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With April in the books, check out the top contests by registrations, submissions and sweepstakes below.

As spring hit its stride, a mix of kids and nature photo contests very were popular in April. Another favorite of the month was cash giveaways and gas giveaways, which are perfect as families begin to plan their summer vacations.

Top 10 Registrations
1. WLUK-TV Good Day Wisconsin HDTV Giveaway
2. Rhode Island Monthly Best of Rhode Island Readers Poll 2012
3. WIL-FM Cornbread’s Big Star
4. WAGA-TV Good Day Gas Money
5. KOB 4 Summer Cash Giveaway
6. FOX 50 WRAZ-TV The FOX 50 Lip Dub Project
7. WJBQ Q Baby Idol 2012
8. WHO-HD Free Gas May
9. WLUK-TV La-Z-Boy Recliner Giveaway
10. St. Louis Post-Dispatch Mother-Daughter Look-A-Like Contest 2012

Top 10 Submissions
1. Rhode Island Monthly Best of Rhode Island Readers Poll 2012
2. Turnto10.com iPad a Day
3. Omaha World-Herald Focus on Nebraska
4. Tahoe Daily Tribune Best of Tahoe Daily Tribune 2012
5. WEEK-TV Wieland’s News25 Toro LX Tractor Giveaway!
6. Lincoln Journal Star Columbus Telegram Best of Columbus
7. WJBQ Q Baby Idol 2012
8. KPHO-TV First 105 Degree Day Contest 2012
9. U-T San Diego Cutest Pet Contest
10. Our State Spring Photo Contest 2012

Top 10 Sweepstakes
1. Popular Woodworking Workshop Makeover Giveaway
2. ABCActionNews.com WFTS-TV Weekday Tablet Giveaway (This contest has been taken down)
3. WJBK-TV Garden-White Dream Team Contest
4. WLUK-TV Good Day Wisconsin HDTV Giveaway
5. Toronto Sun What Happens in Vegas
6. York Daily Record Vote- Best of York 2012
7. WSAZ-TV WSAZ Umbrella Giveaway
8. WHO-HD Free Gas May
9. WAGA-TV Good Day Gas Money
10. KUSI-TV KUSI Gas Card Giveaway (This contest has been taken down)

To find more summer contests ideas, check out Bright Ideas for Your Summer Contests article.

Below you’ll find the top contests of March sorted by top number of registrations, submissions and sweepstakes.

Best of and Reader’s Choice contests were popular this month popping up throughout the top 10 lists. Also popular were Big Giveaways, including: a kitchen makeover, a trip to Vegas, tractor giveaway, two car giveaways and a workshop makeover. We continue to see our partners use Facebook as a contest platform to drive audience and revenue, as well as build their advertiser’s social media presence.

Top 10 Registrations
1. Birmingham Kids and Family Front Cover Contest
2. Star 99.1-FM’s Pet Show 2012
3. WCPO-TV’s March Padness: Enter for a chance to win new iPad (This contest has been taken down.)
4. MySanAntonio.com’s Burger Madness
5. Herald News‘ Cutest Baby Contest
6. Fresno Bee‘s ValleyWho Contest
7. WRAL.com’s Moe’s Bracket Challenge
8. Times of Northwest Indiana‘s Best of 2012
9. Toronto Sun‘s What Happens in Vegas Contest
10. Channel3000.com’s Marling HomeWorks Ugliest Kitchen Makeover Contest

Top 10 Submissions
1. KFMB-TV’s Adopt Dave, Shelly and Chainsaw
2. Omaha World-Herald‘s Focus on Nebraska
3. Michiana.com’s 10th Annual Readers Choice
4. Gaston Gazette‘s Best of Gaston 2012
5. WEEK-TV’s Wieland’s News25 Toro LX Lawn Tractor Givaway!
6. Fort Worth Star-Telegram‘s Spring Snapshot
7. Mississippi Magazine‘s “Best of Mississippi” Reader Survey
8. CW 14 WCWF-TV’s CW 14 Hot List 2012
9. WPXI-TV’s #1 Day Chevrolet Great Car Giveaway
10. Queens Courier‘s The Home Reporter’s Best of the Boro Nominations

Top 10 Sweepstakes
1. Popular Woodworking‘s Workshop Makeover Giveaway
2. Toronto Sun‘s What Happens in Vegas
3. WJBK-TV’s Gardner-White Dream Team Contest
4. KFDM-TV’s Classic SETX Chevy Sonic Car Giveaway
5. ABCActionNews.com’s WFTA-TV Weekday Tablet Giveaway
6. WISE-TV’s Fear The Beard
7. St. Louis Post-Dispatch‘s Opening Day Weekend Tickets
8. KY3-TV’s Weather Radio Contest
9. WCPO-TV’s March Padness: Enter for a chance to win new iPad (This contest has been taken down.)
10. Our State‘s “Mayberry to Merlot” Surry County Giveaway

Are you running a deals program? Check out the top deals of March.

