How to Host an Effective Facebook Competition For Your Business
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Facebook has become a phenomenon and an
invaluable marketing tool. It is
becoming increasingly popular as a space to host competitions and there are
some key points to understand in order to run a successful Facebook promotion.
Understand
the Rules of Facebook
The key point to understand is that all
promotions must be run through a 3rd party app.
This is true in all cases even if the competition simply involves
submitting a name. Even though there are
numerous competitions on Facebook which ignore this rule, they do so at the
risk of having their Facebook presence shut down completely. If the cost of using a 3rd party app would be
prohibitive, it is possible to use Facebook to promote a contest which is being
hosted elsewhere such as on a blog or a 3rd party website.
The 2nd most important rule is that all
promotions on Facebook must be clear in their terms and conditions and these
must be visible on the front page of the promotion.
Understand
the Goal of the Competition
Is the aim of the competition to collect
e-mail addresses for a mailing list, to drive traffic to a Facebook page or to
guide users to an external website? What
is the current state of the platform and what changes will need to be seen for
the competition to be judged a success?
Understand
that Technology is a Delivery Method - Not a Goal
In many ways, running a successful Facebook
competition is essentially identical to running any other sort of competition.
Make the effort needed to enter the
competition commensurate with the prize on offer. Users may leave their e-mail address for a
small prize, but are unlikely to go to any great degree of effort unless the
prize is very desirable. A great way to
find out what people find desirable is simply to ask current users what they
would like to see as a competition prize.
Encourage users to make their friends
aware. Since the number of entrants in a
competition reduces each individual's chances of winning, giving free entries
in return for referring other people is a common strategy for encouraging
people to spread the word.
Make sure that everything works as it
should. This is possibly the most
fundamental rule of all; however it is surprising how often it is ignored. Any questions must be checked and
double-checked (both for accuracy and for spelling) and if the answers to them
should be found on a website make sure they are there. Likewise, check that the method for entering
the competition works as it should and is regularly monitored for glitches,
technical or otherwise.
Special guest post by Amy Harris who is a writer for
Expert Market
which offers a
free service to businesses, providing a sourcing tool for finding office
equipment and business services. She enjoys helping businesses discover the
best marketing strategy.
Marketing Blog founder and top-selling author Michael Fleischner has been featured on The TODAY Show, ABC World News, and Bloomerg Radio. 
2 comments :
Facebook is one of those sites where you can not compete the competitions of others.I really observe many things about this on facebook and other social media as well
It makes sense. Writing about third party applications & their reputation on Facebook is largely a free advertising medium.
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