#MKTG 16 – Rafflecopter

/ Jan Sikes

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?

Rafflecopter Logo

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.

Image courtesy of Pixabay thehaladesign

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:

Screenshot from computer

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.

Screenshot

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

61 thoughts on “#MKTG 16 – Rafflecopter”

  1. Pingback: #MKTG 18 – Building an Email List | Story Empire

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  6. Pingback: Some updates and a poem! #writingcommunity #readersoftwitter #poetry #tanka #updates #bookrelease #rafflecopter #giveaways #blogtours – Author D.L. Finn

  7. 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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  8. 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.

    Liked by 1 person

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  10. 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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  12. 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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    • 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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  14. 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?

    Liked by 1 person

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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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  18. 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.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  24. 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 💕🙂

    Liked by 2 people

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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!

      Liked by 2 people

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  27. 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!

    Liked by 4 people

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