Hello, SE’ers. It’s Jan again with another marketing tool to share with you.
I’m sure you’ve all participated in Rafflecopters, but have you ever created one?

First, maybe I should explain what a Rafflecopter is, just in case you don’t know.
It is a contest and a super effective way to gain new followers, gather new email addresses for your newsletter, and increase your readership. All you have to do is be willing to give something away.

When I decided to experiment with a Rafflecopter, my goal was to increase my BookBub and Goodreads following, blog subscribers, ask readers to add Jagged Feathers to their reading list, visit my Facebook Author page, follow me on Twitter, and sign up for my newsletter.
I chose to give away two $10 Amazon gift cards. You can offer free books or a free short story, but let’s face it, there are free books all over the place these days. However, everyone can use a few extra Amazon bucks.
I had no idea what to expect. What if no one entered the contest? It’s like giving a party and you’re paranoid that no one will show up. That happened to me one time, by the way.
Creating the Rafflecopter is super easy. And best of all, it’s FREE! Using the free version limits the number of options you can use for the contest. In other words, I had to decide what were the most important platforms I wanted to build on. The paid version gives you more options, but the free version gave me plenty to try.
Rafflecopter asks you to assign the number of points each entry gains. For example, getting new Newsletter subscribers is important to me, so I assigned a max of 5 points per entry. Facebook was the least important, so I set it at 3 points per entry. That is how the total number adds up at the end of the contest. Rafflecopter counts the entry points. Does that make sense? If not, ask me.
**One bit of advice – Rafflecopter prompts you to preview your contest before it goes live and I highly recommend taking that extra step. I found a broken link I had to fix. Thank goodness I didn’t just throw it out there.**
My contest went live on May 24th. Rafflecopter chooses the time period for it. Mine ran for three weeks, ending on June 7th.
I posted the Rafflecopter to my blog, Facebook, and Twitter. I invested a small amount of money in a Facebook ad ($15) and the rest I just promoted by sharing to groups and reminding people to enter for a gift card giveaway.
The results:

As you can see, there were 1,656 entries. I was astounded. Let me clarify. These were not 1,656 people, but entries. Still, I was blown away.
Once the contest ends, Rafflecopter gives you the option to view all the entries, then export them in an Excel spreadsheet.

I exported and downloaded the spreadsheet, which told me exactly what I had gained from the contest.
Then, I let Rafflecopter pick the two winners for me. One noteworthy aspect regarding the winners—You should always contact them first, let them know they’ve won, and make sure the email address is where they want the gift card sent.
Easy peasy!
Not only did I pick up newsletter subscribers, but several new followers on all platforms.
This is a marketing option I will definitely use again and highly recommend it as a low-budget way to promote and gain new followers.
What about you? Have you ever created a Rafflecopter contest?

