Giveaway & Contest Statistics For Brands (2024 Trends)

Published On: Sep 13, 2024
Edited On: Jan 29, 2025

If you're looking to boost your brand’s exposure and connect with your audience, giveaways can be a game-changer in the constantly evolving world of digital marketing. With more than 60 million giveaway and contest posts on Instagram, it’s evident that this approach leads to exceptional engagement.

In this blog post, we share the latest giveaway statistics, which highlight their powerful impact on sales, social media interaction, and brand awareness.

If you haven't hosted a giveaway for your business yet, this post will surely convince you to give it a try!

Giveaway Statistics 2024 (Editor's Picks)

  • Giveaways have a conversion rate of about 34%.
  • Giveaway emails have an average open rate of 45%.
  • Emails with giveaway calls to action (CTAs) often see a 3.73% higher conversion rate compared to other types of emails.
  • The average conversion rate for giveaway landing pages is 30%.
  • Over 186,000 people search for giveaways on Google every month.

Giveaway Statistics Key Findings

Do giveaways increase sales?

Yes, they do! Giveaways aren’t just about freebies. They’re a great tool that can drive higher conversion rates and boost customer engagement. Here’s how they help businesses grow and thrive:

Higher Conversion Rates

Giveaways have a conversion rate of nearly 34%, which is higher than many other types of marketing content. For example, landing pages with giveaways can see email leads increase by 700%.

Giveaway Conversion Rates

This high conversion rate shows just how effective giveaways are at motivating people to take action, whether it's signing up for an email list or making a purchase. For instance, if a business typically gets 10 email sign-ups, a giveaway can boost that number to 70, demonstrating the powerful impact of this strategy.

Social Media Engagement

Social media giveaways generate 9.5 times more engagement than those hosted on the organizer's website. This means more likes, shares, and comments, making your campaign a hit!

Contests and giveaways on Instagram receive 64 times more comments and 3.5 times more likes than regular posts. Accounts hosting giveaways on Instagram grow 70% faster than those that don’t, showing a significant growth in engagement and followers.

The hashtag #giveaway on TikTok has over 34.4 billion views.

91% of posts with 1,000+ comments on Instagram are giveaways

This impressive increase in engagement happens because giveaways incentivize users to interact with the content by liking, commenting, and sharing. In fact, 91% of Instagram posts with over 1,000 comments are related to a contest. People love the chance to win something, which makes them more likely to engage with the post and follow the account.

For businesses and influencers, this means a giveaway can rapidly boost their visibility, attract a larger audience, and build a more engaged community, leading to long-term growth and increased brand loyalty.

Sales and Repeat Customers

Research has shown that businesses offering free samples experience a 30% increase in overall sales compared to those that do not.

Giveaway Increase Sales

Free samples in the food and beverage industry, such as tastings in wineries, have been shown to increase immediate sales and foster long-term customer loyalty. For instance, a study found that customers who participated in wine tastings were 93% likely to spend more and 92% likely to make repeat purchases.

This strategy demonstrates the power of complimentary samples in building strong customer relationships. By offering a free taste, businesses create a positive and memorable experience that encourages customers to buy more on the spot and come back for more in the future.

Brand Awareness and ROI

About 45% of digital marketers agree that social media contests offer a good return on investment, and 62% of businesses use giveaways to increase brand awareness.

This shows that social media contests and giveaways are seen as effective ways for businesses to get more out of their marketing efforts. Many marketers believe these tactics give them a good return on their money.

Additionally, a majority of businesses use giveaways specifically to make more people aware of their brand. Research shows that 65% of marketers find social media contests and giveaways effective in engaging their audience and driving website traffic. This can lead to more customers and better business results overall.

How long should giveaways last?

The ideal duration for giveaways varies, but recent trends suggest that they typically last between 48 hours to one week. This time frame helps create a sense of urgency, encouraging quicker participation and maintaining high engagement throughout the giveaway period. Almost 33% of brands run a giveaway each month.

Giveaway Duration Statistics

Here are some key points from recent studies and expert recommendations:

  • Short Duration (48-72 hours): This is often recommended for smaller giveaways or when you want to create immediate buzz and quick engagement. This period is ideal for flash giveaways, where the goal is to boost engagement rapidly.
  • Standard Duration (Up to 7 Days): Most giveaways last about a week. This allows sufficient time for participants to enter while keeping the momentum going. It's long enough to promote effectively across different channels but short enough to maintain urgency and interest.
  • Longer Duration (Up to 2 Weeks): In some cases, especially for larger giveaways with significant prizes, extending the giveaway to two weeks can be beneficial. This provides more time for promotion and allows participants to share the giveaway with others, increasing reach and entries.

How can social media contests help increase sales?

Social media contests can significantly increase sales, with a notable 90% of consumers shopping from brands they follow on social media.

