How to Win Big and Crush it in a Social Media Voting Contest
Updated: Jul 29
Tis that time of year...
No, I don't mean the holiday season. I mean this is prime season for online, social media voting contests. Let me shoot straight from the hip.
Here is the #1 truth you need to start with before you enter a voting contest:
"Winning a social media voting contest takes strategy"
Wait, what?
Yes!
Having a strategy ("a winning formula") is more important than the number of followers, email addresses or likes you might have.
Case in point: Two of my past clients have won national voting contests. They were both local 'brands' with a small social media following, yet they each won big because they had a strategy and stuck with it.
Truth bomb #2.
"Before doing anything, before asking for a single vote, you need to assemble a team"
Realize that strategy is important, and that part of that strategy is assembling a team of dedicated 'soldiers' who will help you reach the masses of voters.
Without a team - you are nothing. You will not win.
(Quick note: I first wrote this post back in 2017. The core strategy below still holds up. I've watched it work over and over. But the platforms have changed a lot since then, so I went back through and updated the tactics, added the legal rules you now have to follow, and threw in real example copy you can steal. More meat, same voice.)
The Legal Stuff: Contest Rules You Can't Skip in 2026
Let's get the boring-but-important part out of the way first, because I've seen good campaigns get shut down over this.
If you're running your voting contest through Facebook or Instagram, Meta's promotion guidelines require you to spell out official rules: eligibility, dates, how a winner is determined, and a line stating the promotion is "in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with" Facebook/Instagram. You also cannot make sharing a post to someone's personal timeline a condition of entry. That's an easy way to get a page flagged.
If TikTok is part of your plan, know that TikTok explicitly prohibits "incentivized engagement", so asking people to follow, like, or share purely to unlock votes can get your content suppressed or your account restricted. Frame the ask around the story, not the mechanics.
None of this should scare you off. It just means: write down your official rules somewhere public (a simple page on your website works), and keep the ask focused on "here's why this matters" rather than "do X to get Y."
Need help thinking through the compliance side of a campaign like this before you launch? Book a free 20-minute consult and we'll walk through it together.
Today, I'd like to share 25 strategies you can implement in your next voting contest campaign. Pick a few ideas, or implement all.
The more ways you ask for votes, the more votes you get.
The more consistent you are in asking for votes, the more votes you get.
The more people you reach, the more votes you get.
The more platforms you use, the more votes you get.
The more reasons you give for voting, the more votes you get.
The more content you create, the more votes you get.
The more personal you get, the more votes you get.
The more emotions you invoke, the more votes you get.
The more collaborations you seek, the more votes you get.
Do all of these things and with a bit of luck, a good 'product' (i.e. video, brand, story) and hard work, you can win, too!
25 Tried-and-True Ways to Ask for Votes on Social Media
Here are 25 'tried and true' ways to win big and crush it in a social media voting contest.
Build Your Story and Video First
Create images and videos with your story. Share this visual content with a traceable bit.ly link (or a UTM-tagged link, if you want deeper analytics) so that you can track where your votes are coming from — and see what's actually working.
Create an explainer video on how the voting works! It's easier if you explain it — and you have more chance of success if you do it this way. Don't skip this step. If voting is hard or people need to log in, they need to know this up front and they need to know 'how.'
Share your content and this video to your social media channels first. Track what gets liked, shared and yields votes. Feel out the interest in your story and adjust the story, content, video as needed.
Update your website home page, to reflect the voting contest! Consider creating a landing page with an explainer video and a link to where to vote!
Blog and vlog about it. Write about it, create video about it. Document everything about this voting contest and let it live on your blog!
Ask for Votes on Social Media: Every Platform, Including the Ones That Didn't Exist in 2017
If you have a brick-and-mortar location business, use this space and your walk-in clients and customers to ask for votes. Display a sign to ask for votes, train each employee to ask for votes, hand out a flyer with a QR code linking straight to your voting page, or create a flyer to ask for votes to be handed to each customer or client.
Create a Facebook group with the purpose of reminding people to vote daily, if daily voting is allowed in the voting process. In the group, post two daily reminders — one early in the morning, and one late at night, always with a link to where to vote. Use Facebook Live video in the group for updates on votes and to give a behind-the-scenes look at your campaign. Ask your team members to invite their friends to the group!
Create a TikTok, Instagram Reel, or YouTube Short asking people to vote — and better yet, turn it into a mini challenge. Ask supporters to duet or stitch your video, or post their own short clip explaining why they voted for you, tagging you and using a branded hashtag. Short-form video is where discovery happens now; don't skip this one.
Explore connections with the local news stations and newspapers; check LinkedIn to see if you might have anyone in your network. Ask your team members as well to see if they know anyone. Use these connections to get a story published about your 'cause,' not your voting contest.
Explore local bloggers and vloggers as a resource for more votes. If the cause is just, they will want to get involved. They most often already have a huge network to tap into.
Start voting campaigns on all your social media networks. Don't discount TikTok, Instagram Reels, Threads, or YouTube Shorts as ways to get votes — this is where the algorithms are actively rewarding fresh content right now.
