Fortunately, there are many ways your organization can host a tree decorating contest that aligns with your goals and resources. Start your planning with these three steps:

1. Determine where you’ll hold the contest.

In order for a tree decorating contest to take place, you’ll need trees! Think about how you’d like your supporters to participate once they’ve paid their entry fee to register. 

For instance, your organization could provide trees for each team that has signed up, either by purchasing them or partnering with a local business willing to supply them as in-kind donations. Or, to reduce costs and make the contest more accessible to supporters outside of your local area, you could simply ask for participants to send in pictures of the Christmas trees that they’ve decorated in their homes.

2. Figure out how winners will be decided.

Every contest has a winner (or multiple). How your tree decorating contest winners will be decided, however, is up to you. For example, you can recruit a team of volunteer judges to evaluate each tree based on predetermined criteria. These judges can be some of your committed supporters or even well-known leaders in the community.

Alternatively, you can let those of your supporters who haven’t entered the contest vote on their favorite trees by paying a small fee per vote. If you’re adding different categories, such as “Most Creative” or “Most Original,” you can invite your supporters to cast votes for each of them.

3. Decide on the winners’ prizes.

Finally, it’s time to determine the prizes that you’ll offer your tree decorating winners. These can be wonderful incentives to inspire more people to sign up for the contest, so think carefully about the types of prizes that will appeal most to your organization’s supporters. Some popular prize ideas include:

• Gift cards for holiday shopping
• Branded merchandise, such as snow globes and ornaments
• Holiday-themed gift baskets
• Baked goods, such as gingerbread cookies

Additionally, consider featuring the top Christmas trees on your organization’s social media pages. This gives your winners a chance to show off their talents to a wider online audience and attracts more attention for your cause.