Sales Contest Ideas That Actually Work (Plus a Tracking Template)

Most sales contests fail. Not because the prizes are bad or the team doesn't care, but because the contest is poorly designed. Vague rules, unfair scoring, stale updates, and the same rep winning every time will kill motivation faster than no contest at all.

This guide covers what actually makes a sales contest work, 15 contest formats you can steal, prize ideas at every budget, and a copy-paste leaderboard template you can set up in under five minutes with MakeTheBoard.

What makes a sales contest "work"

Before picking a theme or buying gift cards, get three things right:

1. A clear, measurable metric

Every contest needs a single number that determines the winner. If reps have to ask "how am I being scored?" the contest is already broken. Good metrics are objective, trackable, and updated frequently.

2. Perceived fairness

If your top closer always wins, mid-tier reps stop trying by day two. The best contests either level the playing field (percentage-to-quota instead of raw revenue) or reward behaviors everyone can control (calls made, demos booked).

3. Frequent updates

A leaderboard that updates once a week is a spreadsheet someone emails. A leaderboard that updates daily, or even in real time, is a competition. Visibility drives urgency. Post it on a TV in the bullpen, pin it in Slack, or share a live link the whole team can check anytime.

Get these three right and almost any format will produce results.

Pick the right scoring metric

The metric you choose shapes the behavior you get. Choose carefully.

Metric	Best for	Watch out for
Calls made	Activity ramps, new SDR teams	Incentivizes volume over quality
Meetings booked	Pipeline generation sprints	Reps may book low-quality meetings
Pipeline created ($)	Mid-funnel acceleration	Hard to attribute fairly in team selling
Revenue closed ($)	End-of-quarter pushes	Favors reps with bigger pipelines
Deals closed (#)	High-velocity sales teams	Ignores deal size differences
% to quota	Mixed teams, fairness-first	Requires accurate, up-to-date quotas
Upsells / cross-sells	Account expansion focus	Only works if the opportunity exists
New logos (#)	New business prospecting	Ignores revenue per account

Pro tip: For most teams, percentage-to-quota is the fairest metric because it normalizes for territory size, account load, and tenure. A rep at 110% of a $50K quota worked just as hard as one at 110% of a $200K quota.

15 sales contest ideas (with "best for" guidance)

1. The Classic Sprint

Run a one-week contest on a single metric. Highest number wins. Simple, fast, effective.

Best for: End-of-month or end-of-quarter pushes. Metric: Revenue closed or deals closed. Duration: 3-5 days.

2. March Madness Bracket

Pair reps head-to-head in a single-elimination bracket. Each round lasts a set period (one day or one week). The rep with the higher score advances.

Best for: Larger teams (8+ reps) who love sports analogies. Metric: Any activity or outcome metric. Duration: 2-4 weeks depending on bracket size.

3. Sales Bingo

Create bingo cards with squares like "Book a meeting with a VP," "Close a deal over $10K," "Get a referral," or "Send 20 cold emails in one day." First rep to complete a row, column, or full card wins.

Best for: Encouraging a mix of behaviors, not just one metric. Great for onboarding new reps. Metric: Multiple activities (each square is a different task). Duration: 1-2 weeks.

4. Team vs. Team

Split the floor into two or three teams. Aggregate scores determine the winning team. Everyone on the winning team gets a prize.

Best for: Building collaboration and helping weaker reps learn from stronger ones. Metric: Combined revenue, total pipeline, or average % to quota. Duration: 2-4 weeks.

5. The Streak

Award points for consecutive days hitting a daily target (e.g., 50 calls/day or 3 meetings/day). Miss a day, streak resets to zero. Longest streak wins.

Best for: Building daily habits and consistency, especially for SDR teams. Metric: Any daily activity target. Duration: 2-4 weeks.

6. Poker Run

Each time a rep hits a milestone (a booked meeting, a closed deal, etc.), they draw a virtual playing card. At the end of the contest, best poker hand wins. This adds a luck element that keeps everyone in the game.

Best for: Teams where the same top reps always win. The randomness keeps mid-tier reps engaged. Metric: Any milestone-based trigger. Duration: 1-2 weeks.

7. Fantasy Sales League

Managers "draft" reps onto fantasy teams, or reps draft themselves. Teams earn points based on individual performance. Inspired by fantasy football, this format is wildly popular in competitive cultures.

Best for: Large sales orgs (20+ reps) with a competitive culture. Metric: Composite scoring across multiple metrics. Duration: One month or one quarter.

8. The Bounty Board

Post specific high-value tasks as "bounties" with point values. Examples: "Close the Anderson account = 50 points," "Book a meeting with a Fortune 500 company = 25 points," "Revive a dead opportunity = 15 points." Reps claim bounties as they complete them.

Best for: Directing attention to strategic priorities alongside everyday selling. Metric: Custom point values per task. Duration: Ongoing or 2-4 weeks.

