Tag Archives: facebook
Facebook competition guidelines
Do you manage any Facebook pages? Do you implement campaigns and competitions for those pages? Then you should know how careful you have to be when implementing a competition or promotion on a Facebook page for a brand. Many pages have been shut down (as a result loosing thousands of fans) for breaking Facebook rules.
For example, A brand cannot run a facebook competition or promotion through a page wall. The page cannot ask users to ‘like’ the page or a specific post in order to enter or win. A winner cannot be announced through Facebook. These may seem like simple rules to follow, however many brands blatantly ignore them.
It is fundamental for any organisation and brand to be fully aware of Facebook’s guidelines before attempting to run any sort of competition or promotion on the page. The following guidelines were taken directly from Facebook’s Promotions Guidelines.
1. Promotions on Facebook must be administered within Apps on Facebook.com, either on a Canvas Page or an app on a Page Tab.
2. Promotions on Facebook must include the following: a. A complete release of Facebook by each entrant or participant. b. Acknowledgment that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. c. Disclosure that the participant is providing information to [disclose recipient(s) of information] and not to Facebook.
3. You must not use Facebook features or functionality as a promotion’s registration or entry mechanism. For example, the act of liking a Page or checking in to a Place cannot automatically register or enter a promotion participant.
4. You must not condition registration or entry upon the user taking any action using any Facebook features or functionality other than liking a Page, checking in to a Place, or connecting to your app. For example, you must not condition registration or entry upon the user liking a Wall post, or commenting or uploading a photo on a Wall.
5. You must not use Facebook features or functionality, such as the Like button, as a voting mechanism for a promotion.
6. You must not notify winners through Facebook, such as through Facebook messages, chat, or posts on profiles (timelines) or Pages.
7. Ads may not imply a Facebook endorsement or partnership of any kind. Ads linking to Facebook branded content (including Pages, groups, events, or Connect sites) may make limited reference to “Facebook” in ad text for the purpose of (1) fulfilling your obligations under Section 2 and (2) clarifying the destination of the ad. All other ads and landing pages may not use our copyrights or trademarks (including Facebook, the Facebook and F Logos, FB, Face, Poke, Book, and Wall) or any confusingly similar marks, except as expressly permitted by our Brand Usage Guidelines or with our prior written permission.
8. Definitions: a. By “administration” we mean the operation of any element of the promotion, such as collecting entries, conducting a drawing, judging entries, or notifying winners. b. By “communication” we mean promoting, advertising or referencing a promotion in any way on Facebook, e.g., in ads, on a Page, or in a Wall post. c. By “contest” or “competition” we mean a promotion that includes a prize of monetary value and a winner determined on the basis of skill (i.e., through judging based on specific criteria). d. By “sweepstakes” we mean a promotion that includes a prize of monetary value and a winner selected on the basis of chance.
If you want to run a Facebook competition and are unsure about the guidelines, then I suggest you use a paid application to do so. Facebook competition applications always adhere to Facebook’s guidelines and often make the process so much easier. Here are a few of my favourite applications:
1. Wildfire
2. ShortStack
3. Vertigo
Facebook’s awesome new insights for page admins
Whenever I log in to my Facebook account the first thing I do is go to the Facebook pages I have admin access to in order to see for any new notifications. When I logged in to my account this morning I noticed something new. I received a pop up message encouraging me to take tour of the new insights for page admins.
I immediately allowed Facebook to give me a personal tour and I must admit, I was impressed. Facebook’s new and improved insights for page admins are amazing. It’s simple and easier to understand — less graphs yet more explanations. Im actually looking forward to compiling month end reports now.
What are Insights you ask?
Facebook Insights provides Facebook Page owners and Facebook Platform developers with metrics around their content. By understanding and analyzing trends within user growth and demographics, consumption of content, and creation of content, Page owners and Platform developers are better equipped to improve their business with Facebook.
