Holiday Sweeps Features 12 Sponsors + Drives Over $10K

The Idea

KDRV-TV is a television station owned and operated by Allen Media Broadcasting in Medford, Oregon. They’ve successfully been running promotions and interactive content for years, but had high hopes that their Countdown to Christmas sweepstakes could be their best contest to date.

They wanted to create a sweepstakes that would not only generate tons of revenue and database growth, but also provide a lot of value for multiple advertisers – some have worked with them previously, but others had not.

The Execution

What they came up with was the Countdown to Christmas contest. This contest would feature 12 different sponsors, focusing on a new advertiser each day. Winners would be picked daily and a grand prize winner would be chosen on the bonus 13th day.

They began approaching potential advertisers in November. While some of the advertisers had worked with KDRV-TV before, many of them had not and they were hoping to secure a brand new partnership. As they presented the contest sponsorship package, they wanted advertisers to immediately recognize the value of the promotion.

Valued at $7,000, sponsors were getting a lot from their sponsorship investment. For their $850 sponsorship investment, each advertiser would receive:

• On-air promotion of their business (valued at $5,000)
• 2-minute Business Showcase interview (valued at $1,000)
• Optional Facebook Like Box (valued at $250)
• Email opt-in data (valued at $250)
• Business info hyperlinked on the KDRV website (valued at $500)

In addition to their sponsorship investment, each advertiser was required to include two prizes from their business each valued at least $50. One prize would be awarded to the winner on the business’s featured day while the other would be included with the grand prize.

KDRV-TV was able to attract a variety of sponsors for the contest, which was great opportunity for them to reach as wide an audience as possible. From seafood to golf to the zoo, they had something for everyone as you can see from their list of sponsors below.

• The Wharf: Fresh Seafood Market
• The Coop de Ville Home Decor
• Gold & Gems Fine Jewelry
• The Bohemian Club Restaurant
• The Weasku Inn
• Paradise Footwear
• Centennial Golf Club
• Yellow Submarine Car Wash
• Harry & David Country
• Real Deals on Home Decor
• Elements Tapas Bar & Lounge
• Wildlife Safari Zoo

They ran the contest as one single promotion divided into 12 rounds. People could enter once each round and had the ability to get extra chances for referring friends to vote using their own unique link. Many users shared the contest on their social pages which helped drive participation.

Each day, they featured one of the sponsors in their Countdown to Christmas Business Showcase. The sponsors were given a short interview that was posted to our Facebook Page. Whenever KDRV-TV posted about one of their sponsors on social, they made sure to tag their business in the post.

Each evening during the 6 o’clock news, they congratulated the winner from the previous day and encouraged users to go online and get entered into the contest for their chance to win.

On the 13th day, one lucky winner won the grand prize: a gift package including all 12 of the prizes awarded throughout the contest, well over a $600 value.

The Results

This contest had spectacular results. KDRV-TV was able to generate $10,500 in revenue for their station. But beyond revenue, this contest surpassed their expectations for engagement.

The Countdown to Christmas received the most entries they’ve ever gotten from a single contest. Over 13 days, 3,961 people registered to enter the contest and together they placed 13,690 entries. They were also able to collect over 3,000 opt-ins for future marketing campaigns for themselves and their sponsors.

The contest was such a big hit with sponsors, that they’re making it bigger and better in coming years. Not only are they stepping up the sponsorship package itself, but they’re also opening up the contest from last year’s 12 sponsors to 15 sponsors.

The coming year’s contest will bring in $15,000 in revenue for their station ($12,750 in digital and $2,250 from spots), and they can’t wait to see the new growth of entries and opt-ins!