Also, if you’ve missed other posts in this Book Marketing Series, you can always go back and read any that interest you.
#MKTG Part 1 – OVERVIEW – BOOK MARKETING OPTIONS
#MKTG Part 2 – FACEBOOK ADS AND PASSION PAGES
#MKTG Part 3 – FACEBOOK ADS DETAILS
#MKTG Part 4 – TWITTER ADS
#MKTG Part 5 – INSTAGRAM
#MKTG Part 6 – PINTEREST
#MKTG Part 7 – IN-PERSON EVENTS
#MKTG Part 8 – GOODREADS
#MKTG Part 9 – AMAZON
#MKTG Part 10 – More AMAZON ADS
#MKTG Part 11 – AMAZON A+ CONTENT
#MKTG Part 12 – LinkedIn
#MKTG Part 13 – BOOKBub Ads
#MKTG Part 14 – Book Blog Tours
#MKTG Part 15 – Paid Book Blog Tours
Pingback: #MKTG 18 – Building an Email List | Story Empire
Pingback: #MKTG 17 – TikTok | Story Empire
Reblogged this on wordrefiner.
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I had saved this for later reading and then it got lost in the shuffle! What a cool way to get new peeps onto your platforms. Glad it worked so well for you.
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I totally relate to things getting lost in a shuffle. Happens to me all the time, but glad you found this again. Thanks for leaving a comment!
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🙂
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Wow, that’s great residuals Jan. Thanks for sharing with us 🙂
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My pleasure, Debby. I’m glad you stopped by!
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Pingback: Some updates and a poem! #writingcommunity #readersoftwitter #poetry #tanka #updates #bookrelease #rafflecopter #giveaways #blogtours – Author D.L. Finn
I’ve never used Rafflecopter, but others have and I’ve joined their giveaways through them. I never realised how easy it was to set up. adds this to my marketing strategy plan
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Yay! I am so glad you found this post helpful, Ari. I wish you much success!
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I’d heard of Rafflecopter, Jan, but didn’t really know what it was. So, I’d never used it. It sounds like a great way to get attention and attract followers. Wow. Well done. I’ve favorited this post for future reference. Thanks for the research and the great summary of your experience.
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I’m so glad you enjoyed the post, Diana. And the fact that you’ve saved it for future reference makes me happy. I enjoyed giving it a try and was most pleased with the results. Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment.
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When I come up for air, I’m going to give it a try. Great info!
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Congratulations, Jan. Seems like a great success!
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Thank you, Staci. Out of all the things I’ve done, this one was the least expensive and it did yield results.
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What an excellent post, Jan, and you had some fabulous results! I’ve created a few Rafflecopters in the past, but I honestly forgot about utilizing it in the last year or so. Thanks for the nudge and reminder. It’s definitely worth trying again. I love this post! 🙂
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I’m so glad you enjoyed the post and the nudge, Mae. It is definitely something to utilize now and then. And thanks for letting us know that you’ve created a Rafflecopter in the past. I’m happy you stopped by and left a comment!
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Reblogged this on The Indie Spot! and commented:
Another marketing tool to consider!
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Great post and information, Jan 🙂 I have done Rafflecopter in the past and it really built up my newsletter subscribers and other platforms. Of course after the contest a few unsubcribed but some stayed around too, which made it worth it. Might have to do it again sometime.
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That’s always the case with contests, but the amount who unsubscribe is minimal. And it never hurts to gain more followers on Goodreads and BookBub. Thank you for your comment, Denise, and for letting us know you’ve tried this before.
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You inspired me to do it again for current book 🙂
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I’ve never tried this before, Jan. Your explanation makes it intriguing. I’ll bring this up to Stephen and our social media guy at FIG. It may be something we try. Thanks for sharing.
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I think it would definitely be something the Fresh Ink Group might try. It seems like a great way to build a following. Thanks for stopping by and I wish you much success if you decide to give it a go.
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I have never tried a rafflecopter, but it sounds easy. I have been a participant, and I found that side easy.
Have you ever tried to do a rafflecopter with more than one author? I think that would be another way to gain even more followers. Your thoughts?
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I like the idea of doing a Rafflecopter with more authors, but I think you’d have to have the paid version in order to do that. It would be a wonderful way for a group of authors to gain more followers. Thanks for the suggestion, Michele!
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Sounds great, Jan. This definitely sounds like one to try. Thank you.
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Thanks, John. It’s one of the easiest things I’ve tried so far in this marketing maze. I’m glad you found it interesting.
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OK, I’m motivated. You make it sound so easy! Thank you.
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This is one of the easiest and most economic things I’ve tried, Jacqui. And I got great results. Good luck!
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I really like the sound of this, Jan! I might be back in touch because I’m an idiot and I need it to be idiot-proof before I risk it!
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Lol, Trish. I seriously doubt the idiot part. This is super easy to set up. I think you can do it. Good luck!
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Reblogged this on Judi Lynn and commented:
For any writers out there, Jan Sikes’ Story Empire posts on marketing have been wonderful. She’s listed links for all of them, so I thought I’d share if you’re ready to think about marketing your work.
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Thank you, Judi Lynn, for reblogging!! Much appreciated!
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I’ve never set one of these up, but when I had Kensington as a publisher, they did a few for me. Glad you mentioned this, because it sounds like something I’d be brave enough to try myself.
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It is super easy to do, Judi. I have no doubt you could easily set one up. I wish you the best and let us know if you decide to try it.
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I’ve not used Rafflecopter, but you’ve made it sound easy, Jan, and I just might take the leap. Excellent post! 😊
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Wonderful, Gwen. I’m so glad you enjoyed the post!
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I’ve never actually tried one of these. Thanks.
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Might be worth a try, Craig. It’s definitely affordable. Thanks for stopping by!
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Thanks for another good idea, Jan.
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I’ve participated in Rafflecopter contests, but I’ve never done one. It’s something I’m considering, especially after reading your post. Thanks, Jan!
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Wonderful to hear, Joan. I’m so glad you found the post helpful!
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I used to do a lot of Rafflecopters when I was on more platforms. Since I’ve narrowed down to Twitter and my blog, I’ve let that tool slide. Perhaps I’ll have to give it a go again one of these days.
Great post, Jan, with useful information. Thanks for sharing 💕🙂
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Thanks for your comment, Harmony. I’m glad you tried Rafflecopter and trust it was a good experience. I totally understand about narrowing down platforms. It’s so hard to keep up. It was my pleasure to share!
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Reblogged this on Words on Paper.
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Thanks a million for reblogging!
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XX
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I have always wanted to try one of these, and now I can, with complete confidence, thanks to you!
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Whoo-hoo, Jaye!! I’m so glad you found the post helpful!
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You also made advertising on FB more interesting, and doable, too!
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I’ve experienced those broken links when trying to enter Rafflecopter contests, so I’ve avoided experimenting with my own books. You make it sound so easy, Jan. I’m going to have to give it a shot. Thanks so much for the detailed explanation!
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That’s why it’s always a good idea to check the links, Jill. Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope you try it!
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Thank you for this great explaination, and the introduction to all the other interesting marketing ideas, Jan! Best wishes, Michael
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My pleasure, Michael. I’m glad you are finding the posts helpful. Thank you for stopping by and for sharing!
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Reblogged this on NEW BLOG HERE >> https:/BOOKS.ESLARN-NET.DE.
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Thank you for reblogging, Michael!
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HI Jan, thanks for this great summary of how Rafflecopter works. I have seen it but never tried it. Definitely food for thought.
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My pleasure, Robbie. I’m glad you found it helpful.
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Helpful advice, Jan! I’ve never done one of these, just saw the name a few times. Thanks for the thorough explanation!
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I’m so glad you found the post helpful, Audrey. It was my pleasure to share.
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