The new insights provide more emphasis on how fans interact with the page and engage with the content. Page admins are also able to see “People talking about this” and the number of unique people who have generated content about the page. Below are few of the graphs and explanations taken from insights of a Facebook page.
The graph below illustrates the important metrics of any Facebook page. These include the total likes, friends of fans, people talking about this and weekly total reach.
The graph below illustrates an overview of how the individual updates you post on your page influence the number of people talking about your page. The graph elaborates on people talking about this, total reach and number of posts:
The graph below gives you in depth descriptions and analytics on every single one of your page posts. The graph shows the date of the post, the actual updates/posts, the reach, the number of users who engaged in the posts, the number of people talking about the post and the virality. The “virality” column allows you to compare your different posts by showing the % of people who talked about your post to their friends after seeing it.
The graph below shows you who your fans are, where they are from and how you acquired them:
Social Media Infographic
A few days ago I came across the ultimate social media infographic posted on Management Today and decided to share it with you. The infographic illustrates how social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have changed the way we interact.
Online Safety
Online Safety
The man known as the “Facebook Rapist” by many people around the country, wanted in connection with more than 30 cases involving murder, rape, kidnapping, theft and fraud has been arrested by Johannesburg police last week.
The smooth-talking Thomas Bester (“Facebook Rapist”) was described by police as “a charming, good-looking man in his early 20s”, who taunted them (police) with a “catch me if you can” Facebook update.
Thomas Bester - "Facebook Rapist"
Thomas (which is one of his aliases) , who portrayed himself as a casting agent/model scout for months has lured several young models with talk of top modelling jobs, mainly by advertising on the internet.
He also targeted women by meeting them in person, then befriending them on Facebook, or simply sending them friend requests on Facebook.
Facebook is a great place to network with friends and meet new people, however it can be a dangerous place too if one is not vigilant and careful.
Here are a few safety tips to keep in mind:
1. Don’t share personal information online that others can use to find you offline. Personal information includes your screen name, photos, identity numbers, postal address and phone numbers, personal email address, work address, etc.
2. Make sure that you know how to use privacy settings. Most social networking websites have a variety of different privacy settings you can use so that only users who you choose can view your personal information.
3. Never respond to emails or attachments that you are unfamiliar with or not expecting.
4. Be aware of who you accept as friends on any social networking site. If you do not know the person, do not allow them to access your online world.
Bring your event to life with live social media
Have you been to an event recently and noticed the live Twitter and Facebook streams up on a big screen somewhere in the venue? Or have you ever gone to a conference and tweeted from there while the speakers were presenting? Well I have and it’s so exciting to engage with difference audiences live using various social media platforms at an event.
Social media has become an important part of events, especially conferencing. Live streaming feeds from Twitter and Facebook as well as blog posts allow audiences participate in conferences and other events.
I had the privilege of working at two conferences recently (one being international) where I tweeted live and posted Facebook updates from the event. I found it quite overwhelming and exciting. I realised that even though it may look easy to compile Twitter and Facebook updates, it’s even easier to make mistakes and attract bad behaviour.
Here are a few key points to remember when Tweeting live from an event or conference:
1. Encourage delegates to tweet during the event and provide a special hashtag (#) which should only be used for that particular event. A live and active Twitter stream engages delegates in real time and allows people who could not attend the event to get a feel for the topics being discussed.
2. A live stream can backfire at times when people go off topic or tweet negative things about the event or the speaker. Don’t allow this to happen. Get rid of spam immediately.
3. You must be prepared to respond to negative and positive feedback immediately. Remember, offensive and negative content can be live for just minutes at your event but it can be around the world within seconds.
4. Ask your delegates to post photos of the event on their personal profiles. Retweet their tweets and reply to their @mentions. This will add value to your streams and event.
5. Have a plan in place in case of an emergency. For example, if the venue offers Wi-Fi make sure that you have a 3G card available as a back up. If you are in venue filled with 2000 delegates, the Internet tends to be slow and your updates may not go out as fast as you would like them to.
