New eBook Review: 45 Contests by Meredith Keller of Smaller Box

We are so excited to introduce you to Meredith Keller of Smaller Box and her new eBook titled 45 Contests, Real World Examples of Contests That Worked & Everything You Need To Know To Make Yours A Success.

45 Contests is an excellent resource for understanding all of the details for creating and managing your own contest effectively.  The eBook provides an excellent step by step approach for creating your own contest and removes all of the thinking of "what do I do next?" and instead becomes the perfect checklist to follow when you create your own contest.

The eBook details 45 different types of real contests ranging from random creative photo, video and writing entries to direct product innovation letting contestants design new products.  Our favorite was Duck's "Stuck At The Prom" Duck Tape Based Fashion contest where contestants submit photos of themselves going to prom in formal wear completely made from Duck tape.

45 Contests is releasing this Monday, July 26th and we were lucky enough to get our hands on an advanced copy and wanted to share a little bit about Meredith and her book in our interview with her today:

Meylah: What inspired you to write an eBook about “contests”?

Meredith: I think everyone likes contests. They're exciting for customers. Brands like them because they can do so many things. They can increase brand awareness, grow your mailing list, generate press, improve your SEO, improve customer engagement. They're a really powerful tool. They're also a really accessible tool for small businesses. Nearly any business can host a contest and see benefits from it.

Meylah: How many contests have you conducted yourself?

Meredith: Way too many to count. One of my favorites is one we did for Ex-Boyfriend. We had our fans give us concepts for new t-shirt designs. It was a lot of fun to make them a part of our design process and it was great to get feedback from them on prospective designs. We ended up with some great new products and more rapport with our fans.

Meylah: Of all the contests you have come across which one is your favorite?

Meredith: I read about so many great ones in the process of writing my book. It's hard to pick just one. I really like how ChiZine Press' contest wove together different creative mediums (writing and photography) and let their fans' creations inspire their product development. They really did a great job of developing a contest that would resonate with and engage their audience. I also like how they turned the contest into a big promotional opportunity for their new product. Very clever stuff.

I also really liked Geben Communications' contest. They donated their services to a charity as the prize and it generated so much amazing press and word of mouth and so many connections for them. The contest essentially brought them enough brand awareness to launch an entire business from nothing. That's impressive.

Really there are so many good ones though. It was tough to pare down the best contests for my book. All of them were inspiring and creative.

Meylah: Do you consult on designing contests for others?

Meredith: I certainly could. I do consultations on a variety of topics for small businesses, but no one's asked for help with contests specifically. For a small business on a budget, the new ebook is a great starting point because it covers so many things people don't think about when they plan a contest.

Meylah: What is your next eBook going to be about?

Meredith: I am actually working on one. I'm really excited about it too. It's going to be all about promotional tactics - everything but contests. It's going to talk about creative coupon offerings, interesting word of mouth campaigns; generally it will be about creative marketing ideas based on real world examples.

I like the idea that being creative and interesting with your marketing efforts and using tools like contests or word of mouth can grow a small business, even on a small budget. I love sharing stories about how other businesses have made it work, in the hopes that their experiences inspire my audience.

And to continue the theme of contests, Meredith is actually launching a contest on Monday for her eBook so be sure and stop by Smaller Box on Monday for a chance to win a free copy of her new eBook, 45 Contests.

If you don't win the contest, don't worry you can still buy a copy of 45 Contests for $14.99 at smallerbox.net starting Monday!