Givebacks offers several ways to draw your winners and end your Raffle or Sweepstakes so that you can choose the best drawing method for your organization.
What should I know before drawing Sweepstakes winners?
If you’re running a Sweepstakes, you won’t be able to draw Sweepstakes winners manually. You’ll need to use Givebacks to draw winners to ensure your Sweepstakes is legally compliant.
How do I use Givebacks to draw winners?
Givebacks uses a certified randomization algorithm to draw Raffle and Sweepstakes Experiences winners. This randomization algorithm ensures fairness and promotes ethical fundraising practices. When you use Givebacks' algorithm, you have two drawing options:
How do I set an automatic drawing date?
This method involves setting a date and time when you want the system to draw winners automatically.
Select Campaigns from the left menu.
If you have chosen a list view, click on the Campaign title. If you have chosen a grid view, click on the Campaign image.
Select Campaign Setup.
Select Raffle or Sweepstakes in the timeline at the top.
Scroll down to When does your Sweepstakes/Raffle end? and enter your drawing date and time:
Scroll down to Expand optional settings and click on the down arrowhead (⌄).
Scroll down to How do you want to draw the winner(s)? and select Have the system draw them automatically:
How do I draw winners manually when I’m ready?
This method involves setting a drawing date but not allowing the system to draw winners until you tell it to.
Select Campaigns from the left menu.
If you have chosen a list view, click on the Campaign title. If you have chosen a grid view, click on the Campaign image.
Select Campaign Setup.
Select Raffle or Sweepstakes in the timeline at the top.
Scroll down to When does your Sweepstakes/Raffle end? and enter your drawing date and time. This information is required so donors can be informed of the drawing date and to ensure your fundraiser complies with local regulations:
Scroll down to Optional settings and select Show optional settings.
Scroll down to How do you want to draw the winner(s)? and select Have the system randomly draw them when I tell it to:
When your Raffle or Sweepstakes ends you can draw winners.
Can I draw Raffle winners outside of Givebacks?
If you’re running a Raffle and don’t want to use Givebacks' algorithm, you can export entry information from the site and draw winners yourself. Note that if you’re running a Sweepstakes, you won’t be able to manually draw winners.
How do I export entry information for manual drawing?
If you’re drawing your Raffle winner manually, you can export a spreadsheet with everything you need:
Select Campaigns from the left menu.
If you have chosen a list view, click on the Campaign title. If you have chosen a grid view, click on the Campaign image.
Select View Raffle Entries*.
Select Export Entries in the lower left corner of the screen:
How do I limit winners to one prize each?
When a donor purchases multiple Raffle or Sweepstakes entries, they automatically have the chance to win more than one prize. When a prize winner is determined, only their winning entry number is removed from the drawing pool. The remaining entries purchased by this person are still eligible for winning the remaining prizes.
If you allow donors to enter to win a specific prize, there is not currently a way to limit one prize per winner. For all other entry settings, you can limit one prize per winner in the Experience setup so that any winner is removed entirely from subsequent drawings:
Select Campaigns from the left menu.
If you have chosen a list view, click on the Campaign title. If you have chosen a grid view, click on the Campaign image.
Select Campaign Setup.
Select Raffle or Sweepstakes in the timeline at the top.
Scroll down to Optional settings and select Show optional settings.
Scroll down to Allow donors to win more than one prize. This setting is turned on by default:
Click on the toggle to move it to the left and turn this setting off:
Note that some entry settings may also affect how winners are drawn and may result in one donor’s name being drawn more than once.
How does drawing work when donors enter to win any prize?
When donors enter to win any prize, all entries are put into one entry pool. For each prize, Givebacks' algorithm draws an entry number from the pool. The selected entry is then matched to a prize. This winning entry is then eliminated from the entry pool so that the specific entry is no longer eligible for any prize. This process will continue until all prizes have winners.
Note that in this scenario, if a donor wins a prize, only their winning entry is removed from the pool. Their other entries are still eligible to win any of the other prizes unless you limit each winner to one prize only.
Example: Alice purchases 10 entries to win any of 5 prizes. Alice wins the first prize, so her winning entry is eliminated from the entry pool. However, Alice still has 9 remaining entries in the pool, and she is, therefore, still eligible to win any of the remaining 4 prizes unless you prevent winners from winning more than one prize.
How does drawing work when donors enter for specific prizes?
If you’ve set up your experience so that donors can enter to win a specific prize, each prize will have a separate pool of entries. Each pool consists of all the entries purchased for that particular prize. For each prize, an entry number is randomly generated to determine the winner of that prize.
If a donor purchases entries for more than one prize, they may also win more than one prize. However, if you don’t want a donor to win more than one prize, you can always redraw a winner.
How are winners drawn for prizes with multiple quantities?
If multiple quantities of a prize are available, then the algorithm will draw winners for each quantity available. A donor who purchases multiple entries for a multi-quantity prize may win that prize more than once unless you limit one prize per winner.
Can I redraw winners if needed?
There may be a time when a prize winner is ineligible, can’t be contacted, or otherwise can’t accept a prize. If you ever need to redraw winners, you can do so as many times as you need. See the following Knowledge Base article for instructions on how to redraw winners:
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between automatic drawing and manual drawing?
Automatic drawing lets the system draw winners at your specified date and time without any action from you. Manual drawing allows you to control exactly when winners are drawn after your Campaign ends, giving you flexibility for live events or specific timing needs.
Can I draw Sweepstakes winners manually outside of Givebacks?
No, if you’re running a Sweepstakes, you must use Givebacks to draw winners to ensure legal compliance. Only Raffle Campaigns allow you to export entries and draw winners manually outside the platform.
What happens to a donor’s other entries if they win a prize?
By default, only the winning entry number is removed from the drawing pool. The donor’s remaining entries are still eligible to win other prizes unless you enable the setting to limit each winner to one prize only.
How does Givebacks ensure fair winner selection?
Givebacks uses a certified randomization algorithm to draw winners, ensuring fairness and promoting ethical fundraising practices. This algorithm provides equal odds for all entries and maintains transparency in the drawing process.
Can donors win multiple prizes in my Raffle or Sweepstakes?
Yes, by default donors can win multiple prizes if they have multiple entries. However, you can turn off this setting in Campaign Setup to limit winners to just one prize. For Raffles, go to Campaign Setup → Raffle → Optional settings. For Sweepstakes, go to Campaign Setup → Options → Sweepstakes Options. Note that if you’re running a Raffle and you allow donors to enter for specific prizes, this setting will not be available.
*Terminology may differ according to Campaign settings.
Questions? Click the "?" icon to contact Givebacks Support.