An Instagram giveaway in Austria: rules and checklist.

First of all: this is not legal advice

A giveaway looks harmless: post a picture, offer a prize, draw a winner. Legally, though, it touches on several areas at once, such as competition law, gambling law, data protection and youth protection. The rules in Austria and Germany are not the same either.

This article gives you practical guidance and a checklist. It does not replace legal advice. Before you start your first giveaway, have your terms of entry checked. In Austria you can turn to your Wirtschaftskammer as a member, in Germany to your chamber of commerce (IHK), or you can ask a lawyer.

What Instagram itself requires

Instagram has its own guidelines for promotions, which includes giveaways. They can change, so read the current version in Instagram’s help centre before you start. According to the requirements known so far, these points apply among others:

• You are responsible: you have to make sure yourself that your giveaway is run lawfully, with official rules, eligibility requirements and the regulations that apply to prizes.
• Release of Instagram: the terms of entry should state that entrants release Instagram from any claims.
• No connection to Instagram: you should state clearly that the giveaway is not sponsored, endorsed or administered by Instagram and is not associated with Instagram.
• No inaccurate tagging: you must not ask people to tag content inaccurately, for example to tag themselves in photos they do not appear in.

Common mechanics and what is tricky about them

You decide how people take part. Some variants are simpler than others:

• Commenting: for example answering a question. This is simple, easy to track and often leads to real conversations.
• Following as a condition: common, but it also attracts people who are only interested in the prize and leave again afterwards.
• Tagging friends: opinions differ on whether this is sensible and permissible in every case. The tagged people have not agreed to it. Many businesses therefore do without it.
• Purchase or stake as a condition: if taking part costs something or is tied to a purchase, things get much trickier legally. Never do this without advice.
• Prize draw or competition: in a prize draw, chance decides, in a competition a jury decides by criteria, such as the nicest photo. State in the terms which variant applies.

What belongs in the terms of entry

Terms of entry protect you and the entrants, because everyone knows where they stand. These points come up again and again in templates and guides:

• Organiser: the name and address of your business, as in your legal notice. More on this in the guide Legal notice on social media.
• Period: start and end with date and time.
• Who may take part: minimum age, place of residence, for example only in Austria, and whether staff and their families are excluded.
• How to take part: exactly the action that counts, for example a comment under the post.
• The prize: described precisely, and whether it can be paid out in cash or exchanged.
• Choosing the winner: how and when the draw takes place, how you notify winners, how long they have to reply and what happens if nobody gets in touch.
• Notes on Instagram: the release and the sentence stating that Instagram has nothing to do with the giveaway.
• Data protection: which data you collect, what for, how long you keep it and which rights entrants have.
• Exclusion: that you can exclude someone in cases of manipulation or fake accounts.

Where the terms go

There is not enough room in the post itself for everything. A proven approach: the post states the key points briefly, meaning prize, how to enter, end date and minimum age. The full terms are on a separate page of your website, and the post points to the link in your profile. That way the terms remain available after the giveaway too.

Data protection: only what you need

Even with a small giveaway you process personal data, and the GDPR applies. Stick to a simple principle: only collect what you really need to run it. For the draw, the profile name is usually enough. You only need a postal address from the winner, and only if you are sending the prize.

If you want to use entrants for advertising or a newsletter later, you will generally need separate, voluntary consent for that. Clarify this beforehand rather than slipping it into the terms. After the giveaway, delete the data you no longer need.

It is best to name the winner publicly, for example in a post, only with their consent. Many businesses ask when they notify the winner.

Youth protection and prizes

In Austria, youth protection is a matter for the provinces, so the rules differ from province to province, for example on alcohol. For prizes such as wine, beer or a voucher for the bar, the rule is therefore: adults only. Many businesses set a minimum age in their terms. Whether parental consent is needed for minors is something you should clarify beforehand.

Also choose a prize that suits your audience, for example a voucher for your business rather than a tablet. Then the people who take part are more likely to come to you later too. More on this in the guide More Instagram followers for businesses.

The process in six steps

This is how a giveaway can work for a small business, for example a patisserie in Salzburg giving away a cake voucher:

• 1. Set the goal and prize: what do you want to achieve, and which prize fits?
• 2. Write the terms and have them checked: using the checklist above, checked by your chamber or a lawyer.
• 3. Publish the post: a clear picture of the prize, the short rules in the text, the pointer to the full terms.
• 4. During the giveaway: reply to comments and keep an eye out for spam and fake accounts.
• 5. Draw and document: record how and when the draw took place, for example with a screenshot of the entries.
• 6. Notify and wrap up: contact the winner via your official account, hand over the prize, delete data you no longer need.

Beware of fake winner notifications

Fraudsters keep turning up around giveaways. They create an account that looks like yours and message entrants saying they have won. Then they ask for bank details or send a link. So state in the post that you only contact winners via your official account and never ask for bank details or passwords. Report copycat accounts to Instagram.