CONTEST,  SWEEPSTAKES  AND  PROMOTIONS  IN  THE  DIGITAL  AGE    

Digital  Media  |  Mobile  Media  |  Social  Media  

   

   

WHAT  WE’LL  COVER  

•  THE  BASICS:    what’s  a  “promoEon?”  •  2012.    What  Did  We  See/Expect  •  What’s  Happening  in  the  Space  •  What’s  The  Latest?  •  Social  Media  Gone  Wrong  and  What  We  Learned  

•  2013  

What  is  a  PromoEon?  

•  CONTEST:    game  of  skill  (no  chance)  •  SWEEPSTAKES:  game  of  chance  (no  skill)  •  GIVEAWAY:  get  something  for  an  acEon  •  COUPON:  limited  discount  or  giveaway  •  REBATE:  refund  within  limited  Eme  •  LOYALTY  PROGRAM:  reward  for  repeat  business  

Blurry  lines?    Oh  you  betcha!    

CONTESTS  VS.  SWEEPSTAKES  To  Be  Legal,  One  Element  Must  Be  Missing  

PRIZE  CONSIDERATION  (measurable  skill    or  purchase)  

RANDOM    CHANCE  

•  If  there’s  only  visuals  provided,  it’s  probably  chance.  

•  SomeEmes  the  quesEon  rests  with  the  state.  

•  In  the  digital  age,  lawyers  oaen  are  relegated  to  the  courts  for  an  answer.  

Largely  OK,  but  law  is  not  tested:  must  friend  join  a  site?  •  Sign  up?  May  be  OK  if  easy  to  unsubscribe  •  Buy?    NO!  •  Laws  change  •  O!  

“Like”  this  shoe  page  so  I  can  win  something  cool  

Largely  OK,  so  long  as  the  “ask”  is  easy  and    can  be  undone  easily.    Beware,  though,  of  privacy  laws  and    social  media  restricEons.    

POLITICS OFTEN PLAYS A ROLE

tough  on  sweepstakes  

a  simple  change  can  make  a  difference  

•  California:    no  booze  promoEons  involving  cork.  •  Rhode  Island:    must  register  if  ‘in-­‐store.”  •  Arizona:    must  register  intelligence  contests.  •  Colorado:  font  must  be  no  smaller  than  10  point  for  fine  print  or  two  points  smaller  than  smallest  ad  copy.  

•  Georgia:  CCV  promoEons  require  contract  approval.  

•  Nearly  ½  states  require  CCV  registraEon.  

and  it’s  not  just  sweepstakes  

•  Rebates  may  require  POS  refund  in  CT  •  “Free-­‐for-­‐visit”  proms  require  disclosures  in  California.  

•  Full  –purchase  gia  cards  cannot  expire  in  many  states.  

•  Dormancy  fees  oaen  unlawful.  •  Escheat  laws  vary  state-­‐to-­‐state  

SOCIAL  MEDIA  BRINGS  NEW  EXCITEMENT  (AND  NEW  HEADACHES)  

SO  MANY  MARKETING  IDEAS.    SO  LITTLE  LAW.  

•  TWITTER – “I am at the movies” •  FACEBOOK – “I like the movies” •  FOURSQUARE – “I am the ‘mayor’ of the

movies.” •  INSTAGRAM – “Here’s an old-timey

photo of me at the movies. •  YOUTUBE – “Look at me in the lobby of

the movie theatre, acting cray.” •  SPOTIFY – “I’m listening to the

soundtrack from my favorite movie.” •  PINTEREST – “Here are all my favorite

movies.” •  GROUPON – “I bought this movie ticket

at ½ price.” •  LINKEDIN – “I work at the movies.”

   

•  MORE  AND  MORE:    Social  Media  •  CONVERGENCE:  TwiBer  +  Times  Square  •  INFLUENCE  SCORING:    CreaKng  Measurements  •  GAMIFICATION:    Virtual  play  =  real  life  money  •  SOCIAL  SHARING:    “checking  in”  from  anywhere  •  SOCIAL  TELEVISION:    Watch-­‐and-­‐Interact  

Source:    HBR  blog  2012.    

CONVERGENCE  WHAT’S  THE  LATEST  

Social  Digital    with    

Brick-­‐and-­‐Mortar  Follow  the  Tweets  

PromoKon  in  Times  Square  

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GEOFENCING

USING GEOLOCATION

SOFTWARE AND SOCIAL MEDIA

TO DELIVER personalized

CONTENT

INFLUENCE  SCORING  What’s  the  Latest  

Companies  can  select  influencers;  use  as  a  voEng  mechanism.  