If I’ve missed anything please feel free to comment and add on.
Four great ways to gain Facebook fans
Last week I published an article about “Why you must invest in a Facebook page instead of profile for your business”. This week I decided to touch on things you can do to gain more fans for your page on Facebook.
YouTube is a great tool to broadcast yourself or your business. The good thing about it is that it’s open to everyone and it gives you the option of posting the video to your Facebook page. There are people who are now famous because of YouTube. You must be creative with your video so that it can catch the attention of your fans and motivate them share it with their friends. You can introduce yourself and your business to the world. Don’t forget to include links to your Facebook page, Twitter page or Website.
If you have a website or blog, installing a Facebook page plug-in can really help you gain more followers. However, people will not like your Facebook page if the content of your website or blog is outdated or not interesting. Creativity is essential.
Have fliers around your shop, advertising your Facebook page. Put it on your business card or post it on a receipt. You must also make sure that your Facebook page user name is personalised. This makes it easy for people to find you on Facebook and to be able to remember your Facebook page URL.
Facebook ads are also another great way to gain more followers. There is a cost involved and the price depends on your targeting criteria, so you are in control of how much you spend.
Why you must invest in Facebook page instead of profile for your business…
Should I invest in a Facebook profile or a Facebook page for my business? This is a question that some people ask themselves on many occasions.
I am going to highlight a few important aspects and explain why you should choose a Facebook page for your business instead of a Facebook profile.
Facebook term and conditions
Facebook’s terms of service, clearly states that “Profiles represent individuals and must be held under an individual name, while Pages allow an organization, business, celebrity, or band to maintain a professional presence on Facebook. If you create a Profile for your business, it’s going to be shut down because you will be violating Facebook rules and you will lose all your friends.
Pages are the best tool for marketing.
There are a lot of differences between profiles and pages, which make pages absolutely 100 % the only way for businesses to get the most out of Facebook. You can create lots of tabs and add all your products and services on Facebook.
Analytics
Facebook pages offer insights. This will enable you to useful data that Profiles can’t give you. The data includes how many page “likes” and comments you received each day, demographic break-downs, daily and monthly activity, etc.
Disadvantage of using a profile
The user will not have to wait for you to accept their Facebook request in order for them to start interacting with you. If you use a page, once they have liked your page they can start commenting or liking your wall post.
There are a lot of advantages of using a Facebook pages instead of a profile for business. If you have a few, how about sharing them with us.
The how to of Blogging
I’m sure many of you know what blogging is, but for the few of you who do not know what a blog is, allow me to enlighten you. A blog is a web page that serves as a journal for an individual which is freely accessible to internet users all over the globe. Sounds easy enough, doesn’t it?
Blogging is not as easy as many think. With millions of blogs out there, it’s hard to achieve true success. You can spend 15 hours a day working on your blog but, if you’re not doing the right things you’re just wasting your time. So what goes into having a successful blog you ask? There are many ways you can ensure your blog will be successful. There are a few important factors you need to determine before starting a blog, which include:
–> Goals
–> Target Audience
Below are a few other important elements you should take into consideration when creating and maintaining your own blog:
1. Name and URL Link
The name of your blog is very important. It should be unique and memorable so that visitors will remember it and return after the first visit.
When choosing a domain for your blog, select one that will represent your brand – which is you. Pick something that’s short and unforgettable. Anything too long will be hard to remember and easily forgotten. This may result in visitors not returning to your blog.
2. Design
The design is the first thing a visitor will notice when arriving on your blog. If you want to ‘wow’ your visitors then choose a design that stands out from the rest in order for your blog to be unforgettable. Remember, first impressions last.
Another important factor to take into consideration is navigation. Make sure that everything on your blog is easy to find and access. There’s nothing more annoying than spending hours trying to find recent posts, tags, a search box, etc.