9. Daily Power Hour

Pick one hour each day where a specific activity is double-scored. From 2-3 PM, every call is worth 2x points. This creates a burst of focused energy at a predictable time.

Best for: Remote teams who need a shared moment of intensity. Also great for combating the afternoon slump. Metric: Calls, emails, or any trackable activity. Duration: 1-2 weeks.

10. The Climb

Set a series of tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum). Each tier has a threshold. Reps earn the prize associated with the highest tier they reach. Everyone who hits Bronze wins something.

Best for: Motivating the whole team, not just the top 3. Mid-tier reps who would normally give up stay engaged because the next tier is within reach. Metric: Revenue, deals, or pipeline. Duration: 2-4 weeks or a full month.

11. Wheel Spin

Every time a rep hits a daily target, they earn a spin on a prize wheel. Prizes range from small (coffee gift card) to big (half-day Friday). The randomness and instant gratification keep energy high.

Best for: Daily motivation and teams that respond to instant rewards. Metric: Any daily activity target. Duration: 1-2 weeks.

12. Around the World

Map-themed contest where each deal or milestone "moves" a rep to the next city on a route. First rep to complete the circuit wins. Display the map on a shared screen for maximum engagement.

Best for: Visual teams who like a narrative arc. Works well on a TV dashboard. Metric: Deals closed or milestones hit. Duration: 2-4 weeks.

13. Weight Class

Divide reps into tiers based on tenure, territory size, or past performance. Run the same contest within each tier. This ensures a new hire competes against other new hires, not the ten-year veteran with a book of business.

Best for: Mixed-experience teams where raw leaderboard contests feel unfair. Metric: Any metric, normalized within tiers. Duration: Any.

14. The Comeback Kid

Award a bonus prize to the rep who improves the most from one period to the next. If someone was last place last month and jumps to fifth, that improvement matters.

Best for: Running alongside another contest to keep bottom-half reps motivated. Metric: Change in ranking or % improvement. Duration: Monthly.

15. Survivor

Everyone starts "on the island." Each week, the lowest performer is "voted off" (eliminated from prize eligibility). Last rep standing wins the grand prize. Eliminated reps can still win smaller consolation prizes to stay engaged.

Best for: Teams that thrive on drama and high stakes. Use with caution in cultures that skew collaborative. Metric: Weekly ranking on any metric. Duration: 4-8 weeks.

Prize ideas that don't backfire

Bad prizes tank motivation. A $10 Starbucks card for a month-long contest is insulting. A $5,000 trip that only one person can win makes 90% of the team check out by week two.

Here's how to structure prizes at three budget levels:

Low budget ($0-$50 per winner)

• Extra PTO (half-day or full day off)
• Best parking spot for a month
• "No meeting" day pass
• Team lunch on the manager's card
• First pick of new leads or territories
• LinkedIn recommendation written by the VP of Sales

These work because they cost almost nothing but carry real value. Time off and lead priority are often more motivating than cash.

Mid budget ($50-$250 per winner)

• Noise-canceling headphones
• DoorDash or Uber Eats credit for a month
• Premium subscription (Spotify, Netflix, Audible)
• Custom swag (quality, not cheap branded pens)
• Dinner for two at a good restaurant

High budget ($250+)

• Weekend getaway or hotel stay
• High-end tech (AirPods Max, iPad, monitor)
• Conference ticket + travel
• Experience gifts (concert tickets, skydiving, cooking class)
• Cash bonus (when in doubt, cash works)

Key principle: Have prizes at multiple tiers. Don't make it winner-take-all. The Climb format (idea #10) pairs naturally with tiered prizes: everyone who hits Bronze gets a small prize, Silver gets a better one, and Gold gets the big reward. This keeps your entire team competing, not just the top three.

The leaderboard template

Here's a ready-to-use scoring template for a weekly sales sprint. You can recreate this in MakeTheBoard in about two minutes.

Example: Weekly Revenue Sprint

Rank	Rep	Deals Closed	Revenue	% to Weekly Target
1	Sarah K.	4	$18,200	142%
2	Marcus T.	3	$15,750	121%
3	Jordan P.	3	$12,400	95%
4	Aisha R.	2	$11,800	91%
5	Chris D.	2	$9,500	73%
6	Taylor M.	1	$7,200	55%

Example: SDR Activity Contest (Daily)

Rank	Rep	Calls	Emails	Meetings Booked	Points
1	Devon L.	62	45	4	217
2	Priya S.	58	52	3	206
3	Mike R.	71	30	3	194
4	Jen W.	45	48	3	183
5	Alex C.	55	35	2	162

For the activity contest, a simple weighted formula works: (Calls x 1) + (Emails x 1) + (Meetings x 30) = Points. Adjust the weights based on what matters most to your team.

