4 Star-spangled ideas for 4th of July

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Fourth of July is one of the biggest holidays – if not THE biggest holiday – of the summer season. Even as early as April and May, stores are decked out in their red, white and blue and gearing up for Independence Day. For tons of summertime advertisers, this is the ideal time to get in front of summer spenders.

Here are some great ideas to help you drive Fourth of July engagement and revenue:

1.      Photo Contests

You can't go wrong with patriotic photo contests of kids or pets. Since people have photos readily available on their phone, these contests are easy to enter. These contests can spread like crazy across social media as users are invested in seeking votes from their friends and family – this means a big branding opportunity for you and your advertisers.

This Patriotic Pets Photo contest by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune had over 90 entries and received nearly 5,000 votes. Dogs, cats and even a chicken sported their red, white and blue for the camera.


2.      Ballots

People love to be given an opportunity to voice their opinion on topics that matter to them. With a ballot, you can find out all about what your audience loves (and also what they don't). And ballots are versatile. When it comes to the Fourth of July holiday, you can create a ballot highlighting all the local activities and events in your area. With categories like the "Best Place to Watch the Fireworks," "Best Local BBQ" or even "Best Fourth of July Parade Float," your ballot can engage your entire community.

 

3.      Sweepstakes

With tons of parties, barbecues and fireworks, the Fourth of July is full of great ideas for sweepstakes prizes. Giveaways for a brand new barbecue grill, new lawn furniture or a grocery gift card could be all the ingredients to the perfect backyard party. Sweepstakes draw in tons of entries, so be sure to include an opt-in to grow your email database.

This sweepstakes by WLUK-TV was sponsored by a local fireworks company – an ideal sponsor looking to get its name out there during the weeks leading up to the holiday. Not only did the sweepstakes receive more than 16,000 entries, but the contest also collected nearly 800 emails for the fireworks store's database.

 

4.      Quizzes

Running quizzes can be a perfect way to reach your target audience and present a creative idea to advertisers. Everyone loves a good quiz. With lots of ready-to-run, ready-to-customize patriotic turnkey quizzes, you can get a quiz up and running in a matter of minutes. Maximize the revenue opportunity by creating a Fourth of July quiz bundle.


You can even develop a quiz that's customized for a specific advertiser looking to target summertime spenders. KY3-TV worked with its advertiser, a local go-kart and family fun park, to create a quiz with questions featuring the company's services. Not only did the quiz provide users with outcomes for how to spend their Independence Day, but the email opt-in also added 380 users to the database for future marketing campaigns.

There are tons of advertisers who will be anxious to get their branding out in front of summertime spenders, so make sure you're prepared with ideas to engage your audience and bring in qualified leads for your sponsors. Start planning now and make this holiday a BOOMing success!

Matt Coen is the president and co-founder of Second Street, a leading provider of private-label online promotions platforms and partner success services for media companies based in St. Louis, Mo. He can be reached at (314) 880-4902 or matt@secondstreet.com.

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