Did you know that most of the Facebook contests radio and television stations run are in violation of Facebook’s promotion guidelines?
Yup, it’s true. Here’s a quick reference on the do’s and don’ts of running contests on Facebook.
What You Can’t Do
Facebook does not allow any business to use their Facebook “features and functionality” to run a contest. What does that mean?
Running a contest like asking viewers and listeners to enter a contest to win a prize by following station’s Facebook page is a violation of their Promotion Guidelines.
You also can’t use your station’s Facebook page to host a photo or video contest. Using Facebook’s tools to submit photos or videos and then letting your followers vote to select a winner won’t fly.
What You Can Do
Facebook will permit a business to run a contest using a third-party application like WildFire. Here’s the deal . . . a good chunk of Facebook’s revenue comes from selling third-party apps. Basically, Facebook is happy to let you run a contest, as long as they get paid.
Before you run your next Facebook contest read Facebook’s Promotion Guidelines and the Social Media Examiner wrote a very easy to understand guide “Facebook Promotions: What You Need to Know.” It’s also not a bad idea to run your contest idea by your legal counsel.
So what if you violate Facebook’s Promotion Guidelines? Most likely nothing, but they have reserved the right to shut down your Facebook page and possibly take additional legal action.
Have a question? Ask LBS by emailing info@localbroadcastsales.com