Setting it up in MakeTheBoard

1. Go to MakeTheBoard and create a free account.
2. Click New Board and choose Leaderboard.
3. Name it something specific: "Q1 Revenue Sprint" or "March Pipeline Blitz."
4. Add your reps and enter starting scores.
5. Customize colors to match your company brand.

Your board now has a unique URL that updates in real time. Anyone with the link can view it. Only you (and anyone you grant admin access) can edit scores.

For detailed setup instructions, see the Getting Started guide.

Display standings on a TV and share links

A leaderboard buried in a spreadsheet doesn't create urgency. Put it where people can't ignore it.

TV display

Open your board's public link on a browser connected to your office TV. MakeTheBoard is designed to look great on large screens. The board auto-refreshes in real time, so once it's loaded, you never have to touch it.

For remote teams, pin the live link in your Slack or Teams channel. Share your screen during standups. Drop the link in your daily huddle agenda.

Admin vs. view links

Every MakeTheBoard board has two access levels:

• Admin link: Full control. Edit scores, add/remove reps, change settings. Share this only with managers or contest administrators.
• Public link: View only. Anyone with this link can see the leaderboard but can't change anything. Share this with the entire team, paste it in Slack, or display it on a TV.

This means your reps can obsessively check the standings without accidentally (or intentionally) editing their own scores.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

Sandbagging

The problem: Reps hold deals until the contest starts, then "close" them on day one for an unfair head start.

The fix: Only count opportunities created or advanced after the contest start date. Alternatively, use activity metrics (calls, meetings) that can't be stockpiled.

The same person always wins

The problem: Your top rep wins every contest. Everyone else stops trying.

The fix: Use percentage-to-quota instead of raw numbers. Run Weight Class contests (idea #13) that group reps by experience. Add a Comeback Kid bonus (idea #14). Or use a Poker Run (idea #6) to introduce a luck element.

Prizes aren't worth the effort

The problem: The prize doesn't match the level of effort required. A $15 gift card for a month of extra work is demoralizing.

The fix: Either increase the prize budget or shorten the contest. A $25 prize for a one-day Power Hour feels fine. The same $25 for a four-week grind doesn't.

No visibility into standings

The problem: The manager updates a spreadsheet once a week and emails it out. By mid-contest, nobody checks it.

The fix: Use a daily sales leaderboard that updates in real time and lives on a shared screen or pinned Slack link. Visibility is what turns a tracking exercise into a competition.

Metrics that encourage bad behavior

The problem: A "most calls" contest leads to reps making 15-second throwaway calls. A "most revenue" contest leads to aggressive discounting.

The fix: Use composite scoring (calls + meetings + pipeline) or pair quantity metrics with quality gates. For example: "calls only count if they last 2+ minutes" or "deals only count at full list price."

Contest fatigue

The problem: You run a contest every week and the team stops caring.

The fix: Space contests out. One per month is a good cadence for most teams. Vary the format, the metric, and the prizes so it never feels repetitive. If a contest doesn't generate energy, skip the next one instead of forcing it.

FAQ

How long should a sales contest last?

One to two weeks is the sweet spot for most contests. Shorter than three days doesn't build enough momentum. Longer than four weeks and interest fades. For longer campaigns, break them into weekly sprints with interim prizes to maintain energy.

Should I run individual or team contests?

Both, but alternate. Individual contests drive personal accountability. Team contests build collaboration and prevent weaker reps from disengaging. A good rhythm is one individual contest followed by one team contest.

How do I run a contest for a remote sales team?

The format doesn't change much, but visibility matters even more. Use a shared digital leaderboard instead of a whiteboard. Pin the link in your team chat. Reference standings during daily standups. Consider a Daily Power Hour (idea #9) to create a shared moment of intensity across time zones.

For remote teams, MakeTheBoard is especially useful because every rep can check the live standings from anywhere without waiting for a manager to email an update.

What if my team is small (3-5 reps)?

Small teams work great for contests. Skip bracket-style formats and focus on The Climb (idea #10), Sales Bingo (idea #3), or The Streak (idea #5). These formats don't require a large pool of competitors to be engaging.

Can I run contests for non-sales metrics?

Absolutely. Customer success teams run contests on NPS scores, onboarding completion rates, or renewal percentages. Support teams compete on resolution time or customer satisfaction ratings. If it's measurable and you want more of it, a contest can help.

How do I get buy-in from leadership?

Frame it as an investment with measurable ROI. Track the team's baseline metric for two weeks before the contest, then compare performance during the contest period. Most teams see a 15-30% lift in the target metric during a well-run contest. That data makes the next budget conversation much easier.

Ready to run your first contest?

Pick a format from the list above, choose a metric, set a timeline, and build your leaderboard. The whole setup takes less than five minutes with MakeTheBoard. Start with a free board and upgrade to Premium if you need custom branding, more entries, or TV display mode.

Create your free sales leaderboard and start competing today.