If you’re thinking about managing a Pinterest contest, check out Holly Maust’s Pinterest Contest board. It’s full of great and not-so-great examples.
I just saw a pin for the GUND Most Pinteresting Dog Contest. Who doesn’t love GUND? As a little girl, I slept with my Muttsy dog every night so, of course, I was so excited to see this contest. And then I took a closer look…
This contest JUST started today so I’m hoping things are still being worked out. Here are the points that I love about it:
- Cute pin to promote the contest on Pinterest
- Terms & Conditions are also listed as a pin
And here are the problems:
- When you click on the contest pin, it takes you to the uploaded image. Go ahead. Click on the pin’s image. Doesn’t really help, right? For the Pinterest contests that I’ve managed, it’s ESSENTIAL to edit this link and take the user directly to the entry form or a landing page or something with more information.
- The same thing happens when you click on the Terms & Conditions pin. It’s great that the T&C are on Pinterest but they really should link to a landing page. Maybe it’s just me but I like to copy/paste text. You can’t do that when the text is in a jpg image.
I am the first to admit that I have ADD and usually don’t focus on reading details but looking deeper into the T&C for this contest, I became more confused.
How to enter: you must be on Pinterest.
Check. But if I wasn’t on Pinterest, I’d have to find my own way of being invited. Other contests have provided the option of inviting new users via an email request.
1. Pin your entry photo on your own board and tag it with #GundMostPinterestingDogContest
Ok, I can pin a photo and tag it but does the photo have to be of something specific? Not sure. Must read more…
I also checked out the #GundMostPinterestingDogContest hashtag (couldn’t copy/paste it from the terms nor was there the option for a live link because the T&C was only a pinned image). And the result: 0 pins so far. Yes, that’s typical because the contest just started a few hours ago but it would have been nice to see some sample entries from GUND.
2. Submit the Pinterest link to that photo/board to GUND via email at MostPinterestingDog@GUND.com with GUND Most Pinteresting Dog in the Subject Line.
Well, that’s a totally doable but I think there could be an easier option.
The next paragraph is a little long but essentially I have to pin a photo of a dog. I can’t cheat and use a script and the photo must be my own. Pretty standard rules for a Pinterest contest. I still don’t know though if my photo is of a real dog or a stuffed animal or if that even matters.
Ok, so I pin a photo of a dog with the hashtag and email the pin’s URL to GUND. That’s it, right?
No.
Apparently GUND will take all of the submitted pins and repin them on to an official contest board. Then people will have to promote their pin and ask for users to “like” it. Was that stated earlier? Actually, yes. Kind of. In the “Limited Time Only” section. A “voting period” was mentioned there but that was all. The rest of this is listed in the “Selection of Winner” section.
So let’s test this. I just pinned a photo of Millie with the GUND hashtag. It appears that Pinterest search is a little delayed so perhaps there are sample pins available on that hashtag but we just can’t see them.
The voting period beings August 6 so please find the board and “like” my pin of Millie. If I win the prize ($250 sample of GUND products), I will donate as many Muttsy dogs as I’m able to get.
Wait…as I was researching more, I just found their contest board and an additional contest pin that clearly states all the steps. It still links to a jpg image but I love how the design adds clarification to the process. Well done on that!
I encourage you to enter this contest, as well as other contests, so you can get the user experience before developing or managing a Pinterest contest of your own. What contests have you seen or entered on Pinterest?