It was a busy year on the Rafflecopter blog. 200,000 of you came to visit and see what we had to say about giveaway tips, Facebook promotions, and other marketing advice. A review of the most popular Rafflecopter blog posts reveals some interesting trends that marketers like you were interested in over the past 12 months.
To generate and rank this list we looked at a combination of unique pageviews along with the average time visitors engaged with each post. We then removed any Rafflecopter product focused posts. Here are the results.
10. 5 Effective Promotion Tips For Your Ending Giveaway
Even though this post is originally from 2013 it comes in at number 10 on our 2015 list. Promoting your giveaway is critical. Like any content you create, no one is going to see it if it’s not promoted. Some experts recommend spending as much time on promoting content as you do creating it. Since this post was published we’ve created a giveaway marketing best practices Ebook that includes a whole section on promoting your giveaway.
9. Your Blog Might Need a Makeover
Since a large number of our customers are bloggers, we see A LOT of blogs. Some are great and others would make you cringe. The design and mechanics of a blog can make or break how successful it is at getting readers to stick around. This post shares several tips on what to consider to make your blog readable, engaging, and sticky.
8. 6 Tips on UTM Naming Conventions
Three of the top 10 posts are Google Analytics related. More and more marketers are becoming data-driven, and for good reason. There is loads of information available (much of it for free after a little set up) that can be used to analyze, learn, and improve the experience your website visitors have turning them into repeat visitors and eventually customers. UTM parameters let you segment your data to get a deep understanding of your customers and this post shares how to best organize those UTM parameters.
7. Facebook fan gate updates
Number 7 on our list is actually made up of two different posts on the same topic. First we updated everyone on what changes were being made to the Facebook platform policy to help everyone understand what to expect. Then, once the changes went into effect, we wrote another post on alternatives to “fan-gating” and how the changes affected giveaway management platforms like Rafflecopter.
6. Stop Hating on the Sweepers
While this post was #6 on the list, it was #1 for discussion and comments. We saw a lively discussion in the comments section with a lot of great opinions. The post covers what a “sweeper” is in the world of giveaways, what are the perceptions of sweepers by giveaway admins, and most importantly, why sweepers are good.
5. Amazon Giveaways: Everything You Need To Know
The online retailer Amazon entered the giveaway market in 2015 which generated a lot of buzz. We dive into what an Amazon giveaway is, how it works from both the admin and entrant perspective, plus some of the benefits and drawbacks to using Amazon’s system.
4. 5 Invaluable Tips to Becoming Google Analytics Certified
Not only is using Google Analytics free, but Google also offers a free course to get certified in it. Our own Josh Couper went through the process and has 5 great tips to keep in mind for when you go through the course and exam.
3. Intro to UTM Parameters and Best Practices
That’s right, more Google Analytics – woot! If you haven’t caught on yet, being a data driven marketer is not only a hot topic, but it will also help you succeed in reaching your goals. We already shared the best practices for UTM naming conventions, and this post will put that advice into context by explaining what UTM parameters are and how to best use them.
2. No Purchase Necessary & Giveaways: Everything You Need to Know
We all want to make sure we’re following applicable laws related to promotions while at the same time achieving results with those promotions. In this post we cover everything you need to know when it comes to the rules around “no purchase necessary”, sweepstakes, contests, lotteries, and raffles.
Drum roll for the #1 post please…
1. 5 Best Practices For Your Facebook Timeline Giveaway
Despite limitations Facebook placed on promotions with the new policies mentioned in #7 above, the Facebook platform continues to be a very popular and effective place to run a giveaway. Even though we originally published this post in September 2013, it continues to be a favorite among readers and worth reviewing for your marketing strategy.
—–
You can look for more great content in 2016 on the Rafflecopter blog. If you want to have a say in what we publish, share your feedback with us and enter to win 3 months of Rafflecopter Premium plus some great swag!
