September 2/9 2013; Volume 27/number 10
By Melissa McGuire
Impressions Hardwood Ugly Floor Contest asks fans to vote, like, share and comment on their Facebook pages.With the growth of social media, contests and sweepstakes have become a significant part of flooring suppliers’ online marketing strategies. They not only build exposure with consumers but also drive leads for retailers. Here are just a few recent online contests.
Impressions Hardwood
Ugly Floor Contest
The Ugly Floor Contest was open to fans of the Impressions Hardwood Collection (IHC) Facebook page from June through early August. Each contestant was asked to submit a photo of her home’s ugliest floor along with a descriptive caption. Once the entries were in, contestants were asked to solicit votes, likes, shares and comments from their Facebook friends by spreading the word about the contest. Votes were tabulated, and the top five contestants were announced on the Impressions Facebook page. The winner was chosen based on a cumulative score of votes and fan engagement. Grand prize winner Amber from Hanahan, S.C., received $3,000 worth of new hardwood flooring.
Allison Pollard, account supervisor for Burkhead Brand Group explained the goal for the contest was three-fold: to generate additional brand awareness via social media channels—primarily Facebook but Pinterest was also included—grow the company’s following on Face-book and generate leads from contestants who entered.
Impressions implemented the OfferPop interface for its Facebook contest which “enabled us to geo-target and fan-gate the campaign, which was crucial to growing our page following,” Pollard said. “We liked the various ways to analyze the data throughout the contest, which was very important to us.”
Elevating product and business awareness was the paramount goal for the company. “Ultimately, a contestant had to submit her information through a form on our website, so we could contact her with the names of authorized Impressions dealers in her area,” Pollard said. “We hope the awareness generated from the contest will drive traffic into the authorized Impressions retailer locations.”
Engage! With Metroflor Corp.
Metroflor announced this contest on its Facebook page, encouraging consumers to utilize their creativity and imagination on Pinterest to explore applications for flooring in their own homes.
“The purpose of the contest was to reach out directly to potential consumers using the Facebook and Pinterest platforms and increase awareness of Metroflor’s Engage LVT,” said Russ Rogg, president. “Staying current with social media trends and engaging consumers this way will point them in our direction, which is always a competitive advantage.”
The company implemented a multitude of platforms for the contest, including Facebook, Pinterest and Remodelaholic, a popular site dedicated to home remodeling and DIY projects that boasts an audience of over 20,000 Facebook fans and 75,000 Pinterest participants. Cassity Kmetzsch, the creator of the Remodelaholic blog, an-nounced the contest on all three platforms “to encourage participation in both contest entry and voting.”
The winner was one of over 1,975 visitors to Metroflor’s Facebook page who “liked” Metroflor and one of the 50-plus people who entered the contest by creating her own Pinterest pin board. Contestants had to incorporate at least one Engage room scene as well as other images found on the web, and post the entry on Facebook. Similar to the Ugly Floor Contest, entrants were then encouraged to reach out to their social media networks and ask friends and family to vote for their Pinterest pin board. The grand prize winner was the creator of the Pinterest pin board that received the most votes.
“Metroflor will certainly participate in additional online competitions,” Rogg said. “By targeting the social media platform, we can get bloggers and consumers talking about our products and viewing our portfolio of collections online, which increases brand awareness. We might do something different in the future, depending upon where social media is heading. Pinterest is such a rapidly evolving platform, and there may be new ones on the horizon.”
Johnsonite Ecolibrium
This promotion was established to publicize Johnsonite’s bio-based, phthalate- and PVC-free wall base called Ecolibrium. The contest utilized the company’s website, Facebook, Twitter and email broadcasts asking participants to order Ecolibrium samples and make a creation of any kind, photograph it and upload the photo to Johnsonite’s Facebook page.
“The contest encouraged our customers to learn about Ecolibrium, get the sample in hand and have some fun in the process,” explained Stephanie Galaska, digital marketing manager for TNA Marketing. “All submitting and voting was done through the Johnsonite Facebook page, using the WildFire app to customize the content and track the contest customer postings and voting by their peers to select the winners.”
Explaining that cross-platform promotions are important to the company, Galaska said they are significant because they drive traffic online and offline, increase brand awareness, surprise and excite the customer, engage users, gain consumer insight and generate a connection with new and existing customers. “What has made our contests and promotions successful is our customers’ willingness to share our very detailed plan on pre-, present and post-promotion. This will enable a business the assurance of being aligned with your goals throughout the promotion.”
Chasin’ the Dream Sweepstakes by Mohawk
This contest includes an opportunity for consumers to win a three-day VIP NASCAR vacation—including airfare, transportation and hotel accommodations for two, plus premium grandstand seats for one of the biggest races on the NASCAR circuit. The drawing for Chasin’ the Dream will take place after the sweepstakes period closes Sept. 15.
“The promotion is designed to drive retailer store traffic and increase consumer brand awareness of Wear-Dated Embrace carpet with Scotchgard Advanced Repel Technology and Mohawk hardwood also featuring Scotchgard Advanced Repel Technology,” said Mike Zoellner, vice president of marketing services. “We also see it as a great way to engage with consumers during the consideration phase.”
Zoellner explained the contest was designed specifically to support Mohawk’s retail partners. In addition to securing consumer contact information from the sweepstakes, retailers can use the contest as a way to engage with customers. “Retailer participation is free of charge as it is 100% sponsored by 3M Scotchgard Protector and Mohawk. This promotion is incredibly easy to execute and was created to produce maximum rewards with minimal effort.”
Also, to help generate buzz and excitement, retailers are given exclusive online content to promote their stores, Scotchgard Protector and the sweepstakes on their websites, emails, and Facebook and Twitter accounts. “Mohawk will continue to engage with consumers via online contests,” Zoellner said. “Because social media is constantly changing, our contest platform and structure will evolve as well.”