Who can resist Easter, a celebration of food, family and faith, where colourfully painted eggs are hunted and millions of chocolate bunnies are waiting to have their ears chomped off?

Not many. In fact, a 2013 easter survey revealed that more than 95 per cent of Canadian consumers surveyed planned to spend an average of $174 on Easter goodies. In the same year, Americans spent an estimated $17.2 billion on Easter. For retailers, though, that doesn’t necessarily mean all shoppers clog the candy aisles, clothing boutiques, florists and markets close to home. More than 40 per cent of smartphone users put their devices to work, whether making purchases or comparing prices.

These five contest ideas can help you boost traffic, expand your audience, build loyalty and get people hunting for your products during Easter and beyond.

Kitchen and Cookware Contests

Did someone say Easter brunch? We’re always hungry, and what better way to celebrate Easter than to cook up a meal at home with family gathered around? Clever cookware retailers and manufacturers can feed the appetites of always-hungry consumers, with a food-related giveaway or contest tied to Easter eating.

The Calphalon Easter Giveaway smartly targeted an audience of food lovers by partnering with the blog Two Peas and Their Pod. The blog’s loyal audience surely started salivating at mere mention of the words waffles, omelettes, tea and muffins. Not only did the bloggers, Josh and Maria, showcase the grand prize of five Calphalon products they were giving away, they engaged directly with their followers by offering expert tips on how to use each item, along with links to the site’s mouth-watering recipes.

The winner was selected by random draw from 6,887 total entries and 131 people commented on the sweepstakes page, sharing their excitement at the prospect of winning the Calphalon prize pack. Two Peas and Their Pod also used a social plugin to enable followers to pin the individual Calphalon items on their Pinterest boards.

Health and Beauty Contest Ideas

Indulging in too many Easter treats may have some people worried about their waistlines, but binge-eating sweets can cause breakouts too. Here’s where health and beauty companies can race to the rescue while showcasing new products they’ve hatched.

Case in point? The Cetaphil Easter Egg Hunt contest, which invited participants to browse its website in search of Easter eggs hidden within its pages on skin conditions (including, yes, acne), cleansers, moisturizers and more. Intrepid hunters who found an egg were invited to fill in an entry form to win one of two daily giveaways (a Cetaphil product of their choice and a tote bag; total value of $15). To be eligible for the random grand prize draw (a Cetaphil Easter basket of giveaways valued at $50), participants were required to “join the hunt” for five days in a row and find all five eggs.

Social Games and App Contests

Chocolate and chicks may be top of mind when it comes to Easter, but that doesn’t mean that social gaming companies can’t get in on the festivities by running a creative contest that lets adults reap rewards, too.

Yazino, which is known for its smartphone poker and blackjack apps, took to Facebook to run its Yazino Easter Photo Contest. Instead of winning candy, Yazino enthusiasts posted some virtual eye candy – Easter-themed photos. Those who garnered the most likes for their photos and caught the attention of Yazino’s judges were selected to win one of three Easter baskets full of virtual chips (100,000, 50,000 and 25,000), redeemable for playing Yazino games.

Yazino promoted the contest on Pinterest, taking advantage of the timing and additional reach: Pinterest’s massive audience, more than 70 million registered users according to research from Semiocast, would likely be browsing the site’s Easter-themed ideas and inspiration from fellow Pinners.

Food and Beverage Contest Ideas

Kids and adults alike love a scavenger hunt, especially one that involves finding Easter eggs and other treats tucked in the tulips and nestled among the garden gnomes. It’s a fresh opportunity for food and beverage companies to share their sweets with a captive — and competitive — audience by running a contest or sweepstakes.

With Easter egg hunts, bigger is mostly better! Take the Cadbury Creme Egg Bring the Hunt Home Facebook sweepstakes, for instance, in which one lucky family — and their neighbourhood — has the chance to win a whopping $15,000 surprise Easter egg hunt. Talk about a sugar high!

To win the grand prize Easter egg hunt (for 39 guests) or one of 10 secondary prizes (a Cadbury Easter gift basket valued at $80 each), would-be hunters can enter once on Facebook or on the contest website; winners are selected by random draw.

Faith-based Contest Ideas

For legions of devout Christians, Easter is a time to practice and preserve their faith and share it with fellow devotees. The religious holiday is an excellent time for faith-based organizations to run a contest as a way to re-connect with their immediate audience, expand their reach and celebrate important milestones.

The Easter in Christian East photo contest ticks all these boxes. It was put on by the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (I.A.O.) in partnership with OrthPhoto.net to honour the I.A.O.’s 20th anniversary. Pro and amateur photographers submitted up to seven photos that showcase Orthodox cultures, such as Great Lent, Palm Sunday and Easter.

Three cash prizes (1st prize, 1,200 euros; 2nd prize, 800 euros; 3rd prize, 500 euros) were awarded for the winning photos, which were selected by a six-person jury. The far-reaching contest received 1,098 photos submitted by 228 photographers from more than 100 countries. The winning images and information on the artists are posted on the I.A.O. website.

Ready to launch your Easter promotion? We can help. Our social promotions platform can help you give your customers an Easter filled with goodies. Contact us for more info.

Main image: Flickr/Linda Giddens