BiblioCrunch | Self-Publishing Resouces

One of our favorite tools for our blog is Rafflecopter. This tool works well not only for book blogger but also for authors. Today we’ll give you step-by-step instructions on how to set up a Rafflecopter account and use it for a giveaway.

Steps for creating an account:

1. Go to http://www.rafflecopter.com/ and click “Get started”
2. We recommend signing up for free by clicking “sign up free”
3. Fill out your information and check your e-mail for confirmation.
4. Confirm your e-mail and you are good to go!

Steps for creating a giveaway:

1. Go to http://www.rafflecopter.com/ and click Login
2. Login to your account and click either “+New Giveaway” at the topic or the green “Plan One Now” button.
3. Name your giveaway.
   1. Side note if you already have made a giveaway using Rafflecopter you can use the Duplicate feature above the giveaway name. This way you only have to make a few minor edits each giveaway you have.

      

4. Add the giveaway prize or prizes by clicking the “Add A Prize” button! It is helpful to be descriptive here. If you are giving away a book make note of the format and if it is a signed book add that in too.
5. Add entries for your giveaway by clicking “Add An Option” button.
   With the free account you are allowed to use the following
   1. Tweet about the Giveaway – create a tweet about the giveaway encouraging people to join. Do not forget to write the exact text you want people to tweet!
   2. Like a Page on Facebook – link to your author Facebook fan page and build up those likes!
   3. Follow an Account on Twitter – link to your Twitter account and build up your following.
   4. Leave a Blog Post Comment – Make sure you leave instructions on where to post. It is helpful if you ask a question so people have something to answer for an easy comment.
   5. Invent Your Own Option! – With this you can make up anything you would like. I suggest using this option to ask people to join your e-mail mailing list. It is important to be clear in your instructions and remember to ask for the confirmation information you need in the “I need some info from visitors to verify this entry.” section.
6. There are three other important things to note about the above options.
   1. You can make any, all, or none of  the entries mandatory by clicking “This option is mandatory”. I personally never had mandatory entries as it can deter people from entering but it is an option that is open to you.
   2. You can make certain entries refresh everyday by clicking “Entrants can do this option once each day” so for “Tweet about the Giveaway” if you select this option entrants can tweet once a day to earn more entries.
   3. You can select a “Point value” for each option. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 10. This essentially means that you can offer multiple entries for the same task. For example if you select the 10 for when people sign up for your e-mail mailing list when a person signs up they will get ten entries instead of one.
7. Enter the start date and end date under “When Does It Start/End?” Keep in mind with a free account you are not allowed to change the time from 12am so it is good to select a day BEFORE you official start the contest for the start date and a day AFTER for the end date you want.
8. Fill out the Terms & Conditions section. This is an important step to avoid any legality issues.
9. Click the green “Get the Widget” button
10. Copy the code and add it to your website or blog.
11. You can also click on the “Install to a Facebook Page” button to add your giveaway to a Facebook fan page.
12. If you want others to post the widget on their site or blog give them the link under “THE MORE, THE MERRIER!” instead of trying to e-mail them the code. This way they can get the code themselves without any mixup in the code along the way.
13. That’s it! Enjoy your new giveaway and be sure to share it with us here at BiblioCrunch!

About Kate Tilton:

Kate Tilton has been in love with books for as long as she can remember. Kate believes books saved her life and strives to repay authors for bringing books into the world by serving as a dependable author assistant. A cat-lover and fan of many geeky things, you are likely to find Kate curled up with the latest Doctor Who episode, plotting world take-over, or assisting authors and readers in any way she can. Kate is also a self-proclaimed Twitter addict, you will find her hosting #K8chat, her own creation, every Thursday night on Twitter from 9-10pm Eastern. You can connect with her on her website, Twitter, or BiblioCrunch.

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