort but leads to a smooth promotion and happy followers. Limit entries on very large giveaways if needed, use tools and apps to collect entries, keep detailed records in spreadsheets, moderate comments diligently, and adhere to entry rules when choosing winners. With some planning giveaways don’t have to be chaotic – your followers will appreciate the extra attention to detail.
