“But Mom, everybody’s doing it!”
How many of us issued that line when we were kids when trying to convince our parents that we should be allowed to do something even though our parents were telling us no? And of course your parents usually issued some line about your friends jumping off a cliff, right? Some things never change . . .
Today, one of the most popular questions we get in the area of social media and specifically Facebook is this: “Can I run a contest on Facebook? I hear there are alot of restrictions but I see all these other pages doing it so it must be OK, right?”
The idea of having a contest or some kind of promotion on your Facebook is a great way to garner fan engagement and to increase the number of likes you have on your page – two of the biggest reasons to have a Facebook page in the first place. But Facebook does have contest and promotional guidelines in place. And now’s not the time to cross Facebook after you’ve worked so hard to get the fans you already have. And yes, they do have the right to delete your page if you violate these guidelines – just ask Pizza Hut how it had one of its pages deleted for a period of time. With all the effort you put into getting more fans and getting more people to click the all-coveted LIKE button, it’s not worth a little contest to have your page at risk of being deleted.
So what CAN you do? Yes, it’s possible to run a contest on Facebook. But don’t just look at what others are doing (because they may be doing it wrong) – follow these Facebook guidelines or watch this video below to help you get started:
p.s. While we are on the subject of Facebook, consider a Custom Facebook Page for your business or organization to make your page stand out and be unique! It will also drive more LIKES to your page! Click here to get started or click below to see a gallery of our Custom Facebook Pages on Pinterest.