Find Out What Contests are Most Popular for February 2012

Cute couples, giveaways and giveaways are the themes of top contests run in February this year. Escaping the cold weather with travel giveaways was a successful contest idea for WHO-HD, KTVU and WITI. Valentine’s Day is always a key holiday to run a contest for in the month of February as well. What we are continuing to see trend is the use of Facebook as a contest platform to drive audience and revenue.

Top 10 Registrations
1. WLUK-TV’s Good Day Wisconsin iPad-a-Day Giveaway
2. WXIM-TV’s Project Warmth
3. WSMV-TV’s Channel 4 Like and Drive
4. Lincoln Journal Star’s Lincoln’s Choice Awards
5. WHO-HD February Flyaway Week 1
6. WAGA-TV’s Loyalty Subscriber
7. WRGB-TV’s Great Gas Giveaway
8. KTVU-TV’s Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Giveaway
9. KOZL-TV Tech Toy Thursday From Your Friends At KOLR10 / KOZL
10. WITI-TV’s Great Wisconsin Getaway

Top 10 Submissions
1. Lincoln Journal Star’s Lincoln’s Choice
2. Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Valentines Day Giveaway
3. Central Illinois Proud & WMBD-TV’s Cash Wheel
4. KFMB-TV’s Adopt Dave, Shelly and Chainsaw
5. Palm Beach Post’s 2012 Focus on Nature Photo Contest
6. CityTV’s The Bachelor Canada Casting Call
7. Sherman Herald Democrat’s Best of Texoma
8. WPXI-TV’s Great Car Giveaway Contest
9. KFOR-TV’s Loots, Chutes and Boots, Rosckstar Giveaway Sweepstakes
10. CityTV’s BT Toronto-Sharp Aquos HDTV

Top 10 Sweepstakes
1. Popular Woodworking Magazine’s Workshop Makeover Giveaway
2. WXMI-TV’s Project Warmth
3. WRGB-TV’s Great Gas Giveaway
4. KUSI-TV’s Gas Card Giveaway
5. WJBK-TV’s Gardner-White Dream Team Contest
6. WPXI-TV’s Judge Judy $1000 A Day Contest
7. Our State Magazine’s Reactor Neutron Watch from Ora Designers
8. WHO-HD’s February Flyaway
9. Big Ten Network’s Buffalo Wild Wings Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament Promotion
10. CBS Philly’s U Can Win with Ukee

Our top contests for the month of December were full of holiday cheer! Our affiliates really got into the spirit of the season by hosting sweepstakes and photo contests with a holiday theme. One of the best contests we’ve seen all year was from KDVR-TV in Denver, Colorado. The winner of their “Tebowing Contest” featured a young fan “Tebowing” with Santa! Check out all the great contests from December below.

Top 10 Registrations
1. KDVR-TV’s Tebowing Photos
2. WXMI-TV’s Like Us to Win an iMac
3. WLUK-TV’s Door Peninsula Winery Gift Card Giveaway
4. Cyberink’s ECGRA UChoose Grants
5. CityLine’s At-Home Audience Contest
6. B98.5FM’s Christmas Wish List
7. WDBJ-TV’s Light Up Your Hometown
8. WDAF-TV’s Fire Up the Furnace (This contest has been taken down.)
9. WJBK-TV’s Exposed
10. Palm Beach Post‘s Presidents in Film Quiz

Top 10 Submissions
1. CityTV’s 12 Days of Christmas
2. The Queens Courier‘s Best of the Boro
3. The Suburban‘s Win a Trip to Sonesta Maho Beach
4. KAMR-TV’s Countdown to Christmas
5. KFMB-TV’s 12 Days of Christmas
6. WKYT-TV’s Christmas Photo Contest
7. KDVR-TV’s Tebowing Photos
8. Journal Sentinel‘s Know This Pro
9. WFTV-TV’s Something to Smile About Holiday Giveaway
10. KSTU-TV’s Fire Up The Furnance

