YouTube Help Contest question

[Amanda Summers]

Can contests be only for people who purchase from an affiliate link? I was thinking about doing a drawing after I get 50 affiliate sales for a travel insurance company with those viewers who buy. But does that make it a lottery in Youtube's eyes? I'm in Nepal and I'm sure there aren't regulations about it from here. I'm trying so hard to do things right without getting more than about 1 sub a day and I've never sold a policy, which would make sense due to 99% of my viewers being native to Nepal. I know the obvious thing would be to sell to Nepali, but they cannot do online shopping and they are not my audience-still looking for my tribe. When I find it things will change big.

 

[Stanley | Team TB]

You're doing it right and you are asking all the right questions, keep doing what you are doing!

So you can't really have a 'contest.' You can, but to keep the legal-ease to a minimum let's just say that it's better to do a 'giveaway.' The rules for giving something away are far more simple to explain. You can not require anything in return for a giveaway. You can not require people to subscribe or like your video. The rules are simple; you will be giving something away and the person(s) who get the giveaway materials will be selected in the comments section at random or via a poll in the Community Tab or on social media. Something like that. Giveaways should be thought of as a means of giving back to the audience rather than generating more of an audience. Do not expect to gain subscribers via a giveaway, that's just not how they work. Even if you do gain subs they only want the prize; if they don't watch your videos after the contest then they are dead subscriptions and they are nothing but an impediment to the growth of your channel.

 

[Amanda Summers]

You're doing it right and you are asking all the right questions, keep doing what you are doing!

So you can't really have a 'contest.' You can, but to keep the legal-ease to a minimum let's just say that it's better to do a 'giveaway.' The rules for giving something away are far more simple to explain. You can not require anything in return for a giveaway. You can not require people to subscribe or like your video. The rules are simple; you will be giving something away and the person(s) who get the giveaway materials will be selected in the comments section at random or via a poll in the Community Tab or on social media. Something like that. Giveaways should be thought of as a means of giving back to the audience rather than generating more of an audience. Do not expect to gain subscribers via a giveaway, that's just not how they work. Even if you do gain subs they only want the prize; if they don't watch your videos after the contest then they are dead subscriptions and they are nothing but an impediment to the growth of your channel.

That's what I thought would be the answer, lol. Thanks for clearing that up. I'm a bit flakey and can come up with some really crazy ideas; sometimes it's a good idea. Other times I don't notice the elephant.

 

[Stanley | Team TB]

That's what I thought would be the answer, lol. Thanks for clearing that up. I'm a bit flakey and can come up with some really crazy ideas; sometimes it's a good idea. Other times I don't notice the elephant.

That is a GOOD thing! It may not always be correct... but you have the right mentality. In cases like this many of us have groups of creators that we discuss things like this with. Our 'inner circle' (we call these Accountability Groups). It is good to have a small group of like-minded creators to bounce ideas off of. And until you have that feel free to use us here for that reason. Your answers will not be as specific to you and will not likely be quite as quality answers as you would hope to get but it will help.

 

[Amanda Summers]

That is a GOOD thing! It may not always be correct... but you have the right mentality. In cases like this many of us have groups of creators that we discuss things like this with. Our 'inner circle' (we call these Accountability Groups). It is good to have a small group of like-minded creators to bounce ideas off of. And until you have that feel free to use us here for that reason. Your answers will not be as specific to you and will not likely be quite as quality answers as you would hope to get but it will help.

Thanks so much. These answers are really helpful. I would like to explore other groups, too. I hadn't realized that should be a need.