GENERAL/HOW IT WORKS:
A: CrowdTogether is a free platform any individual, group or organization can use to build and host a contest.
A: Simply create a CrowdTogether account then click the Create a Contest link to begin.
A: Simply create a CrowdTogether account click the blue “JOIN THIS CONTEST” button to join the contest you want to participate in and then click the blue “VOTE” button for your favorite submission.
A: Simply create a CrowdTogether account click the blue “JOIN THIS CONTEST” button to join the contest you want to submit to and then click the blue “SUBMIT ENTRY” button then you can browse for your file to submit for photo/design submissions or follow the instructions to submit a video.
A: CrowdTogether is FREE to use.
A: We generate our revenue from advertising. When you setup a contest on CrowdTogether there will be two banner ads on your page—we generate revenue from ad impressions.
A: Yes. CrowdTogether offers the in-page ad placements to contest organizers. Contact us for more details; we’ll reply within 1 hour.
A: Contests are a great addition to your social media marketing strategy because they facilitate an active and engaging environment amongst your community. As interest and activity increases for your contest participants will share the contest or their submissions with friends thus helping to further increase participation.
REGISTRATION:
A: Yes, we require users to register and validate their account to discourage cheating and so that contest administrators can communicate with contest members.
A: You can register by clicking on the pink “Sign Up” button at the top right hand corner of the page.
A: This happens sometimes, first check your spam and junk mail folders to make sure it wasn’t delivered there. After checking these folders if you still haven’t received your validation email please sign into CrowdTogether.com with the username and password you created. After you’ve signed in click the pink “My Profile” link located in the upper right-hand corner of the page. Once there click the blue “EDIT ACCOUNT/PROFILE” button then click “re-send validation e-mail” which will trigger another validation email to be sent. If for any reason you do not receive the second email please contact us.
A: Yes, contest organizers are providing valuable prizes and want legitimate winners, therefore we only allow one username per email address and require users to validate their account in order to discourage cheating.
VOTING:
A: You must join the contest you would like to participate in prior to voting for your favorite submission. To join click the blue “JOIN THIS CONTEST” button located in the upper right hand side of the contest page.
A: CrowdTogether supports a 1 vote per person model. In order to vote users must create an account and validate their email address—this is a one time process. Once a user has setup their account they can join a contest and vote for their favorite—you can change your vote as many times as you would like until the end of the contest.
A: You can only vote once per contest, but if you’ve joined multiple contests you can vote once in each.
A: You can change your vote as many times as you’d like before the end of the contest.
SUBMITTING AN ENTRY:
A: Simply create a CrowdTogether account, find the contest you wish to submit an entry to and click the blue “JOIN THIS CONTEST” button located in the upper right hand side of the contest page. Once you've joined, click the blue “SUBMIT ENTRY” button and follow the instructions on the page to submit.
A: If you have already joined the contest and don’t see the blue “SUBMIT ENTRY” button this means the submission deadline for the contest has passed and submissions are no longer being accepted.
A: Some contests are moderated submission contests—this means that the contest administrator must first review your submission before it’s posted for voting. You will receive an email notification once your submission is approved or denied.
A: Generally submission are denied because the contest rules have not be adhered to. Check the contest description and rules to ensure your submission meets the established criteria.
A: Use the red flag in comments thread to flag the inappropriate comment—you can also contact us for a more expedient reaction. While we advocate an open and constructive dialog, we do not tolerate rudeness or personal attacks.
A: CrowdTogether does—per our terms of use.
A: CrowdTogether does—per our terms of use.
SETTING UP A CONTEST:
A: The CrowdTogether platform supports design, photo and audio/video contests.
A: If you would like your contest participants to have access to a custom template we can easily add your template to your contest page. Simply contact us, someone will respond within 1 hour. There’s no cost associated with this, it’s still FREE!
A: A guide to assist in gathering the information you will need to setup your contest can be found here—we call it our contest creation checklist.
A: If you have all the information ready that’s outlined in the contest creation checklist it will take no longer then 15 minutes to setup a contest.
A: No. Contests are fun, first and foremost, and ideal for small businesses, students, charities, clubs, sport teams, even groups of friends. The platform is free for anyone to use, so have fun with it.
MANAGING MY CONTEST:
A: Yes. At any time during your contest you can click “Edit Contest Details” found in the “MY CONTEST TOOLS” panel located on the right hand side of your contest page—this will take you to the contest builder where you can edit all the details of your contest. Please note it’s a good idea to let your community know if you’ve changed any of the information for your contest after you’ve started.
A: Yes. At any time during your contest you can click “Send Group Announcement” found in the “MY CONTEST TOOLS” panel located on the right hand side of your contest page—this will take you to a message editor where you can compose and send your message.
A: Yes. As a contest administrator you can configure your contest using the “Contest Builder” tool so that submissions to your contest are not published until you’ve reviewed and approved them. When setting up your contest check the “Moderated Contest” box found in the contest builder—with this box checked submissions will go into a pending queue where the contest administrator can preview then approve or deny the submission. All approved, pending and denied submissions can be found by clicking on “Manage Contest” in the “MY CONTEST TOOLS” panel located on the right hand side of your contest page.
A: Yes. As a contest administrator you have full control over submissions at all times. Use the “Manage Contest” feature found in the “MY CONTEST TOOLS” panel located on the right hand side of your contest page to manage submissions. If you wish to remove a submission that’s “Approved” you can do so from the “Approved” tab by clicking “Unpublish & Deny”.
A: Yes. As a contest administrator you have full control over submissions at all times. Use the “Manage Contest” feature found in the “MY CONTEST TOOLS” panel located on the right hand side of your contest page to manage submissions. If you wish to approve a submission that’s been denied select the “Denied” tab and click “approve” next to the submission you wish to approve.
PROMOTING AND SHARING A CONTEST:
A: If you’re using the contest as part of a brand awareness or marketing campaign you should take time to plan out your campaign. Start with using your social media channels to tease your upcoming contest, get folks excited by letting them know you’re going to be launching a contest. After you’ve generated some buzz, launch your contest by sending out the direct link to your contest page to as many people as possible through as many channels as possible—you can find the direct link by copying and pasting the URL for your main contest page. The more people you can invite the better chance of your contest being successful.
A: Yes. Each contest has a “Recommend”, “Twitter” and “Email” button that you can use to let people know about a contest or submission.
CONTEST END/WINNERS:
A: The winner of the contest is the one with the most votes; however contest administrators have a right to overrule the voting results—this is however, uncommon.
A: The contest administrator will contact you to collect your information and explain how to redeem the prize. If you do not hear from the contest administrator within one week of the contest ending please contact us.
A: CrowdTogether’s terms of use (which everyone must accept when they register) clearly prohibit cheating. If you suspect someone is cheating please contact us and we will investigate. If a user is suspected of cheating we will inform the contest administrator who will make the ultimate decision on how to handle the situation.
