Marketing to B2C websites

[Bishop]

I am launching a service that makes it easy for websites to host sweepstakes to generate traffic and email subscriptions. I have experence in B2C marketing but not much in B2B. Any suggestions?

[AlexMc]

Good for you! The first thing that comes to my mind about sweepstakes is the law. I know you personally won't be in charge of the starting the contest, but since you are hosting it on your website - I suggest working with a lawyer to draft a contract. As you know, sweepstakes contests are much more complicated than simply giving something away. Every state in the U.S. has its own set of laws that govern the terms of online sweepstakes and how they will be run. It probably would be worth it to consult with a legal expert to ensure you do not risk your website any issues with the law.

[Bishop]

Thanks Alex, I used sweepstakes in a previous job with good success. Part of the appeal of websites using my service will be helping them with the regulations.

Also, I should have mentioned in my origional post that it's not like I don't have plans on how to market this, I'm just looking for additional ideas and didn't want to affect objectivity.

[synconlinemedia]

I'm just going to toss some thought out there...sorry if its redundant or obvious:

- Email marketing to businesses. I email market to businesses directly and get at least 4-5 leads a day.
- Long-tail keyword optimization. Optimize your site for medium traffic, low competition long-tail keywords like "best sweepstakes management company" or "Business Sweepstakes management 2012"...etc. You will have to do some keyword research against your core product attributes to find the right keywords. Get about 10 you like and optimize your site for them, off-site and on-site optimization.
- PPC campaign with the same keywords.
- Recorded message marketing.

Hope it helps.

[Bishop]

Thanks for the advice. How do you get the emails to market to the businesses directly? 4-5 leads a day seems like a great result.

[Matt121]

Thanks for the advice. How do you get the emails to market to the businesses directly? 4-5 leads a day seems like a great result.

Purchase them from database providers. Or you can hire a freelancer to extract the e-mails from business listing sites like manta.

[JosephD]

Have you considered events? I also strongly agree with the email marketing route. People disregard it, but it's super effective... use the events to build your lists, and follow up with a strong EM campaign. Your service is so specialized, an email gives you an opportunity to explain why that business needs your service.

Joseph

[Wozcreative]

Email marketing is fantastic, once every 6 months I may send something out and older clients come out of the woodwork!

[Pack-Secure]

Email campaigns with helpful articles are a key to successful marketing.

[Ronald Dod]

If you need B2B clients fast I would suggest social media and email if your budget is tight.

This might make some digital marketers cringe but I would suggest direct mail as well. It depends on your target market. If this is for all businesses who need to advertise their sweepstakes then I would look into SEO and SEM. Buying up "host sweepstake" phrases could be extremely effective.