Here’s why planning your competition feels overwhelming – and how to fix it fast.

If you’ve ever contemplated running a competition, turned to our dear old friend Google, then promptly felt utterly overwhelmed… you’re not alone.

Somehow there is both simultaneously SO MUCH information out there about running competitions and yet at the same time you can’t actually find a straight answer to your competition questions (licences and permits I’m looking at you).

Here are my top three reasons planning your competition feels overwhelming as well as three very practical, very quick and easy fixes to get out of overwhelm and into competition planning mode.

Competition overwhelm reason one:

There’s far too much information out there

A quick Google search for ‘how to run a competition’ gives us 1.26 BILLION results.

That’s a lot of people giving you a lot of information about competitions…

As if wading through over a billion results isn’t overwhelming enough, each person or business has their own process, their own steps and their own trusted system. Some of those billion plus search results tell us to start with our cashflow forecast (that escalated quickly) whilst others dive straight into advice about structuring your prize into first, second and third place – before you’ve even chosen a competition goal.

So how do you know who to trust and which of those billion systems to follow to avoid competition overwhelm?

The fix – pick one process or step-by-step system and stick to it.

That means browsing a few different how tos until you find the one that feels right for you – one that feels manageable enough so you don’t end up back in overwhelm but one that is also comprehensive enough to help you feel confident to launch your competition into the world.

TIP: make sure you choose a guide that’s relevant to where you live – a lot of content is written for US audiences, with rules and laws relevant to the USA, so if you’re an Aussie planning a competition, make sure you find some Australia-specific information to help you plan your competition.

Competition overwhelm reason two:

You can’t find the answers to your competition questions

So you’ve read through a few step-by-step guides to running a competition and you’ve noticed there’s a fair amount of contradictory information out there…

Are you allowed to ask people to tag and share or not? Do I give away one, two or three prizes? And for the love of all things sacred can someone please just tell me if I need a licence or not!

The best thing about the internet is that there is so. much. information. out there.

The worst thing about the internet is that there is so. much. information. out there.

So how do you get the right answers to your competition questions?

The fix – learn to look in the right places.

Have questions about what to include in your competition terms and conditions? Look for the law firms offering articles, advice and answers specific to your state or country.

Have questions about how to promote your competition whilst it’s live? Look for the marketers and marketing agencies that talk about promotion tactics for your competition.

A lawyer is going to be qualified and up to date on regulations, laws and requirements for your competition legals, but they might not be crash hot with their advice on when, where and how often to promote your competition. That’s a marketer’s area of expertise.

Learning to look in the right places for your competition answers will not only help you get the information you need quickly and easily, keeping the overwhelm at bay, but will also help give you clarity and feel confident that you’ve got the best answers for your questions.

Competition overwhelm reason three:

You’ve found your system and answers but you’re still overwhelmed

OK, let’s say you’ve sifted through billions of search results, chosen the system you’re going to stick with to create your competition and you’ve got the answers to your burning competition questions… and you’re still overwhelmed. Now what?

I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume that the reason for your persistent overwhelm has something to do with the mountain of work that now stands between you and the results you want to achieve from your competition.

Sound about right?

Take a deep breath. We’ve all been there (even me) and let’s break it down…

The fix – work out what’s causing you the most overwhelm.

Any major marketing campaign such as a competition is going to come with some level of overwhelm, but if you can work out what’s causing you the most overwhelm, you can put some fixes in place fast.

Is the overwhelm because you don’t know where to start with your competition?

Trust in the steps from the guide you chose to follow (see overwhelm reason one). You chose that competition system for a reason, so follow the steps and get started. Once you have some work behind you, you’ll feel a lot more confident about what needs to be done.

Is the overwhelm because there’s just too much to get done?

Try scheduling in some dedicated time each week to work on your competition. The process you chose to follow to create your competition should have clear steps, chapters or sections, which break down the tasks for that step into bite-sized, manageable and actionable chunks, just like we do in the Competition Mastercourse for example.

Is the overwhelm because you’re a serial procrastinator (like me)?

If so, you’ve probably found that scheduling things into your calendar or diary doesn’t mean you’ll actually have the discipline to sit down and do them…

Maybe you need some accountability and support to ensure you get your competition created and launched. Setting a launch date for your competition and hinting to your audience about the upcoming launch helps some people to overcome the overwhelm and commit to taking action, whereas others find it helpful to share what they’re working on and get help when they’re struggling (or procrastinating…) from other business owners, especially if they’re creating competitions too.

Identifying the cause of your competition planning overwhelm will help you focus on specific solutions to overcome your particular feeling of overwhelm.

Planning a competition can be overwhelming, but by choosing and sticking to one step-by-step system, looking for answers in the right places and working out exactly why you feel overwhelmed will help give you the best chance at ditching overwhelm, launching your competition, smashing your marketing goals and growing your business.

If you’re looking for a step-by-step-system, expert advice from someone with a decade of experience running successful competitions or maybe a little support and accountability from other business owners just like you, you may want to check out the Competition Mastercourse…