Here is a 2500+ word blog post on "instagram giveaway ideas" with additional research, analysis, and information:
Instagram giveaways are an effective marketing strategy for businesses looking to rapidly grow their following, engagement, email list, and sales.
But coming up with new and creative Instagram giveaway ideas can be challenging.
That‘s why I‘ve compiled this ultimate list of 31 Instagram giveaway concepts across various niches to spark your next viral contest.
I‘ll also be sharing pro tips, real examples, and addressing frequently asked questions about Instagram contests so you can maximize your results.
Let‘s dive in!
Why You Should Run Instagram Giveaways
Here are 5 key reasons why brands invest time and money into Instagram contests:
- Gain followers rapidly: Require entrants to follow your Instagram account to enter.
- Increase engagement: Ask entrants to like, comment, or tag to boost interactions.
- Grow email lists: Collect email addresses to build your subscriber base.
- Curate user-generated content: Run photo contests to showcase your customers.
- Make more sales: Link to your online store or offer store credit prizes.
Additionally, Instagram giveaways present an exciting opportunity for participants to engage with your brand and community.
Contests arouse interest, provoke conversations, and bring followers together around a common goal of winning a coveted prize.
31 Creative Instagram Giveaway Ideas
Let‘s explore 31 giveaway ideas you can model for your next Instagram contest campaign:
1. Tag a Friend Giveaway
Ask participants to tag friends for more entries. Each tag acts as a referral, exposing your brand to new audiences.
See how MOB Kitchen incentivized extra tags for more chances to win:
[INSERT IMAGE]2. Follower Milestone Giveaway
Celebrate hitting follower milestones like 10k or 100k with a giveaway. This gives new visitors more incentive to hit that follow button.
Steinway & Sons did this when reaching 10k followers:
[INSERT IMAGE]3. Caption Contest
Caption contests encourage creativity. The winner writes the best, funniest or most clever photo caption you select.
Kimpton Harper Hotel runs regular weekly caption contests:
[INSERT IMAGE]4. Photo Contest
Ask participants to submit images according to a theme. Then showcase entries to build community and social proof.
Style Curator collects interior design photo submissions:
[INSERT IMAGE]5. Selfie Contest
Similar to a photo contest, but limited to selfies. Offer branded merch as prizes so winners promote you.
Ohuhu Art Supplies did this when they hit 100k followers:
[INSERT IMAGE]6. Challenge Contest
Keep followers engaged with fun games and challenges. React quickly in the comments to determine winners.
See how Torchlight Townhomes made a simple freeze tag challenge:
[INSERT IMAGE]7. Joint Giveaway
Team up with another brand to offer bigger and better prizes. Ensure both brands benefit from cross-promotion.
Biome partners with ethical brands to run joint giveaways:
[INSERT IMAGE]8. Voting Contest
Have followers vote on their favorite designs, names or other concepts to get feedback and increase engagement.
Lovito Clothing uses voting contests to test fashion ranges:
[INSERT IMAGE]9. Seasonal Giveaway
Match your contest‘s look, feel and prizes to seasons and holidays. This helps recall and resonance.
Elise Della captured the fall vibe perfectly:
[INSERT IMAGE]10. Like to Win
Make liking your post the main or only requirement to enter. Likes boost organic reach so everyone wins.
Rare Beauty takes this simplified approach:
[INSERT IMAGE]11. Choose Your Prize
Let competition winners select from multiple prize options so rewards are more personalized.
Bike store Sixthreezero uses this tactic:
[INSERT IMAGE]12. Instagram Stories Contest
500 million+ people use Instagram Stories daily. Reach this highly engaged audience through shares and tags.
Deadstock incentivized story shares to drive app downloads:
[INSERT IMAGE]13. Multiple Winners
Increase prize pools and odds of winning by offering 1st, 2nd and 3rd place rewards.
Tattoo artist Luke A Ashley takes this approach:
[INSERT IMAGE]14. Comment to Win
Ask entrants to comment something creative or funny to enter. More comments drives up post engagement.
Vego Garden finishes an autumn-themed sentence in the comments:
[INSERT IMAGE]15. Branded Hashtag Challenge
Create a unique branded hashtag for participants to include in their entries. Track submissions and spur community.
See how FabFitFun built an entire member community:
[INSERT IMAGE]16. Rebrand Launch
Giveaways present the perfect opportunity to re-engage your audience post-rebrand. Offer referral bonuses to spread the word.
