Looking to light a fire under your sales team without making things weird or cheesy? You’re in the right place. This is a step-by-step guide for sales managers and ops folks who want to use Leveleleven to run custom contests that actually move the needle—not just rack up badges nobody cares about. If you’re new to Leveleleven or just tired of contests that fizzle, let’s get real and get this right.
Why bother with custom contests?
First, a quick reality check: not every sales contest is a good contest. The best ones are simple, laser-focused, and tied to real goals. Custom contests in Leveleleven let you:
- Target the metrics that matter (not just dials for the sake of dials)
- Motivate your team with actual rewards, not empty praise
- See what works in real time—so you can tweak (or kill) what doesn’t
But, if you try to track everything or make the rules complicated, you’ll lose your team’s attention fast. So, keep it simple, make it visible, and don’t overthink the prizes.
Step 1: Get your groundwork in order
Before you touch Leveleleven, make sure you’ve got answers to these:
- What’s the real goal? (More meetings? Better pipeline? Faster closes?)
- Who’s playing? (Whole team, just SDRs, or a specific region?)
- What’s worth winning? (Lunch, cash, time off—pick something people actually want.)
If you skip this, you’ll end up with a contest nobody cares about, and you’ll waste time fixing it later.
Pro tip: Ask your reps what they want to win. Sometimes it’s not what you’d expect.
Step 2: Log in and get oriented
- Sign in to your Leveleleven account. (If you’re not the admin, make sure you have rights to create contests.)
- Navigate to the “Contests” section—usually in the main sidebar.
- Click “Create Contest” or “New Contest.” (The name might vary, but you’ll find it.)
You should see a contest builder or setup wizard. If you’re lost already, check with your admin or dig up the help docs. No shame in that.
Step 3: Set basic contest details
This is where most people get tripped up by trying to be clever. Don’t.
- Contest Name: Make it obvious (“May Meeting Blitz” or “Q3 Demo Challenge”). Skip the puns unless your team loves them.
- Description: Write a sentence or two. “First to book 10 meetings in May.” That’s enough.
- Start and End Dates: Set a window that’s long enough to matter, but short enough to keep energy up. A week or two is usually plenty.
What to ignore: Don’t waste time on fancy graphics or long descriptions. Nobody cares.
Step 4: Choose your metric
Leveleleven lets you pick which activity or metric you want to track. Here’s where you can get creative—or make a mess.
- Stick to one or two metrics maximum. For example: “Meetings booked” or “New opps created.” Don’t try to track five things at once.
- Use existing Salesforce fields or activities (since Leveleleven sits on top of Salesforce). If you don’t see your metric, you may need to talk to your admin about tracking it first.
- Decide if you want to count volume (total calls), speed (first to 10), or quality (meetings that turn into pipeline).
Pro tip: Tie the contest to behaviors that actually lead to revenue. If you just track calls, you’ll get… a lot of calls.
Step 5: Pick participants
Who should be in on the action?
- Individuals vs. Teams: You can run contests for solo reps or by teams (regions, pods, etc). Teams keep things friendly if you want less cutthroat competition.
- Filter by Role: Only want SDRs or AEs? Pick only those users.
- Exclude managers or ops folks: No need to pad the stats or have managers “win” by accident.
Reality check: Don’t make it “everyone” if half your team has nothing to do with the metric. The fastest way to kill engagement is to include people who don’t care.
Step 6: Set the rules (keep it simple)
Here’s the meat of your contest. Leveleleven will prompt you for:
- Winning Criteria: First to a goal, most in a timeframe, highest quality, etc.
- Scoring: Usually, the system will tally for you, but make sure you’re clear on what counts. For example, if you’re counting meetings, do reschedules count? What about cancellations?
- Tiebreakers: If it’s a head-to-head race, set a simple tiebreaker now (e.g., earliest finish, or most pipeline $ tied to the action).
- Prizes: Enter what’s up for grabs, so it’s visible. Even if it’s just bragging rights, put it in writing.
Don’t: Overcomplicate with “bonus” points or hidden rules. People tune out when it gets confusing.
Step 7: Customize notifications (optional, but smart)
Leveleleven can send out updates—use them, but don’t spam your team.
- Kickoff: Announce when the contest starts. Build a little hype (but don’t oversell).
- Mid-contest nudges: A halfway reminder or leaderboard update keeps things moving.
- Final countdown: A last push in the last day or two can make a big difference.
- Wrap-up: Celebrate the winners publicly. Don’t let the contest fade out with a whimper.
You can set these up in the contest builder, or connect to Slack/email. Just… don’t overdo it. If every update is “John made a call,” people will mute you.
Step 8: Preview and double-check everything
Before you launch, stop and check:
- Are the right people included?
- Is the metric tracking correctly?
- Is the start/end date right?
- Did you write down what counts (and what doesn’t)?
- Is the prize actually available?
Pro tip: Have a trusted rep or manager look it over. They’ll spot something you missed.
Step 9: Launch the contest
Hit “Start” (or whatever the button says). Announce it to your team in a channel they actually check. Remind them of the rules, the prize, and where to watch the leaderboard.
What works: Make the leaderboard visible—on a TV, in Slack, wherever your team hangs out. Visibility is half the motivation.
Step 10: Monitor and adjust (don’t set and forget)
- Check in daily: Make sure the numbers look right. If something’s broken (like activities not tracking), fix it quick.
- Look for weird behavior: If someone’s gaming the system (booking fake meetings), call it out and adjust the rules if needed.
- Be ready to kill it: If the contest isn’t working—nobody cares, or it’s creating bad behavior—end it. No drama. Just move on.
Honest take: Not every contest is a hit. That’s normal. Learn and try again.
Step 11: Wrap up and reward
- Announce the winners publicly. Give out the prize fast.
- Share a quick note on how the team did. If you hit your goal, great. If not, share what you learned.
- Ask for feedback. What did people like? What would they change?
Don’t: Drag your feet on rewards. Nothing kills trust like promising a prize and taking weeks to deliver.
Step 12: Review and rinse (but don’t repeat mistakes)
After the dust settles, look at what actually changed:
- Did the contest move your key metric?
- Did your team enjoy it, or just tolerate it?
- What would you tweak next time?
Keep what works. Toss what doesn’t. And don’t run contests just to “do something.” If a contest isn’t helping your real goals, skip it.
Final thoughts: Keep it simple, iterate often
A good sales contest in Leveleleven is about clarity, not cleverness. Pick a real goal, make the rules simple, and follow through. Don’t get seduced by bells and whistles—focus on what your team will actually care about and act on. Start small, see what sticks, and keep moving.
You’ll run better contests, waste less time, and—best of all—see real results. Good luck.