Instagram stands out as the top social media platform for contests and giveaways. Its visual-centric format, combined with features like Stories and Reels, makes it ideal for running engaging promotions. Over 500 million people use Instagram Stories daily, and a significant portion of these users interact with brand content.

Social media contests and giveaways are also an effective way to gather user-generated content, which can be repurposed for marketing. UGC generates 6.9 times higher engagement than brand-generated content.

instagram is the top social media platform for hosting giveaways

Here are some more ways social media can help increase sales:

Increased Brand Awareness and Engagement

Contests boost social media followers and engagement. For instance, 130 million Instagram users engage with shopping posts monthly, making it a potent platform for promotions.

More than half, 52%, of brand discovery online happens through public social feeds. This heightened visibility translates to greater interest and potential sales.

In simple terms, over half of the people find new brands on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Plus, 90% of Instagram users follow at least one business, highlighting the importance of a strong social media presence.

Higher Conversion Rates

Social media contests can drive significant engagement, which directly impacts conversion rates. Engaged users are 40% more likely to make a purchase than non-engaged users.

Businesses that engage with potential customers on social media see substantial benefits. For instance, 78% of businesses using social media to connect with potential buyers outperform those that don't, and they are 51% more likely to meet their sales targets.

Lead Generation

Contests and giveaways can drive website traffic and generate leads. About one-third of contest entrants are willing to receive more brand information, making these initiatives excellent for lead generation.
Ads that target people who entered your contest can be very effective. People who see these ads are 70% more likely to become customers than those who don’t see them.

General Trends

Engagement

Contests offering prizes of $1,000 or more generate an engagement rate of 5.8% for every 100 followers.

Demographics

53% of contest participants are male, while 47% are female. The average age of participants is 30.

Countries

The top 5 countries searching for giveaways include Indonesia, Mexico, India, the United States, and Germany.

Platforms

About 78.4% of contest shares occur on Facebook, with WhatsApp being notable on mobile devices at 17%.

Popular Categories

Travel offers are among the most popular prizes, followed by entertainment and technology sectors

Giveaways Case Studies

These case studies highlight some successful giveaway campaigns that have not only boosted brand engagement but also achieved significant business outcomes.

Krispy Kreme Get Vaccinated

In 2021, Krispy Kreme offered free doughnuts for a year to anyone who presented a COVID-19 vaccination card. They extended this initiative by delivering free doughnuts to healthcare workers and volunteers at vaccination centers. This campaign was a huge success, not only boosting Krispy Kreme's brand visibility but also supporting public health efforts during the pandemic.

Lay's Do Us A Flavor

Lay's launched the “Do Us A Flavor” campaign in 2012 in the US, inviting consumers to submit ideas for new chip flavors. The campaign included a Facebook page where users could submit and share their flavor ideas. The winning flavor creator was awarded $1 million or 1% of the net sales of the winning flavor. The campaign received 3.8 million submissions, over 22.5 million Facebook page visits, and a 12% increase in year-over-year sales.

Wrapping Up

In summary, giveaways are a powerful way for brands to get noticed, engage customers, and increase sales. They have an impressive 34% success rate in converting participants into customers and generate significant interaction on social media.

Whether it’s a quick contest or a longer campaign, giveaways appeal to a wide range of people. As businesses continue to evolve, using giveaways in marketing strategies can help them grow and build strong connections with customers in today’s digital world.

<div class='toc'><ul><li><a href=#Giveaway-Statistics-2024-(Editor's-Picks)><b>Giveaway Statistics 2024 (Editor's Picks)</b></li><li><a href=#><b></b></li><li><a href=#Do-giveaways-increase-sales><b>Do giveaways increase sales</b></li><p>  <a href=#Higher-Conversion-Rates>Higher Conversion Rates</p><p>  <a href=#Social-Media-Engagement>Social Media Engagement</p><p>  <a href=#Sales-and-Repeat-Customers>Sales and Repeat Customers</p><p>  <a href=#Brand-Awareness-and-ROI>Brand Awareness and ROI</p><li><a href=#How-long-should-giveaways-last><b>How long should giveaways last</b></li><li><a href=#How-can-social-media-contests-help-increase-sales><b>How can social media contests help increase sales</b></li><p>  <a href=#Increased-Brand-Awareness-and-Engagement>Increased Brand Awareness and Engagement</p><p>  <a href=#Higher-Conversion-Rates>Higher Conversion Rates</p><p>  <a href=#Lead-Generation>Lead Generation</p><li><a href=#Giveaways-Case-Studies><b>Giveaways Case Studies</b></li><p>  <a href=#Krispy-Kreme--Get-Vaccinated>Krispy Kreme Get Vaccinated</p><p>  <a href=#Lay's--Do-Us-A-Flavor>Lay's Do Us A Flavor</p><li><a href=#Wrapping-Up><b>Wrapping Up</b></li></ul></div>

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