If the contest allows it and you have a budget for it, start advertising your voting contest to your ideal audience through Meta Ads Manager, TikTok Ads, or whichever platform your audience actually lives on.
Get People to Vote for You in a Contest — Locally
Connect with any professional association you are a member of (networking groups, Chamber of Commerce, Rotary, etc.) and ask for shares of your story/contest. Offer to come speak for free about your cause. Bring flyers with voting information.
Connect with your local visitors bureau. They might be willing to promote your voting contest to draw in more visitors to the area, especially if you have a good shot at winning!
Hold a live event at your place of business to drum up more interest. 'Reward' those who help gather votes with a small party — drinks and pizza, dessert and music!
Email, Text, and Direct Messages Still Win
Start an email campaign. Design a template, write your copy with your audience in mind, add pictures and/or video and ask each team member to send this to their email list. Make sure to give each team member several 'follow up' emails to send as well.
Use text messaging or a Facebook/Instagram broadcast channel if the contest allows for daily voting. A direct link sent straight to someone's phone each day is one of the highest-converting asks you can make — just make sure whoever you're messaging has actually opted in, since bulk unsolicited messaging through these platforms is more restricted than it used to be.
Depending on who your target market is, utilize your team to go out and request votes with flyers at events around town. For example, I was asked to vote for a breast cancer awareness campaign video at a local soccer game. I was given a pink bracelet and a sticker after I voted straight from my phone. You will need many 'foot soldiers' on the ground to do this as well as a solid strategy — a way to track votes to see if this is working.
Swag, UGC, and Paid Collaboration
If you have a large budget, you could get thank-you tokens printed to hand out when asking for votes (bracelets, stickers, key chains, etc.).
Ask supporters to create their own content (UGC) and use this user-generated content to promote your voting contest. This could be pictures with a sign that says 'I voted today' or a short video supporting you and your cause, and why!
Create a huge visual to keep track of daily votes — a vote-meter you update each day as the votes pile on. People want to be involved and stay in the loop on how you're doing compared to other entrants. Show your supporters each day that their vote counts! Don't forget to mention when the voting ends to create a sense of urgency.
Alongside your voting campaign, consider running a giveaway. Invite those who enter the giveaway and engage with you on social media to also vote for you in the contest. Just keep the ask about engagement with your content, not "follow to unlock votes" — platforms like TikTok will flag the latter as incentivized engagement.
Look for collaboration from other small local businesses and/or other businesses within your industry. Send them a friendly email, a Facebook message, or a DM. Ask them to share what you are doing and tell them why it's so important you win. Getting them involved gives you access to their audience!
Let AI take the grunt work off your plate. Use it to draft five versions of your daily vote-reminder post so it doesn't feel repetitive, to write first-draft captions for each platform, or to sketch out your vote-meter graphic. It won't do the relationship-building for you, but it will free you up to actually do it.
Build a simple tracking sheet (or ask AI to build one with you) that logs which channel, which day, and which piece of content drove the biggest spike in votes. Two weeks into a 30-day contest, you want to already know where to double down.
Ask for Votes on Social Media: Example Posts You Can Steal
Here's real, ready-to-adapt copy for each channel. Swap in your details.
Facebook / Instagram post: "We're in the final stretch of the [Contest Name] and every single vote matters. If you've got 30 seconds today, here's the link, and here's why this means so much to us: [link/story]. Thank you for being part of this. 💙"
Text message / broadcast: "Hi [Name]! Quick reminder: voting for [Contest Name] closes [date]. You can vote once a day, and today's link is right here: [link]. Thank you, truly."
Email subject line + opener: Subject: "3 days left! Can we ask you one more time?" "We know your inbox is full, so we'll keep this short. We're in 2nd place in [Contest Name] with 3 days to go. Here's the link to vote, and here's why we're in this: [story]."
TikTok / Reel caption: "We didn't think we'd make it this far. Here's why this contest matters to us, and how you can vote in 10 seconds. Link in bio. #[BrandedHashtag]"
FAQ: How to Get People to Vote for You in a social media voting Contest
How many times can I ask people to vote? As many times as the contest allows daily voting — but vary how you ask. Rotate between video, a direct message, an email, and an in-person ask so it doesn't feel like spam.
What's the single biggest factor in winning a voting contest? A team. Not follower count, not budget — a group of people committed to asking on your behalf, consistently, across multiple channels.
Do I need official contest rules if I'm just asking friends and family to vote? Yes, if the contest is run through Facebook or Instagram. Meta requires published rules and specific disclaimers regardless of how informal the campaign feels.
Is it okay to offer a prize for voting? Be careful here — this can shift your campaign from a "contest" into a "sweepstakes" with different legal requirements, and platforms restrict tying prizes to actions like following or sharing. When in doubt, keep the ask focused on the story, not an incentive.
Have you had success in winning big in a voting contest, or did you miss the mark?
How did you do it and what was the experience like?
Please share, I'd love to know!
Building a strategy like this for your own campaign — or just want a second set of eyes before you launch? Book a free 20-minute consult and let's map it out.
