Running a giveaway is easy. Running one that your audience actually trusts is harder. The moment someone wins, a handful of comments will ask: “Was that really random?” or “Did they know the winner beforehand?”
A wheel spinner solves this by making the selection visible. Every viewer watches the same spin, sees the same slowdown, and watches the pointer land. There’s no hidden list, no behind-the-scenes draw.
Here’s how to set one up properly.
Step 1: Collect Your Entries
Gather the list of names or usernames that qualify for the giveaway. This might come from:
- Comments on a social media post
- A sign-up form
- Chat participants during a live stream
- Email subscribers
Export or copy the names into a plain text list — one name per line.
Step 2: Load the Wheel
Paste the list into the wheel generator. Each name becomes its own slice. If you have 50 names, you get a 50-slice wheel where every person has an equal 1-in-50 chance.
Check the list before spinning. Duplicates give someone two chances, so remove them unless that’s intentional.
Step 3: Spin on Camera
If you’re streaming, share your screen so the audience sees the full wheel and the spin in real time. The transparency is the whole point — don’t spin off-camera and announce the result.
For social media giveaways, record the spin as a short video and post it alongside the winner announcement.
Step 4: Handle the Result
When the wheel lands on a winner:
- Announce the name clearly.
- Screenshot or record the result as proof.
- If the winner doesn’t respond within your stated time window, spin again for a backup.
Step 5: Use Elimination Mode for Multiple Winners
Need to pick three winners from one pool? Enable “remove winner after spin” so the first winner is taken off the wheel before the second spin. This guarantees three different people win without manual editing.
Tips for Credibility
- Don’t pre-spin. The first spin the audience sees should be the real one.
- State the rules beforehand. Post eligibility criteria before collecting entries.
- Keep the wheel visible. Don’t minimise, crop, or cover any part of it during the spin.
- Save results. The built-in results history keeps a log of every spin, which you can share if anyone questions the outcome.
A giveaway wheel isn’t just a tool — it’s a trust signal. When your audience can see the process, they believe the result.