Valentine’s Day Contests: 25 Ideas, Examples and Best Practices

Love is in the air, and it’s big business.

Everyone wants to make their loved one’s day special. And, whether that’s through roses, chocolate, a romantic dinner or matching footie pajamas, it’s all (ultimately) a consumer holiday, expected to bring in at least 19.7 billion dollars in sales this year.

So don’t miss out.

This article will give you 5 real-world Valentine’s Day contest examples, 10 ideas proven to work, and 10 best practices to ensure your Valentine’s Day contest is a successful one.

10 Valentine’s Day Contest Ideas

1. Enter to win a romantic weekend getaway with your special someone at [Your Spa/Hotel/Massage/Travel Specialist]. Enter before February 14th!
2. Enter to win our Valentine’s Day prize package, valued at more than $250. Package includes…
3. Enter to win one of 5 candlelit, 3-course dinners from [Your restaurant], valued at more than $120 each. Includes wine!
4. Get there in style! Enter to win a night’s rental from AcmeLimos. Valued at more than $250!
5. Limited-edition, heart-shaped product (I’ve screenshotted on the right one of our most successful Valentine’s Day contests which gave away a heart-shaped creuset/pot).
6. Alone this Valentine’s Day? Enter to win a Cocktail Mixer Package for you and your friends! Valued at $200!
7. Give her the Valentine’s Day gift she’s always wanted! Enter to win a sexy photoshoot valued at $300.
8. Class up your Valentine’s Day! Enter to win entry to the Museum of Modern Art with a guided tour and champagne!
9. Make your Valentine’s Day one to remember! Enter to win a bouquet of flowers, box of chocolates and candle pack. Prize package valued at $150!
10. Netflix and Win! Enter to win a year’s subscription to Netflix, a year’s supply of popcorn, and a big cozy blanket! Prize package valued at $200.

For more contest prize ideas, check out 101 Best Prize Ideas to Give Away in Online Contests & Competitions.

10 Valentine’s Day Contest Best Practices

1. Exclusively use high quality images. Invest in a camera that can take high-res and teach yourself enough photoshop (or get some in-house) to ensure your shots look professional. Your prize needs to stand out and look worth winning, and a good photo is the best way to make it happen.
2. Make your headline short, simple, and feature the prize (ideally the prize value, as well). Put your prize front and center. This is why people are entering.
3. Offer a step-by-step walkthrough to entering. Make it obvious and clear, even if you think it’s self-explanatory. Don’t mess around with people not knowing how to enter.
4. Write your “Rules and Regulations” and add them to a separate page of your website. Link to this page from your contest page. Don’t try to embed your rules on the page itself as it’ll be too much content.
5. Ask people to share and spread the word. With a good Valentine’s Day contest, a good portion of the promotion should be done through your own Fans and Followers. Make it one of the steps to entering (even if it’s not technically required).
6. Be sure your prize is exclusively valuable to your target market. Otherwise you’ll generate a bunch of contacts and social media Followers who have no real interest in what you sell. They just wanted to win the cash or TV you set as your prize. The success of a contest isn’t measured by how many people enter, but by how many people buy from you down the line.
7. Don’t ask your contest page visitors for more information than they’re willing to give. Normally this is name and email address. Your contest’s entries will decrease the more information you ask for.
8. If running your promotion on Facebook, add a Like Prompt popup (only available with a third-party contest builder). This is within Facebook’s rules for contests, and simply prompts contest page visitors to Like your Page. They can click the X at the top right and continue to the contest page.
9. If running a promotion on Instagram, you can still require people to Follow your account to enter a contest. Since Facebook removed the possibility of “Like-Gating” (requiring users to Like your brand to enter a contest), this is only possible on Instagram.
10. If you’re just getting started with contests, try a sweepstakes first. It’s a simple giveaway. Referral Promotions, Photo, and Hashtag contests are awesome, but dip your toe in with sweepstakes before diving into more complex campaigns.

For more contest best practices, check out 21 Facebook Contest Best Practices. To learn about contest rules, check out How to Write Facebook Contest Rules & Regulations.

5 Valentine’s Day Contest Examples

Our State Magazine Romantic Getaway and Shopping Spree

This Valentine’s Day contest has 7,739 visitors and 4,583 entries, a 59.13% conversion rate. And note, this contest still has three weeks to run.

Granted, Our State Magazine is giving away a prize worth $1,700. But consider this…

Our State Magazine can send the entrants a follow-up promotion related to the prize – perhaps a discounted rate for the hotel stay, 25% off a couple’s massage, or a coupon to one of the retailers. If even 1 percent of the current entries (45 people) take the contest runner up on that promotion, and the purchase value of whatever they buy is $50, Our State Magazine makes more than $500 profit on their contest.

If 2% take the contest runner up on the promotion and the purchase value of what they buy is $100 (the more likely scenario), Our State Magazine makes almost $7,500 profit.

Eagle View Romantic Escape

This Valentine’s Day contest had 2,632 views and 941 entries, a 35.75% conversion rate.

Our State Magazine Romantic Getaway and Shopping Spree

This Valentine’s Day contest had 929 views and 430 entries, a 46.29% conversion rate.

Cutest Couple Photo Contest from Centinela Pet Food

This Valentine’s Day contest had 3,867 views and generated 2,123 votes from the network of entrants, a 54.9% conversion rate.

Valentine’s Day Meal Deal from Martin’s Super Markets

This Valentine’s Day contest had 1,610 views and 1,018 entries, a 63.23% conversion rate.

For more examples of successful Valentine’s Day contests, check out Client Spotlight: Our Most Successful Valentine’s Day Campaigns.

Wrapping Up

Hopefully this article gives you a few ideas and examples, ensuring you can run the most successful Valentine’s Day contest possible.

If you have any questions whatsoever, don’t hesitate to reach out in the comment section below.

As far as running a Valentine’s Day contest goes, from choosing the right type to getting the right prize, promoting and following up to drive post-contest success, check out the articles and courses below.

Related Reading:

• 7 Free Templates for your Next Contest or Giveaway
• 5 Best Ways to Announce & Notify Contest Winners (With Examples)
• 50 Fun Competition Ideas You Can Use in 2022
• 6 Best Contest Emails & What You Can Learn From Them
• 7 Ways to Choose a Contest Winner
• Social Media Contest Rules: Free Template and Beginner’s Guide
• Sweepstakes Rules: Free Template & Beginner’s Guide
• What Makes a Successful Contest?

wishpond