Sometimes the most simple contests are the most successful

As I was sorting through my postal mail the other day, I saw an ad for a heating and air conditioning company that caught my eye.  The reason I noticed this ad promoting a contest is because of its simplicity.  It's nothing new, nothing groundbreaking...but still smart.  Cyngier Heating & Air Conditioning is running an "oldest furnace" contest.  If you are found to have the oldest furnace, you win a new furnace.

The reason I like this promotion is because it's directly tied to the company's line of business.  Usually you see "win an iPod for filling out this survey" or "win a free vacation" when the prize has nothing to do with the company who is sponsoring it.  But in this case they're giving away a furnace -- which makes sense.  But more importantly, Cyngier is going to end up with a stack of entries for people who are admitting they have an old furnace.  I'd imagine that's a pretty valuable list, since it'll allow them to approach the non-winners with an offer to sell them a new furnace.

A few ways Cyngier could make their contest better next time:

1. If the customer can't verify the age of their furnace, the fine print says they can't win.  I don't know a lot about furnaces, but my guess is it's going to be very hard for most people to verify the age of their furnace.  That seems like a deal-breaker to many people who otherwise might consider entering.  I know my furnace has its date of manufacture stamped on it, perhaps many others do too.  A friendly note in the contest description to that effect might be helpful.  Or if people can't verify the age, let them enter anyway for the potential to win a secondary prize.
   
2. Cyngier isn't really interested in the oldest furnace, they're more interested in finding a bunch of people with old furnaces.  They could set up a similar promotion that invites people to enter any furnace that is at least 20 years old, then hold a random drawing.  Under the current contest, homeowners who have a 25 year old furnace probably don't have much motive to enter, since they'll be pretty sure someone has a 30 or 50 year old furnace.
   
3. Instead of needing to print a PDF and fill out a sheet of paper to enter, make the entry form online.
4. Tie it into social media.  Ask people to take digital pictures of their old furnace when they enter (an optional part of the contest), then let people browse the pictures on the Cyngier website.
   
5. A "tell a friend" about this contest is a no-brainer too.

Suggestions aside, this type of contest is a smart and simple way for a business to drive new sales leads.  Can you tie your company's sales leads to a contest like this?