The Best Of Contest is a powerful feature inside MediaOS that lets you run a local “favorites” contest right from your website. Businesses get recognized by the community, readers stay engaged, and you grow revenue, traffic, and email lists — all with a single, customizable tool.
Requirements to Use the Best Of Contest #
Before launching your Best Of Contest, ensure a few key components are in place: a MediaOS-connected website, active integrations with Google ReCAPTCHA and Google Analytics, and a configured Memberships setup within MediaOS. These requirements are essential for proper contest functionality and tracking.
Setting Up Your Best Of Contest in MediaOS #
To set up your Best Of Contest in MediaOS, everything is managed from the Websites > Voting tab. This is where you’ll create, configure, and run your contest with just a few steps. Start by navigating to Websites > Voting, then click Create Contest Type, enter a Title, and specify the Year. Finally, toggle the Active switch to mark the contest as live.
Tip: You don’t need to create a brand-new contest each year. Simply update the year and continue using the same contest structure to retain audience momentum year over year.
Organizing by Categories and Groups #
Your contest is structured using Groups and Categories to organize entries. A Group represents a broader category, such as Dining, while a Category is more specific—like American Dining—and falls under its respective Group. This structure helps keep your contest organized and easy for users to navigate.
Tip: Use consistent naming to help voters navigate easily and reduce confusion between similar categories.
You can enhance your contest by linking categories to your Business Directory using the Directory Category feature. This connection allows a contest category to align with a corresponding directory category, enabling users to cast votes directly from the business directory page.
Contest Settings #
Once your categories are set, navigate to the Settings tab to customize how your contest functions and appears. In this section, you can control several key elements: enable Publish Results by Year to display past winners on their directory profiles, and choose from different Voting Types such as Write-In (manual entry), Radio Button (select one from a list), or Dropdown (choose multiple nominees). You can also set the Voting Page URL, define a Minimum Votes Per Voter to reduce low-effort or bot-driven ballots, and adjust Color Customization to match your branding. Additional options include Randomize Order to shuffle sections and categories for fairness, and Completion Settings to determine what happens after a ballot is submitted, including the landing page and confirmation email.
Serving Ads in Your Contest #
To turn your contest into a revenue-generating opportunity, you can serve targeted ads directly through MediaOS. Start by going to the Ad Server section, then select the Product and Ad Size you want to display. You can also set the frequency to control how often ads appear between voting sections, ensuring a balance between user experience and monetization.
Tip: You can also assign specific ads to certain categories using the Ad From Account option in the Categories tab.
Tools Tab: Quick Vote QR Codes #
If you want to promote specific nominations using QR codes, the Tools tab makes it easy. You can generate a Quick Vote QR Code and customize its color and background to match a specific brand. When scanned, the QR code takes users directly to the ballot with the business already pre-filled in the appropriate category, making voting fast and seamless.
Living Ballot Experience #
MediaOS features a Living Ballot system, allowing voters to update their submissions at any point during the contest period. This means they're not locked into their initial choices—they can change or add votes as their opinions evolve or as they discover new businesses. To ensure fairness, only one active ballot per voter is allowed, preventing duplicate or manipulated entries.
Example: A voter may support a business at the start but decide to change their vote based on a new experience — this flexibility builds trust in the process.
Selecting Winners and Viewing Voting Data #
Only users with Voting Data Viewer permission—typically limited to MediaOS admins—can access voting results and select contest winners, ensuring the integrity of the contest. To begin the process, go to Websites > Voting, then click Select Winners. From there, choose your desired Groups and Categories to view detailed voting data and finalize your selections.
Understanding Voting Data #
The voting dashboard provides key insights to help verify the legitimacy of each ballot. The First Four Characters Match feature groups similar write-ins—like “Jon Doe” and “John Doe”—to catch variations. 30+ Category Votes flags ballots with unusually high activity, which may indicate bot use or over-enthusiastic superfans. Undervotes highlight submissions with fewer than the required number of votes, while Qualified Votes represent verified, complete entries that officially count toward contest results.
Tip: Use these metrics to identify suspicious activity or fine-tune your minimum vote settings. You can also search and assign winners manually from the right-hand side of the screen.
Note: Any notes made during review are temporary and will disappear once you leave the window.
Updating Categories for a New Year in Your Best Of Contest #
You don’t need to create a brand-new contest or directory each year to keep your Best Of experience up to date. MediaOS is designed to support year-over-year contests while preserving your historical data and settings.
To Update your Contest for the New Year: #
To update your contest for the new year, start by navigating to Websites > Voting and selecting your existing contest from the list. Within the contest settings, locate the Year field and update it to reflect the current year—for example, change 2024 to 2025. If you want to remove a category for the new contest cycle, simply toggle off the “Active” switch next to that category. To make edits to a category name, click into the category’s text box and update the title as needed. If you’d like to introduce a new category, scroll to the bottom of your current list and click Add New Category, then enter the new category title and assign it to a Group if applicable.
Why this matters: Reusing your existing contest keeps all historical data, nomination records, and structural settings intact—making it easier to manage and compare performance year-over-year without having to start from scratch.
Best Practices for Running a Successful Contest #
To run a successful contest and boost engagement, it's helpful to create a newsletter for campaign managers, keeping them informed with tips, reminders, and important updates throughout the contest period. Additionally, use the QR Code Generator Tool to make it easy for participating businesses to drive traffic directly to their nomination, helping increase visibility and voter turnout.
Tip: Embedding a QR code on business websites is a great way to boost participation.