Top 10 Sweepstakes
1. Popular Woodworking’s Workshop Makeover Giveaway
2. WFTS-TV’s iPad Giveaways
3. Where’s Traveler‘s Oahu Giveaway
4. Creative Crafts Group‘s Fabric for Life
5. WRC-TV’s FANdemonium 4G Fridays (This contest has been taken down.)
6. Minneapolis Star Tribune‘s Winter Wonderland
7. KTLA-TV’s Los Cabos Getaway
8. WJBK-TV’s Dream Team
9. Our State‘s Carolina’s Premium Outlets
10. Boys’ Life‘s 2011 Gift Guide

Top Takeaways from 2011 Second Street Awards

Last week, we hosted our 3rd annual Second Street Awards where we showcased our partners’ best contests and deals run on our platforms over the past year. In addition to specific contest and deal categories (for example, Best Facebook Contest or Best Travel Deal), we also honored partners, according to market size, who hit it out of the park with UPICKEM and Deadline Deals. Below, you can find the Top Ten Takeaways from this presentation. If you missed the webinar, you can watch the recording or see a full list of finalists and winners in each category.

1. Sweepstakes are great email database builders. Social boost, a feature that rewards entrants for sharing the contest, is a must-do for UPICKEM sweepstakes contests.

2. Service deals allow you to explore different price points, as well as pushing into higher priced deals. Our three finalists’ prices ranged from $29 to $1,850. Auto detailing is a category that’s been successful in many markets.

3. Our Fantasy Auto Racing contest could be your highest revenue-producing sports contest in 2012. With a 37-week lineup, Fantasy Auto Racing is one contest that keeps your users coming back to your site week after week.

4. Retail deals shouldn’t be too specific. The key to a successful retail deal is that it is open to all products in the store – avoid limiting the deal to specific products.

5. Health and Beauty deals are one of our top categories. Since this category of deal is frequently running, it is important to know what the market value is for your deal. Keep an eye on the competition and be sure you’re pricing your deal competitively.

6. Facebook contests are skyrocketing. Facebook contests are an excellent way to build your brand’s likes. Use the audience you build on Facebook as a selling feature to have contests run exclusively on your advertisers’ pages.

7. Don’t forget about national chains for restaurant deals. National chains are approachable – don’t be afraid to secure them in your market. A convenient location is key. For most local media sites, family friendly environments are best. Find what aligns best for your audience.

8. Photo contests work. Photo contests are still our most popular and most versatile contest type – kids contests were the most popular category in 2011, dethroning pets contests from their long-standing reign!

9. Travel deals, when crafted right, can usher in lots of revenue. Think regional, drivable from your location; Always try to work with the property directly instead of a third-party.

10. Recreation deals are inherently social. Whether you’re going to a theme park or taking a ski trip, you are most likely going with friends and family. This social aspect of recreation deals means more people will purchase if the deal is good. Anything entertainment-based will excite your audience.

Are your takeaways for contesting and daily deals different? Leave us a note in the comments to share what you learned this year.

Top 10 Registrations
1. WLUK-TV’s Mini to the Max Giveaway
2. WHO-TV’s Thanksgiving Day Giveaway
3. KKBQ-FM’s Gridiron Invasion
4. Our State‘s Holiday Shopping Spree
5. Toronto Sun‘s Win a Trip to Scotland
6. KSBY-TV’s Win a Trip to Disneyland
7. The San Diego Union-Tribune‘s Win a Gift Card
8. KPLR-TV’s November 11 Giveaway
9. KKBQ-FM’s Cowboy Kia
10. CityLine’s Weekly Giveaway

Top 10 Submissions
1. WLUK-TV’s Mini to the Max Giveaway
2. WMBD-TV’s Cash Wheel
3. WEEK-TV’s Chuck’s Big Toro Snowblower Giveaway
4. WALA-TV’s Cash Card Giveaway
5. The Suburban‘s Win a Trip to Sonesta Maho Beach
6. Journal-Sentinel‘s Know This Pro
7. WJBK-TV’s The Toro Winter Wonderland Giveaway8. KTVU-TV’s Ticket Tuesday
9. Journal-Sentinel‘s First Stage Holiday Staycation Sweeps
10. Tampa Bay’s Cutest Pet Photo Contest

Top 10 Sweepstakes
1. WHO-TV’s Thanksgiving Day Giveaway
2. KTLA-TV’s Win a Trip to Disneyland
3. Creative Crafts Group’s Fabric for Life
4. WKTV-TV’s New Hartford Shopping Center Holiday Giveaway
5. WSH-TV’s Fandemonium
6. KUSI-TV’s Big Bang Theory iPad Giveaway
7. KUSI-TV’s Aloha Sweepstakes
8. KTTV-TV’s Breaking Dawn Giveaway
9. CBS6′s Great Grocery Giveaway
10. Our State‘s Holiday Shopping Spree