Hosting a Contest to Attract Facebook Friends

When it comes to advertising and online marketing, there is nothing like having a Facebook page with a healthy fan following. Lots of Facebook fans will make your company look trusted, which is a great way to draw in more potential customers. And who doesn't like to do business with a trusted company?

The trick is, how do you start attracting fans when you're a newcomer to your particular niche? Being friended by your mother, sister, and best high school chum may be a nice way to stay in touch, but it won't do a lot to build market credibility (sorry, mom).

Facebook marketing has evolved into a kind of sub genre of organic, Web2.0 online marketing; it has its own set of rules and techniques. One of the most effective ways to attract Facebook fans is to host a contest.

Some pretty big players in the consumer sector have used the contest technique to attract more friends. And why wouldn't they? Most people will throw their names in the hat if the if there's free stuff at stake and the risks are minimal or non-existent.

Here are eight tips that will help get you started:

1. Determine which type of contest you want to run

There are four types of contests you can run on your Facebook page: Sweepstakes, essay, photo, and video. Keep in mind that video, photo, and essay contests require more work on the part of your contestants. If your aim is to promote user interactivity, these types of contests may be the way to go. If you just want to gather basic information while making it easy on your new-found friends, you probably want to use the sweepstakes contest.

2. Get to know the rules

As tempting as it may seem, you cannot use the Facebook "Like" button as a means for your readers to enter your contest. Since the whole purpose of promoting a contest is to gather Facebook friends, using the "Like" button might seem like a sure-fire way to accomplish your goal. Facebook says this is a major no-no!

Another stipulation is that you must notify your winners before you publish their names (on Facebook or anywhere else). You can do this via email, snail mail, or private FB message.

And the granddaddy of all Facebook contest rules: you must clearly state that Facebook is not sponsoring your contest in any way. Facebook will provide you with the communication medium, but they do not want to take on the liability of your promotion. Can't blame them, really.

Go to facebook.com for a complete list of sweepstakes guidelines.

3. There's an app for that...

Facebook requires users to run their contests through third-party apps. There are plenty of these apps in the marketplace, some cheap or free, others... not so much. If you're looking for a free app, keep in mind that you'll need an app that is customizable, embeddable, and that has mobile capabilities. Beware, free apps may not offer all (or any) of these features. The tried-and-true rule of consumerism indeed applies to Facebook contest applications: you get what you pay for.

To get you started, here are two of the best apps that fully support your Facebook contest efforts:

Fanappz

Offerpop

4. What's in it for your readers?

Don't go cheap. Don't give away junk. This bit of advice may not even seem worth mentioning, but many a contest campaign has flopped because the promoter didn't want to part with stock and/or revenue. If your business designs Websites, do one for free. If you sell cameras, shell out the wholesale cost for a Nikon D40 and give it away. If your objective is to gain more traffic through Facebook friends, think of your prize as part of your advertising budget. Also, if you don't pique your reader's interest with a decent giveaway, you won't attract any friends anyway. Your campaign will be a total waste of time and energy.

5. K.I.S.S.

What's the best way to run a successful contest campaign? Keep it simple, sweetheart. Many of the Facebook contest apps you will find are highly customizable, which means you can design an entry form to account for many different details. Don't do it! The quickest way to make a contest fall flat on its face is to make it too difficult for your readers to play. Contests are supposed to be fun, not work.

If you are asking for more than the reader's name, email address, phone number (optional), and in the case of a video, photo, or essay content, their entry file, then you're asking for too much. Also, make the contest app easy to find on your page. The second quickest way to make your contest flop is to advertise it and then turn finding the submission form into an Easter egg hunt.

6. Get the word out

If you have a Twitter account, Tweet about your Facebook contest. If you have an email newsletter, mention your Facebook contest in bold letters. If you have a Web site, add a blurb about your Facebook contest on the home page.

Consider advertising your contest an exercise in driving traffic from multiple sources. You want to drive traffic to your Facebook page, which will in turn drive traffic to your blog or Web site. eMarketing is a cycle of traffic, and you want to make sure you're coaxing it, tweaking it, and always keeping an eye on where it's coming from and how fast it's coming in.

7. Facebook ads

Once you start getting the hang of contest marketing through Facebook--that is, once you start seeing some positive results--you may want to consider making a small investment in Facebook advertising.

Facebook ads make it easy to target users who share your interests and demographics. It's also a good way to reach beyond the people who already like your page by placing them where your ideal demographic hangs out.

8. Follow up

Your work isn't finished once you've announced a winner. Building a database of potential customers was the objective of this project in the first place, so make sure you follow up with them. Keep all the information they send you in a spreadsheet and send them a friendly email thanking them for their interest in your campaign. In your thank you email, ask them if they would be interested in receiving details about your products, services, or future contests. Ask them, do not spam them! Keeping your message friendly, conversational, and honest is likely to add at least a few more subscribers to your newsletter database.

Facebook contests have been proven an effective way to attract leads and augment your client base. Plenty of major corporations use this technique with great success, and you have access to the same method and tools (albeit on a smaller scale). If you make your contest fun, easy, and personable, you're likely to make some friends who will stop by your site every now and then to see what you're up to. And isn't this what making friends is all about? At least the Facebook kind.