GAMIFICATION  What’s  the  latest  

GAMIFICATION  Create  custom  or    pre-­‐packaged  social  games    

that  reward  users  with  real  world  perks  

SOCIAL  SHARING  What’s  the  Latest?  

“GOT  A  LO

TTA  INFLU

ENCE?      

MAKE  IT  PAY

!”  

SOCIAL  TELEVISION  What’s  the  Latest?  

INFLUENCER  TWEET    COMING  SOON  

WHAT’S  HOT  CAN  BURN!  Recognizing  Risks  

• DIRECT  REWARD  • SPONSOR  MAKES  MONEY  WITHOUT  LEGAL  VIOLATION  • LEVERAGES  SOCIAL  MEDIA  

• RIPE  FOR  FRAUD  • REQUIRES  PRIVACY  SCREEN  • POTENTIAL  CAN-­‐SPAM  •   PR  ISSUES  IF  RULES  UNCLEAR    • IS  PURCHASE  REQUIRED?    WHAT  ABOUT  CREDIT  CARD?  

REFER  A  FRIEND  

•   GENERATES  CONTENT  AND  SALES  •   VIRAL  EVEN  FOR  NON-­‐ENTRANTS  •   CREATES  UGC  FOR  LATER  USE  •   PROMOTES  LOYALTY  •   ANCILLARY  

•   PUBLIC  VOTING  MAY  BE  ILLEGAL  •   POTENTIAL  COPYRIGHT  ISSUES  •   GO  WITH  THE  WINNER?  •   OWNERSHIP  CHALLENGES  •   MUDDY  R&D?  •   LOW  TURNOUT  

•   IN  DEPTH  VIRAL  MARKETING  • LOYAL  FOLLOWING  •   INCREASES  PRESS  •   TAKES  ADVANTAGE  OF  EXISTING  TALENT    AND  CONSUMER  “STREET  CRED”    •   LEVERAGES  RELEVANT  HI  INFLUENCE  PEOPLE  •   CHEAPER  THAN  HIRING  AN  AD  AGENCY  

•   FTC  DISCLOSURE  RULES  APPLY  •   RELINQUISHING  CONTROL  MEANS  MESSAGE  CAN  STRAY  •   STRUCTURE  COULD  RESEMBLE  EMPLOYMENT  CONTRACT    •     REQUIRES  MANAGEMENT  OF  LOOSE  CANNONS  WHO  SAY  INAPPROPRIATE  THINGS  •   CAREFUL  ABOUT  USING  KIDS;  SCHOOLS  AND  PARENTS  INVOLVED  

Creates  physical  traffic  Allows  for  “treasure  hunEng”  Rewards  true  fans  who  “know”  Allows  exposure  for  quirky  or  under    Visited  exhibits  Allow  for  maximum  virality  

Limited  parEcipants  Could  create  “zoo”  Requires  a  camera  or  cameraphone  “race”  component  could  mean  liability  for  accidents.  

•   SPONSORS  MAKE  A  SALE  •     SALE    IS  NOT  TRIGGERED  UNTIL  POPULARITY  ASSESSED.  •   CAN  LIMIT  OR  UNLIMIT  DEAL  •   INCREASES  TRAFFIC  ON  SOCIAL  MEDIA  SITES  •   GOOD  WAY  TO  DUMP  INVENTORY  

•   BAD  POTENTIAL  PUBLICITY  •     GIFT  CARD  LAW  APPLIES  AND  ACTUAL  PAYMENT  CANNOT  EXPIRE  •     CUSTOMERS  MAY  NOT  UNDERSTAND  TERMS,  LEADING  TO                      PR  PROBLEMS.  

AVOIDING    PITFALLS  “uh  oh…  am  I  in  trouble?”  

TIP:�

Section 5 of

the FTC ACT:�

influencers

should

disclose RelaEonship  must  be  disclosed  or  company  liable  

CONTESTS  AND  SWEEPSTAKES  MUST  BE  ADMINISTERED  THROUGH  APPS  ONLY  (NO  “LIKE”  OR  “COMMENT”  PROMOTIONS).  NO  FACEBOOK  ACT  CAN  BE  REQUIRED  NO  USE  OF  “LIKE”  AS  A  VOTING  MECHANISM  NO  FACEBOOK  ENDORSEMENT    

THE  “DARLING”  OF  SOCIAL  MEDIA  SITES  

Tip:  

•  No  foul  lang

uage  

•  No  rapid-­‐fir

e  spamming  

TIP:  •  Discourage  mulEple  accounts.  •  Discourage  spamming  and  mulEple  retweets.  •  How  will  you  contact  your  winners?    

