Games/ Contests/ Sweepstakes

The “March Madness” college basketball tournament will no doubt a major trending topic on social media for the next few weeks, and sporting goods retailer The Finish Line Inc. is joining the craziness.

The Finish Line is offering customers two opportunities to digitally celebrate March Madness games this year. The retailer is offering a Finish Line Bracket Challenge for its Winner’s Circle loyalty program members with a top prize of $5,000, as well as the #CallYourShot social campaign that will last the duration of the tournament.

More than 45% of consumers say the opportunity to earn rewards is a primary driver for purchasing from a brand, according to a new study from Maritz Motivation Solutions.

The report, The Maritz LoyaltyNext Customer Study, surveyed 2,000 consumers on their loyalty to and engagement with brands.

When asked why they purchase from a brand, a majority of consumers cited “the ability to earn points and rewards, as well as good promotions and low prices.”

99 Cents Only has done it again. The company’s penchant for clever promotions will be on display on Valentine’s Day in the parking lot of one of its stores on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles.

Rite Aid on Thursday announced a big push behind its unique loyalty card offering wellness+ with Plenti - beginning Jan. 31, Rite Aid is offering its wellness+ with Plenti members the opportunity to earn 5,000 Plenti points when they spend up to $200 on participating products in stores or online. During Rite Aid’s “Big Point Event,” which runs through Feb. 27, customers can make multiple visits and purchases to reach the reward thresholds to earn up to 5,000 Plenti points.

Kroger customers are about to find out "how low" gas prices can go with a new contest from the nation's largest supermarket chain.

With Kroger's newest #FuelPointsSweeps giveaway, customers have a chance to win free fuel for a month, not to mention pay as little as 1 cent for a gallon of gas.

Belk is inviting couples engaged to be married to attend an Engagement Party during the month of February in the home department at their local store.

The promotional event will include displays of gift registry/wedding merchandise and feature refreshments, giveaways and drawings for prizes from Belk.

Kmart is launching a new social media campaign called “Fit in the Fun” that promotes the enjoyment of healthy activities while also engaging members of its Shop Your Way loyalty program.

The program includes a dedicated Fit in the Fun website as well as a #FitintheFun hashtag campaign. In addition, celebrity fitness instructor Jillian Michaels (who has an established relationship with Kmart) offers online tips and also sells branded merchandise on the new site.

A new feature on Twitter will let advertisers engage consumers more directly than ever before.

For many years, Twitter has offered advertisers a service called Promoted Tweets that puts their tweets at the top of users’ content stream with images, videos and/or hashtags encouraging retweets, likes and follows. Now, Twitter is expanding the capability it gives advertisers to directly engage consumers with an offering called “conversational ads.”