Competition ideas generator: giveaway ideas that fit

How to find a competition idea that works

A good competition idea starts with what you want to get out of it, not with the prize. Do you want more newsletter subscribers, more sales, more people in your store or better data about your customers? The goal decides the game, the prize and what you measure afterwards.

Four choices shape the idea

1. The goal. Sign-ups call for a low barrier: a quick game and a form with few fields. Sales call for prizes that lead to a purchase, such as discount codes. Data calls for questions, as in a quiz, a survey or a product finder.
2. The channel. A pop-up on your website needs a game that takes seconds. On social media, a result people want to share helps. In store, a QR code on a poster makes the step from the shelf to the phone short.
3. The season. Christmas, Black Friday and Easter give you a reason to run a competition and a theme for the design. But the competition must still fit your goal.
4. The industry. A bank and a burger chain can use the same game, but not the same prize or the same tone.

Pick a prize that attracts the right people

A prize everyone wants, such as a phone, brings many sign-ups who only want the phone. A prize linked to your products brings people who are interested in what you sell. Many competitions mix one big prize with many small ones, such as discount codes, so lots of people win something. Use the prize odds calculator to work out how many prizes you need.

Plan the promotion and the measuring before you start

Decide where people will see the competition and how often you will remind them. Then decide what success means: sign-ups with consent, codes used, visitors in store or answers to your questions. Measure the same things every time, so you can compare one campaign with the next.

More ideas

Read competition ideas for businesses for longer examples, giveaway ideas for small businesses if you have a small budget, and in-store competition ideas for shops, restaurants and showrooms. Browse real campaigns by goal in our campaign ideas, and see how to run an online competition from start to finish.

Run it in Scratcher

Every idea above can be built in Scratcher without code, with more than 40 games, prizes and draws, and sign-ups sent to your email tool. Read more about online competitions and giveaways.