PROMOTIONS  GONE  WRONG  horribly  horribly  wrong  

…..  and  WHAT  WE  LEARNED  

Image  taken  from…  

PRACTICE  POINTER:  COURT  ISN’T  ALWAYS  THE  ANSWER  

If  it’s  not  your  campaign,  you  cannot  control  the  message  If  the  message  is  bad,  consider  whether  change  is  warranted  

2013  UPDATE:  Price  Chopper  Purchases  Wegman’s!  

PRACTICE  POINTER:  NEVER  PENALIZE  THE  CONSUMER/CONTESTANT  

PromoEons  and  coupons  should  be  clear  that  pre-­‐screening  event  will  happen  If  a  contest,  rules  should  state  that  brand  must  be  held  in  “posiEve  light.”  Popular  vote  should  never  fully  govern  results  of  a  UGC  promoEon  Expect  “gaming”  of  the  system  Admit  your  mistake  and  turn  it  into  posiEve  PR    

“THIS  PRETTY WITH INK DESIGN  IS  AWFULLY  CLOSE  TO  VISTAPRINT’S”  

Defensive,    nasty  reply  backfired!  

PRACTICE  POINTER:    BE  TRUTHFUL,  EVEN  IF  IT  HURTS  

Don’t  try  something  you  cannot  pull  off  Always  be  authenEc  If  you  cannot  arract  an  audience,  it’s  probably  not  your  audience  

August,  2011  Serled  for  a  

“chicken  check”  

PRACTICE  POINTER:  PLAN  FOR  A  “HIT”.  

Viral  means  return  can  be  huge  FTC  won’t  want  to  hear  “I  ran  out”  While  supplies  last  isn’t  always  a  cure-­‐all  When  OPRAH’s  on,  we  all  watch  

Consider  “the  OPRAH  factor”  when  hiring  a  celebrity  (no,  really…  remember  the  beef?)  State  law  requires  enough  “on  hand”  to  reasonably  accommodate  Downloadable  coupons  and  codes  should  have  daily  limits  Unique  promo  codes  are  advisable  Internet  is  worldwide,  so  place  appropriate  geographic  limits  

Quantas Fleet Grounded After Union

Stops Talks. Mayhem Ensues

TEST  

Microsoft’s using a worldwide tragedy as a marketing opportunity. Oh, and 100K? @bing #bingcheapbastards

PRACTICE  POINTER:  TIMING  IS  EVERYTHING.    ATTITUDE,  TOO.  

If  bad  intent  can  be  construed  against  a  marketer,  it  will  Defensive  postures  will  be  laughed  at,  mocked,  and  shared  Viral  Bad  is  worse  than  nothing  

PRACTICE  POINTER:  INTERNAL  EDUCATION  IS  IMPORTANT  

AGs  frown  on  lack  of  preparaEon  –  it’s  not  an  excuse  Know  you  technology  (mayorships  can  change  hourly)  Date-­‐stamp  promoEons  and  limit  to  first  “winner”  per  day  Tell  staffers  about  the  promoEon  before  it’s  released  

“Your  Other  You  is  a  unique  interacKve  experience  enabling  consumers  to  play  extravagant  pranks.    Simply  input  a  liBle  info  about  a  friend  (phone,  address,  etc),  and  we’ll  then  use  it,  without  their  knowledge,  to  freak  them  out  through  a  series  of  dynamically  personalized  phone  calls,  texts,  emails,  and  videos.  First,  one  of  the  five  virtual  lunaKcs  will  contact  your  friend.    They  will  seem  to  know  them  inKmately,  and  tell  them  that  they  are  driving  cross-­‐country  to  visit.    It  all  goes  downhill  from  there.    The  Matrix  integrates  seamlessly  into  the  experience  and  you  can  follow  the  progress  of  your  prank  in  real  Kme  online.    Each  piece  of  the  campaign  assures  that  it  is  as  Google-­‐proof  as  possible.”  

File  under  “E”  for  “EW”    

The  “Mystery  Caller”  The  “We  know  where  you  live”  email  

The  “Coroner  Motel”  The  “Sign”  

The  “Grand  Finale    

•  RADIO  STATION  OFFERS  “100  GRAND”  OVER  RADIO  –  winner  sues  

•  HOOTERS  OFFERS  SELLER  OF  MOST  HAPPY  HOUR  FOOD  A  TOYOTA  THAT  TURNS  OUT  TO  BE  A  “TOY  YODA.”  

PRACTICE  POINTER:  COMMON  SENSE  IS  PARAMOUNT  

PLAY  YOUR  OWN  GAME  CONSIDER  GENDER  AND  ETHNIC  ISSUES    CONSIDER  SOCIAL  CONTEXT  ISSUES