3. Content
I’m sure you’ve heard the cliché, “Content is king.” Well, if you want a successful blog then you should live by it.
Content helps increase your traffic and improve your rankings. If you want readers to share your posts then you should put a lot of time and effort into your content.
4. Social Media Platforms
Social interactivity is fundamental for any blog. When creating your blog, add plugins or widgets in order to make it easy for your readers to share your content. Be sure to add a Facebook like button, a Twitter button for retweeting, and the new Google +1 button. If you create great content, people will share it on their social media platforms.
Blogging Heroes
Among more than 102 000 000 blogs, a few stand out as influential — they are called Blogging Heroes. Wired magazine Editor-in-Chief Chris Anderson is one of them with one of the most successful blogs in the world – “The Long Tail”.
Below are a few points by Chris Anderson that might help you when creating your own blog or increasing the quality of your blog:
A blog is a thinking tool, a means of collecting, composing, and amplifying your thoughts—while getting useful feedback. Ideas are enriched by the experiences of blog readers.
A personal blog presents a better platform for communicating honestly and transparently than a company blog, where a writer is constrained by commercial considerations. However, remember that self-promotion is more effective when it includes a value-added element.
A blog, especially one with a large community, can function as a distributed research project and become an efficient marketing platform.
When blogging, focus on specific interests. You don’t have to appeal to an overly diverse audience. Focused blogs are self-selecting, in that they draw readers who have a legitimate interest in the blogs’ subjects.
Such readers are more likely to forgive errors and omissions, and will contribute more than someone just passing through.
Every blog, and every blogger, can be improved. To maximize your blog’s audience, focus with laser precision on your subject.
If you want to hear Chris live, catch him at the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit on 21 September 2011.
Google+ users sign on but not staying
I was very excited to be on Google+ when the Social Network was launched. I couldn’t wait to sign up, but was very disappointed with the message that I kept receiving when I tried to create my account.
I have been reading different articles about Google+ and found some interesting remarks about the social media platform.
It has been reported that there are about 25 000 000 people who use this Social Network and it’s the fastest in terms of growth among all the social media platforms. It took two years for Facebook and Twitter to reach that number.
My question is: “Does that mean anything if it’s the fastest among other Social media Platforms?” Google+ users now spend an average of 5 minutes and 47 seconds per visit on the site. This duration isn’t dropping, but it’s not growing, either. I am also one of those who sign in and not stay for a long time.
From my own perspective, there is no social network that will beat Facebook because it also integrates new security settings and new features on a regular basis.
But that’s my opinion. I’d love to hear your views. Please feel free to comment.
5 simple tip to become a better networker!
I believe that none of us can live alone without someone’s assistance. As a result we need to cultivate our relationships every time or create networks. The big question is, “how would I do that?” I am going to share five simple tips you can do to be to become a better networker.
Attend events
I do not blame Social Media for making us lose focus on face to face interaction. In fact, this is a very powerful tool to improve networking. It’s the best idea to attend seminars and events of the industry that you work in or that you would like to be in. Be active in the events that you attend by approaching people (do not wait for them to approach you) and interact with them.
Exchange contact
If possible, exchange your contact details with new faces at the events or seminars that you attended and make sure that you are always reachable after the event.
Follow up
You don’t have to wait for the people you have connected with to get back to you. It’s always about being initiative and being a step ahead. Emails alone are not enough; make phone calls as well because if you wait for the email you sent to so and so last week, you are not going to get anywhere.
Use Social Media
Be active in Social Media. Signing up on Facebook, Twitter or any other Social Media network is not enough. Keep all your social networks up to date and be proactive in talking to people and establish connections.
Be reachable at all the times
No one wants to be connected with people who need to be fed all the time. There are a lot of Social Media sites that can help you become up to date with what’s going on in businesses, technology, Social Media (your industry), etc. By doing so, you can even get partners to start something worthwhile.
Do you have any tips?
