5 Creative Instagram Contest Ideas

Are you looking to grow your Instagram following?

Social media is a brilliant way to boost your brand and generate a wider audience. But, it definitely isn't an easy tool, and building a large following can take a lot of time!

One way to speed your progress up is by holding an Instagram contest. By organizing a contest you offer followers something in return for following you and can quickly share your profile with a wide, targeted audience.

Get inspiration for holding your own with these creative Instagram giveaway ideas!

1. Photographic Entry Requirements

If you're looking for an Instagram giveaway template, you're bound to find loads with a follow to enter rule, but that isn't always the most interesting or engaging. If you're trying to spread your competition far and wide, why not create different entry requirements? By asking for more collaboration to enter, you can create a rapport with your users and encourage them to embody the spirit of your brand, sharing it far and wide!

One idea is to create a photographic entry requirement. By that, we mean asking users to post a photo and tag you in it, following your own set of rules. You could ask them to post a picture of themselves with your product in their favorite place, or having used your product (such as in their cooking, to style their hair, or however else your product is used). 

They can then share the photo on their own profile, spreading news of your competition and your brand. Pick your favorite photo as the winner!

2. Vote to Win Story Competition

It's common to create an Instagram competition on your feed, but what about doing one in your story? This is a great way to change things up and create a super easy giveaway that's a breeze to manage!

To do yours, first offer something that you'll be giving away. Then ask your followers a question and get them to answer using one of Instagram's voting tools for a fun, interactive contest! Just make sure anyone entering is also following your profile.

This could also work really well to generate some market research and user feedback. You can ask your followers questions about how they use your products, what they'd like to see next, and how they can be improved. That's some incredible research that can help direct where your brand goes next.

3. Rapid-Fire Competitions

Most competitions will last for weeks on end, which is great for garnering a lot of attention. But sometimes a quick, rapid-fire competition is a great way to build enthusiasm and excitement, encouraging your followers to enter because why not?. A super-fast giveaway is also easier to manage and can be done more frequently, allowing you to cater to a wider audience.

Post your giveaway with an eye-catching Instagram giveaway caption, like 'Quick-fire giveaway alert; get it while it's hot!'. Explain that there are only 24 hours to enter and encourage users to tag as many people as they can.

4. Caption Competition

Another fun way to encourage entries that are a little more interesting than simply liking the post is with a caption competition! Post a photo that relates to your brand on your page and ask people to come up with great competitions to enter, adding them as a comment to the post. You can either pick the winner with our random winner generator or let the audience decide, giving the prize to the comment that gets the most likes. 

The picture you post can be entirely random, but if you want to focus on branding it's a good idea to include your product and stick to your brand colors. Remember, this could be one of your biggest posts, so make it unmistakably you! If it goes with your branding, you can have some of your staff pose with your product, perhaps using it in an unconventional way.

5. Cool Collaborations

Instagram competitions don't have to be a solo mission. If you're looking for greater exposure (especially if you're a little brand right now) collaborating with another profile is a brilliant idea. There are a number of ways to do this, so let's look at your options.

Collaborate With a Brand

You can collaborate with another brand on Instagram, both offering something in the competition to double its value and its exposure. This is a brilliant way to open your competition up to a wider audience and tell the world more about your brand. Try and collaborate with brands that will appeal to your target audience and that have beliefs and morals that are in line with your own.

Collaborate With an Influencer

You don't always have to collaborate with another brand or even someone who is going to add something to your giveaway! If you think you'll struggle to get the exposure you need, you can team up with an influencer who will help spread the news of your competition. Just make sure you team up with an influencer whose own content is in line with yours and who is on-brand for your business. 

Influencers don't work for free either, so it's likely you'll have to pay for this collaboration! But think of it as an investment that should see your following grow over the course of the competition.

Start Your Instagram Contest

Holding an Instagram contest is a brilliant way to grow your following and increase your brand exposure on social media. Instagram is an amazing platform for building brand awareness and driving conversions, but it'll only work if you have the audience! Try one of the above contest ideas and see what it does for your follower count.

If you're looking for an Instagram giveaway random winner picker, check out Arbitery.