Category: Prizes

What Promotion Incentives Work Best?

We are constantly asked by our clients what promotion incentives work best. Should they give away a lot of small things, or one big thing? What is the ideal value of an incentive or prize? Do small incentives work? Here is a short summary of what promotion incentives work to entice consumers to register for a promotion such as a sweepstakes or contest or loyalty program. But

September 5, 2019 No Comments

5 Reasons to Use Electronic Gift Codes as Prizes

Electronic gift codes, or e-gift codes, are a great option instead of traditional prizes or plastic gift cards in your next Sweepstakes or Contest. E-gift codes can be purchased from big retailers or restaurants and usually consist of a link with a redemption code and/or a confirmation code, or simply as a URL with the code embedded in the link. These e-gift codes can be redeemed online, and the codes

April 26, 2019 No Comments

Father’s Day Contest Prize Ideas

Cheryl Thornton contributed this post about the perfect Father’s Day contest prize ideas. So you have decided to launch a promotion just in time for Father’s Day and want to award the perfect contest prize? Great idea! It gives your customers a chance to honor the special person in their lives. You have a theme and worked very hard on your creative assets and social posts, but there is

April 6, 2018 3 Comments

Prize Fail: Avoid These Prizes

Don’t have a prize fail! Take the advice of the experts at Marden-Kane on what prizes to avoid – and what works! – for your next sweepstakes or contest. “A prize by any other name is still a prize” and one would hope that it will bring joy to the lucky winner. But this is not always true as some enter just for entering then realizes that their prize

February 28, 2017 No Comments

What is a Surprise and Delight?

A Surprise and Delight is a marketing tactic similar to a sweepstakes or contest, where gifts are given away to fans, but instead of a posted entry period with rules and a set prize, the giveaway itself is completely unannounced and random. What can be tricky about a Surprise and Delight is that if you aren’t very careful you may actually be running a sweepstakes which would require official

February 10, 2017 No Comments

Tips for First Time Sweepstakes Success

Is your company thinking of running a sweepstakes or contest for the first time? Here are some tips for sweepstakes success from the seasoned promotional marketing experts at Marden-Kane! Do one thing well, not ten things poorly… focus on one type of promotion, ensure marketing messages clearly communicate the call to action, create an easy to enter means of entry, and promote participation to meet the established goals. Beth, Account Executive

January 17, 2017 No Comments

4 Reasons Brands Should Embrace Sweepstakers

Sweepstakers, also known as “sweepers” and even as “compers” in the UK, are the people who put hours each day into entering sweepstakes and contests. Many of them consider it a full-time job. These people take promotions very seriously, and are frequently more well-versed in the ins and outs of sweepstakes industry than some brand marketers. Not all brands like the thought of a bunch of professional sweepstakers entering their

November 4, 2016 No Comments

Working with Third Party Brands for a Contest

You should approach working with third party brands in a contest or sweepstakes with caution. Giving away highly sought after prizes like trips, electronics or gift cards, or running promotions on social platforms, may seem like a great idea to garner interest and new followers for your brand. However, if you are naming a specific brand name other than your own as part of your contest, you may need

September 8, 2016 2 Comments

Are Promotional Products Still Relevant?

Stacey Novick, Account Executive, contributed this post on promotional products. The $22 billion promotion industry is constantly changing to keep up with current consumer trends and the types of promotional products, whether premiums, branded merchandise or custom logo apparel, are also changing. Knowing that social media, gaining followers or having a commercial go viral are probably forefront on your mind, we want to provide you with some information on

July 14, 2016 No Comments