This is a trade facing website. Visit the ACT's consumer site thecyclingexperts.co.uk for information and advice on cycling and find your local independent cycle retailer.

Search News

Results: 1-10 of 817


18 Sep 2026

V12 Retail Finance has reported unusually strong summer trading among bike retailers, with June consistently outperforming previous years and finance volumes in both July and August 2026 notably...

18 Sep 2026

ACT will host a retailer panel discussion at this year's Cycling Industry News Live (CIN Live), bringing together independent bike dealers to discuss the realities of running a cycle retail...

17 Sep 2026

The Bikeability Trust has launched CycleIn, a new e-learning programme designed to help adults build their cycling skills and confidence on the road.

17 Sep 2026

The London Cycling Festival will return on 20 September 2026, bringing organised, family-friendly cycling events to 19 London boroughs.

16 Sep 2026

A further 11 employment law reforms are expected to take effect in October as part of the rollout of the Employment Rights Act 2025, with WorkNest providing retailers with...

15 Sep 2026

ACT parent company Bira has welcomed the Chancellor's growth ambitions but says independent retailers now need to see the benefit in their own cost base.
 

11 Sep 2026

The ACT will bring independent bike dealers together for a retailer panel at Cycling Industry News Live (CIN Live) 2026, with the IBD Retail Reality Check set to examine the realities of running...

10 Sep 2026

The E-Bike Positive Trust Mark was discussed at a meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Cycling & Walking, as industry and safety organisations highlighted progress and the need...

3 Sep 2026

Ahead of Cycling Industry Live 2026, which runs over 20-21 September 2026 at NAEC Stoneleigh in Warwickshire, fresh statistics have emphasised how important the bike trade believes getting...

1 Sep 2026

A risk audit can help retailers identify gaps between their security setup and insurance requirements before a costly incident puts their cover at risk. Joanna Evans, Head of Bikmo for Business,...

Back to news menu

How to run winning social media competitions and Instagram giveaways

Posted on in Business News , Cycles News

Running social media competitions and Instagram giveaways are an easy way to build your audience and your engagement. But there are a few tips and tricks you need to master, as well as those all-important terms and conditions, to get the most from your comps. Maybe* have enlisted the support of Di Coke.

Di is the Social Media Competition Queen. There is very little that she does not know about social media competitions, and she's put all that knowledge into these videos, checklists, and a workbook that guides you through how to run your own competitions.

Why run social media competitions?

Social media competitions and Instagram giveaways help create brand awareness and a desire for your product or business. Running contests will build a captive audience of customers who have an interest in your brand or business. Giveaways are naturally viral because people love winning prizes, and like to share giveaways with their friends by tagging or sharing in stories.

You'll find all the know-how you need to get up and running with a social media competition in our free workbook that you can collect at the bottom of this page.

How to run a social media competition

For social media competitions and Instagram giveaway inspiration, Maybe* sat down with Super Lucky Di to host two tutorials you can watch in your own time. Split into two parts, you can see all her steps in action, as well as real-life examples of social media competitions you'll want to copycat.

'How to run an Instagram competition: Part 1' with Super Lucky Di



Following the rules

There are clear rules for running Instagram giveaways and any competitions in the UK are governed by the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). When running your social media comp, you'll also need to make sure you've got clear and legal terms and conditions.

Giveaway checklist

There are ten steps to running a killer social media comp or Instagram giveaway. Di's broken each one out for you in her workbook.

  1. Decide on a goal for your competition. Are you looking to grow followers or engagement?

  2. Choose a relevant prize. You could choose one item, or several smaller value items to optimise entries.

  3. Set entry criteria. What do you want people to do to enter?

  4. Determine the format of your giveaway. Will you ask people to follow you, tag a friend or sign up to receive emails? There are multiple options to choose from but you want to keep it simple.

  5. Write clear instructions so people know exactly what to do.

  6. Add terms and conditions. The all important legal bit keeps things fair and keeps you out of trouble.

  7. Create graphic. A show stopping, scroll stopping image will help promote your social media competition.

  8. Promote giveaway. Take to your social media channels to let everyone know your competition is live.

  9. Select and contact winner. Once the comp is closed, you'll need to select and contact your winner.

  10. Get the prize to the winner. It's not over until the prize is in the hands of your lucky winner, so make sure you fulfil the prize in a timely fashion.



Still need a bit more? Di's workbook at the bottom of this page gets into all the details so you can learn how to master each step of your social media competition.

'How to run an Instagram competition: Part 2' with Super Lucky Di

 

Improve your social media with Maybe*

ACT Gold members can benefit from 20% discount and Silver members benefit from 10% discount.

Find out more about how Maybe* can benefit your business here.

 

Back to news menu

Useful links

If you have any other queries please contact us.