Online marketplace WeddingWire is reaping the benefits of a social sweepstakes that received more than 15,000 entries in six weeks, highlighting the significant potential for special occasion marketers to connect with customers on mobile.

WeddingWire introduced its second annual #justsaidyes campaign in November, hoping to connect with newly-engaged social media users by encouraging them to upload their proposal moments onto Instagram. The campaign has already far surpassed last year?s participation numbers, perhaps due to the enticing ? and relevant ? grand prize of a $5,000 Macy?s wedding registry and a complimentary honeymoon from Marriott.

?Leveraging mobile and social media is crucial in our strategy to connect with engaged couples,? said Blair Staunton, marketing manager at WeddingWire. ?Our audience is spending a significant portion of their time on mobile devices, and our company strategy has always been to meet them where they are.

?We know that 66 percent of engaged couples announce their engagement on social media platforms and couples spend more than 30 percent of their planning time on their mobile devices or tablets,? she said. ?Additionally, half of couples use mobile specifically to search for their wedding vendors and 25 percent of couples use at least two apps for wedding planning.?

Brides-to-be and mobile
An increasing number of future brides are turning to mobile to take care of all their pre-wedding and pre-honeymoon needs, including creating gift registries, designing invitations and sharing engagement photos with friends and family.

WeddingWire sought to ramp up brand awareness among its target audience by asking newly-engaged couples to upload their proposal moments onto social media using the #justsaidyes hashtag. The wedding marketer is tapping Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson to judge the entries and select the winning pair, who will receive a $5,000 Macy?s wedding registry and honeymoon from Marriott.

The campaign has taken off with Instagram users, as evidenced by the more than 15,000 entries WeddingWire has received so far. There have also been approximately 8,500 uploads containing the #justsaidyes hashtag on Instagram, bringing participation to a record high and demonstrating how a relevant contest can go viral.

?At this point last year, we had over 5,700 entries to our #justsaidyes campaign,? Ms. Staunton said. ?Today we have over 15,000 entries, and we still have three weeks to go! That?s a 163 percent year-over-year increase.

?We were shocked to see 70 percent of entries to our #justsaidyes campaign were from Instagram.?

Last year, WeddingWire ultimately saw 6,000 uses of the hashtag for the #justsaidyes campaign, which gave away a honeymoon trip to Mexico (see story).

The overwhelming response highlights the potential for wedding marketers to connect with brides-to-be on a variety of social networks. Offering engagement-centric sweepstakes enables participants to share their special moments with followers while simultaneously jockeying for a chance to win a highly relevant prize.

WeddingWire?s sweepstakes ends on February 19, giving couples who get engaged this Valentine?s Day the opportunity to upload their proposal moments before the deadline hits.

Polishing up strategies
A slew of wedding brands are finally realizing the lucrative branding and revenue potential that mobile offers, especially among millennial-aged couples.

Fellow wedding resource The Knot relaunched its service with a mobile-first perspective last year, a recognition of the fact that smartphones and tablets now account for more than 50 percent of the brand?s traffic (see story).

Additionally, brands including Best Buy and Crate & Barrel are allowing customers to begin their gift registries by browsing on mobile or scanning in-store items with their smartphones to add them to existing lists.

?From the development of our new wedding planning app, to our creation of new tools and campaigns, our focus has always been ?mobile first,? Ms. Staunton said. ?#Justsaidyes is no different. 

?We decided to leverage the natural habits of engaged couples to share important moments on social media as the crux of the campaign. This strategy has paid off in spades.?