RE: ONLINE-ADS>> Contest sponsorship

Contestworld (contest_at_contestworld.com)
Thu, 23 Jan 1997 16:35:05 -0500

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I'd like to reply to the gentleman who felt that although contests
increased traffic all the sponsor received were contestants.

The reason websites (or any businesses for that matter) host contests is
to attract attention, to draw people in and expose them to the product
or service. This is true whether it is a retail outlet or a website.

The problem with contests on the web is that there are contest listing
sites which are sending the traffic directly to the contest entry page.

Here is an analogy. A furniture store is giving away bedroom set.... to
enter the contest you have to go to the back of the store to find the
contest 'entry box'. As the customer makes his way through the store
he is exposed to all the furniture the vendor has to offer and maybe
sees something he likes.

Then someone leaves the back door open and the word gets out. It's easy
to enter the drawing for a bedroom set. Just pull up in the alley
behind the store jump out of your car and fill out an entry... you
don't even have to turn the car off! The vendor gets tons of contest
entries but no sales.

That is what is happening on the net. I am in the contest listing
business. I noticed that in fact contests were not providing websites
with 'bona fide' traffic. Just contestants. If visitors enter a
contest because they are already at a site and they notice the contest
it does not help that site generate new traffic (although it may help
increase return traffic). And more importantly if traffic is directed
by a third party to the contest entry page this does not expose the
visitor to what the site has to offer.

If a site is running a contest in hopes of attracting new visitors I
urge them to visit Contestworld at http://www.contestworld.com.
Contestworld directs traffic to the contest host's homepage and offers
links as banner ads as opposed to text links.

Sincerely,
Jim Kulakoski

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