ARCHIVES: This is legacy content from before Marketing Dive acquired Mobile Marketer in early 2017. Some information, such as publication dates, may not have migrated over. Check out the new Marketing Dive site for the latest marketing news.

Belk?s Santa Baby Sweepstakes continues social engagement through the holidays

Retailer Belk is driving engagement on social media through the end of the year by giving followers a way to check if they are on the naughty or nice list for a chance to win a prize. 

The Santa Baby Sweepstakes, which was powered by engagement solutions company HelloWorld, offers a grand finale prize of $10,000 and additional giveaways. Belk is promoting the holiday spirit through constant social engagement and, if the campaign is innovative, it could help drive customers to the retailer for their holiday shopping needs.

?Customer loyalty is a cornerstone of the Belk brand,? said Jon Pollack, executive vice president of marketing, sales promotion and ecommerce at Belk, Charlotte, NC. ?This holiday season, we wanted to capture the magic of the holiday season and delight our customers with themed activities and an array of prizes."

Socially inclined
Belk has worked with HelloWorld in the past for its campaigns.

Through the Santa Baby Sweepstakes, Belk customers can check to see if they are on the naughty or nice list, which will contribute to their entry to win Belk gift cards of $10, $15, $25 and a grand prize of $10,000.

Belk plans to give away 300 gift cards through the campaign.

To participate, users register or log-in online to enter themselves into the sweepstakes at Belk.promo.eprize.com/holiday/# with their email address or through their Facebook account. In addition, users are invited to play festive, digital games and earn bonus sweepstakes entries by sharing the site across social channels.

Each engagement garners an entry into the sweepstakes. Registration equals one entry. Log-ins equal one entry per day. When users share a Belk tweet, Facebook post or email, the effort also counts as an entry. Watching the Santa Baby video also garners an entry. 

The campaign spreads across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

Along with a collaborative hashtag #BelkSantaBaby, Belk fans can create their own ecard selfie with the campaign?s icon, who is a good looking model deemed ?Santa Baby.?

When users create an ecard, their effort also contributes as an entry.

The instant win game does not count as an entry but participating gives users a chance to win instant prizes.

Given the daily offers, the campaign entices users to continue engagement with the retailer and logging on each day for a chance to win prizes. If users are participating, they are also more likely to visit Belk.com and check out its products.

The campaign began Nov. 8 and will go through Dec. 31.

Consistent efforts
Earlier this year, Belk ramped up its social media initiatives and SMS opt-ins with a marketing campaign that gave couples a chance to win money towards their wedding.

Belk set up a microsite for the ?Share Your Love Story? campaign that could be accessed via mobile, social media and the Web. The retailer also worked with HelloWorld on this campaign (see story).

For its efforts during the 2013 holiday season, Belk channeled digital with special in-store discounts and a mobile gift-giving application.

At the time, the department store added a new app to its roster, which let consumers create gift lists by scanning a product bar code or searching a product. The Belk Gift Giving app was just one of the ways in which Belk prepared for last year?s abridged shopping season between Thanksgiving and Christmas (see story).

Final Take
Caitlyn Bohannon is an editorial assistant on Mobile Marketer, New York