3 Slipups Local Businesses Make with Facebook Contests
Offering Amazing but Unrelated Prizes
Offering an Irrelevant Prize
Holding a contest where the reward is a weekend getaway, free airline flight or brand new iPad will definitely get plenty of engagement. Sadly, much of it will not be the engagement you want. This is because these prizes will attract everybody instead of just those who might actually purchase your product. Offer gift certificates for your shop or something similarly related as a prize instead.
Supplying Ambiguous Rules
When holding a Facebook contest, you must be certain that all rules are clearly defined. This means entirely explaining method of entry, the prize, winner selection criteria and how long the contest will run.
If your method of entry is something similar to “Like this status and share” do not forget that Facebook has rules against these types of contests. Local business owners do not normally have much to worry about, but to be on the safe side, many still use third-party apps. No matter how you run the contest, make sure you are clear on the rules.
Failure to Promote Facebook Contest
No one likes to spam their fans with multiple posts about the same thing. This normal rule, though, does not apply when it comes to contests. It is not enough to make a single post and then forget about the contest until it is over. Share the status one or more times a day, but make sure you are providing other useful content on the site as well.
Successful Facebook contests can quickly get a business hundreds or even thousands of new followers. This is only, of course, if it is done correctly. Keep the aforementioned goof ups in mind when running your contest, and make the effort not to fall into their traps.
