Running a giveaway can be a great way to boost traffic to your blog.
However, people seem to assume that posting the giveaway is enough to send huge amounts of traffic.
This is not the case.
Successful giveaways take work.
They require planning and promotion to maximize the number of entrants.
Be sure to avoid these eight common mistakes when running your next blog giveaway.

• Don't include a picture of the prize.
  People like to see what they could win.
  This is your first chance to grab their attention.
  If no picture is included, a person may decide that the giveaway is not legitimate and leave your site without entering.
  Be sure to always include a clear picture of your prize at the top of your blog giveaway.
  Fuzzy pictures make your blog look unprofessional and may scare off potential entrants as quickly as if there were no picture at all.
  
• Don't include a clear end date.
  Not including a definite end date on your blog giveaway hardly inspires confidence in potential entrants.
  It is not enough to state a day of the week that it ends.
  I have seen many blog giveaways that state something like "Giveaway ends next Monday.
  " It is never a good idea to be so vague in the terms of your giveaway.
  You need to state a definitive end date including month, day, and year.
  It is also a good idea to include the time that the giveaway closes.
  
• Don't include entrant eligibility information.
  There are many problems that could arise by not stating who is eligible to enter your giveaway.
  You could end up paying expensive shipping fees to send the prize internationally when you had only intended to ship to your own country.
  You could also risk making sponsors or entrants angry by not being explicit in your terms.
  It is best to avoid this situation entirely by stating eligibility upfront.
  
• Change the rules after the giveaway already has entrants.
  There are numerous reasons why blog owners might change the rules after a giveaway already has entrants.
  For example the giveaway may be nearing the end and not have the amount of desired entrants.
  The blog owner may choose to extend the end date.
  While you may be tempted to change terms with your giveaway in progress, don't do it.
  Not only is this unethical, but you can also lose valuable blog readers if they discover the change.
  
• Make it a policy that people have to check back to see if they won.
  There are thousands of blogs running giveaways each day.
  The majority of people will not enter a blog giveaway if they have to check back to see if they were the winner.
  You risk a low number of entrants by employing this strategy.
  It is far better to just make it a policy to email the winner.
  
• Make entries too involved.
  Blog giveaways already take more time to enter than a standard sweepstakes that just involves filling out a form.
  The more complicated you make the entry process, the less likely a person is to enter.
  Keep things simple for the maximum number of entries.
  
• Require a purchase to enter.
  In the United States and many other countries, you can not legally require a purchase as the sole means of entering a sweepstakes, contest, or giveaway.
  Not only will you lose potential entries, but you are also risking legal action if you get reported.
  So always be sure to offer a free method of entry.
  
• Don't advertise your giveaway.
  People can not enter your giveaway if they don't know about it.
  Simply posting a giveaway is not enough to get massive numbers of entries.
  You need to promote it.
  At the very least, be sure to submit your blog giveaway information to some of the larger giveaway directories like Online Sweepstakes or Cashnet Sweeps.
  

By avoiding these common mistakes, you can maximize the number of entries in your blog giveaway and help keep your blog readers happy.