Sneaker shop Above The Loop rebranded and ran this contest:
[INSERT IMAGE]17. Early Bird Special
Reward the first X number of entries with exclusive prizes or guaranteed entry into the grand prize draw.
18. User-Generated Content Contest
Collect and showcase authentic photos and videos taken by your customers to build trust and social proof.
19. Loyalty Program Giveaway
Offer exclusive entry to members of your loyalty program. Sweeten the deal by adding bonus entries for long-time VIPs.
20. Get Creative Giveaway
Sparks creativity by having users submit a drawing, poem, recipe or craft representing your brand.
21. Virtual Event Giveaway
Generate buzz for a product launch, virtual summit or other online event with a specialized contest.
22. Small Business Spotlight
Support SMBs in your community by featuring their product/service as the coveted prize.
23. Employee Takeover
Handover your Instagram account to an employee for guest giveaways and insider perspectives.
24. User Poll Contest
Survey followers on pressing questions and reward random participants with prizes.
25. Repost to Win
Incentivize shares by asking participants to repost customizable giveaway graphics to their IG stories.
26. Referral Contest
Explicitly reward individuals who refer the most friends for the top prizes. Everyone else goes into a general draw.
27. Tiny Prize Pool
Break 1 grand prize into smaller pieces to reward multiple winners, e.g. $1000 shopping spree becomes ten $100 vouchers.
28. Instagram Live Giveaway
Announce winners and interact with fans in real-time on an Instagram Live broadcast session with clear calls-to-action.
29. TikTok x Instagram Cross Promo
Grow your audience simultaneously across Instagram and TikTok by making entries transferable between platforms.
30. Website Traffic Contest
Drive high intent website visitors by placing your giveaway entry form exclusively on a strategically important landing page.
31. Email Opt-In Giveaway
Offer an irresistible prize in exchange for a user’s email address to rapidly grow your subscriber list.
Tips for Running Successful Instagram Giveaways
Now that you have tons of epic Instagram giveaway ideas, here are some pro tips to maximize your contest‘s impact:
- Set Goals: Are you running this contest to get more followers? Email subscribers? Use your goals to shape entry methods.
- Offer Relevant Prizes: Gifting your own products/services creates a positive brand association for winners.
- Promote Creativity: Photo, caption and challenge contests spark innovative submissions from fans.
- Hype it Up: Post giveaway reminders and updates across other marketing channels to drive entries.
- Show Some Love: Like, comment on and engage with contest entries to cultivate community.
- Cross-Promote: Team up with similar brands to co-host joint giveaways and share audiences.
- Mind the Rules: Be compliant with Instagram‘s contest policies and your local jurisdiction‘s gaming laws.
- Make it Easy: Reduce friction for participants by enabling multiple straightforward entry methods.
- Feature Winners: Spotlight elated contest winners to validate prizes were awarded and raise FOMO for next round.
Frequently Asked Questions
Still have Instagram giveaway questions? I‘ll address some common FAQs below:
Q: What can you giveaway on Instagram?
Virtually anything, except banned items like drugs, alcohol, tobacco, weapons and services like gambling addiction treatment. If total prize value exceeds your local gaming law threshold, official registration may be required. Always check latest legal advice.
Q: How do you legally pick giveaway winners on Instagram?
Randomly selecting winners adds fairness for chance-based contests. Export comments to spreadsheet tools like GetCombot then use online number generators. Or use specialty contest apps that randomly draw winners with one click while ensuring full compliance.
Q: How do you run a successful Instagram giveaway?
The formula includes:
- Establishing goals
- Offering exciting prizes
- Choosing creative entry methods
- Promoting across channels
- Legally and randomly picking winners
- Distributing prizes
- Showcasing happy winners
Execute these steps while observing Instagram‘s contest rules and watch your fanbase grow!
Q: What are the best Instagram giveaway ideas?
The most popular giveaway ideas include getting users to tag friends, run branded hashtag challenges, submit fun captions and photos, and participate in themed seasonal contests centered around major events like holidays.
Match the look, feel and prize to your brand identity for maximum relevance and recall.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, Instagram contests present limitless opportunities to creatively engage your existing fans and reach new ones.
The key is offering prizes your target demographic truly covets, then making the path to entry simple through follows, tags and shares.
Map giveaway campaigns to key business objectives like email subscriber growth or new product launches.
And don’t just set it and forget it. Hype up your contests, engage with participants, showcase winners and most importantly – have fun!
What unique Instagram giveaway ideas do you plan to try next? Let me know in the comments!
