Choosing a prize that converts

The prize is the single biggest lever on your result. Get it right and the marketing does half its own work. Get it wrong and no amount of promotion will save the draw. Here is how to choose well.

The three things every strong prize has

The best prizes are relevant, aspirational and scarce. If a prize has all three, it converts. If it has one, it does not.

Relevant

The prize has to appeal to the audience you are trying to reach, not just the people who already know you. A generic prize like cash or a gift card attracts everyone and engages no one. A prize that sits at the intersection of your world and your audience's interests pulls in the right people, who are more likely to enter, share and come back next time.

Aspirational

The prize should be something people want but would not usually buy for themselves. An experience, a bundle, something with a clear and generous value. Aspirational does not mean expensive. It means desirable. A weekend away, a year of something, a hard-to-get item all beat a flat discount.

Scarce

There is one of it, or very few, and the draw is the only way to get it. Scarcity is what makes a draw a draw. A prize anyone can simply go and buy has no pull.

Your own product, or a partner prize?

You have two options, and the second is usually stronger.

Your own product

Offering your own product or service works, and it costs you only the unit cost rather than retail. The limit is that its perceived value is capped by your price, and it gives no one else a reason to promote the draw for you.

A partner prize

A brand donates a prize in exchange for exposure across your marketing. This is the stronger option for three reasons:

• The perceived value goes up. A £500 experience is more shareable than a single product.
• The prize costs you nothing.
• The partner has a built-in reason to promote the draw to their own audience, which widens your reach for free.

To approach a prize partner:

1. Make a shortlist of five to ten brands whose audience overlaps with yours.
2. Lead with what they get: exposure to your audience, their logo on your marketing, social posts tagging them, a warm relationship for next time.
3. Make it easy. Tell them exactly what you need and by when, and handle the rest.