Youths And Social Networking   Why Privacy Is the Key Against Social Bullies and Identity Thieves   

Why a Social Network Is Only Worth the Privacy a Person Can Have On Their Network

A social profile is only worth as much privacy as a user can get on the social network. People do not realize how much information that some of the social networks keep about their users and what they use that information for (mostly monetary reasons). However, people have to ask how much information is too much information for the social media networks to have about them.

The social media systems may have bigger files on a user than some of the government departments. This is not a misnomer. The social media systems collect data about a person and their habits. They know things about a user that a user's best friends may not know about them. All because the users all have a false sense of privacy on the social networks and they (the social networks) use this false sense of security to make money.

The only asset that the social networks really have is the users of their systems. This means that they have to get revenue by selling the information about their users. They categorically sort their users for easy use. The advertisers then buy access to these lists and make money by targeting their ads to them.

There is a darker side to all of this, however. The applications that run on some of the major social networks are allowed to capture information about their users. Whatever is in their profile is fair game. Which means, a 3rd party company could capture a name, their job, their date of birth, who they are married to, and who their kids are all in one fell swoop. Who knows what else they could capture, if it is on the social profile then it is fair game. This could even be their home address if a user is not careful.

A company that develops an application for the social networks does not have to tell the social networks what they will do with the data (most of the time). Therefore, this information is transferred unchecked and for whatever use the company or developer deems appropriate. This may be the scariest side of the social networks.

The social networks have made privacy not as private as most people think it should be in the first place. The truth is that privacy is mostly dead on the social networks unless the user takes up their sword and fights to keep the privacy that they had when they began to use the system. The truth is that a person cannot have more social privacy, they only make choices to keep the privacy they already have in their possession.

Therefore, every person who uses a social media platform must ask him or herself if the lack of privacy is worth the connections they make on the social media systems. This means that every step and move on the social media systems brings them closer to having no privacy at all. This also means that businesses can invade a person's life at will if the user does not make the right choices to keep those businesses out of their lives.

The best thing for a person to do is to be very careful with what they post and say on the social media systems. It is fair to assume that anything on the social media systems can and will be sold because the legalese is hidden in the fine print. Therefore, a person must be extremely careful what they say, what they "thumbs up" or "like", and what applications they use on social media networks.

Youths And Social Networking   Why Privacy Is the Key Against Social Bullies and Identity Thieves   

Where Should Someone Sign Up To Learn Social Networking For Business?

The best place to learn social networking for business purposes is not in any classroom. The problem with most classroom classes is that those who teach the subject are no longer practitioners they are teachers. Even if the teacher was effective at the discipline in question, their skill set is constantly becoming outdated unless they have their foot in the business outside of the classroom.

Before a person learns social networking for business purposes from anyone, they should ask if the person has ever made money from social networking. This is the real test of how skilled a social networking guru or expert really is because most experts are self-proclaimed experts. There is no hard evidence of their skill other than a large list of people who may or may not be following them. The truth about social networks is that there are plenty of robots who do nothing other than query databases for names of people who have posted updates about a relevant topic. This robot then follows the person and begins to post predetermined messages to the system. The person behind the messages and the robot never reads the messages on the server or platform, and therefore the profile is actually a robot and not a human. Most social media campaigns are not geared towards pleasing robots because robots cannot be a good source of revenue (because they do not interact and usually cannot make buying decisions).

Once a person has a positive response to the ultimate question in all of business activities (have you made money with this approach), they should then buckle down and listen to that person very intently. The problem with most people is that they bring their own head trash into the game before they even begin learning. This causes them not to be able to hear that the teacher is actually telling them. It does not make sense to hire a mentor if the student only wants to argue with the mentor at every step. Once, a business owner or person has made the decision that they should get help from a mentor, and then they must make the choice to actually listen and work with the mentor until they learn what must be learned.

All that is left at this point is just to put in the time to learn what is necessary for the business owner or business person to learn. There are no short cuts to success if someone is building their social profile from the ground up. A person or business can purchase a profile; however, this also does not guarantee success because the tone and the writing style of the new owner will not be the same as he previous person. Therefore, some of the followers may just drop off the system all together. Putting in the time and effort to develop a list that likes to hear how that business owner or business person specifically talks is always the best idea on any social networking platform.

In conclusion, a business person who wants to learn highly effective social networking should ask the magic question of any person they are thinking of asking to teach them. This question is, "how much have you made using your techniques." If the teacher cannot respond with anything but, "I have x amount of followers" or "I have x amount of retweets" then that business person should avoid that teacher. This is the best way to find a social networker who knows what they are doing.

Youths And Social Networking   Why Privacy Is the Key Against Social Bullies and Identity Thieves   

How To Build Confidence Meeting Business Owners In Real Life Via the Internet

The skills of business social networking are universal. This means that the skills that developed online are just as applicable in the offline world. This is the best reason that a person should cut their teeth in the online world and then take their skills to the offline world. This should be considered as if the online world is training wheels for the real world. The real world is where deals are closed and partnerships are formed. Every move online should bring the offline world closer to the business.

One of the best skills to generate in the online world of business social networking is the ability to start a conversation. This ability will allow a person to meet virtually anyone what he or she want to meet. This is the "six degrees of Kevin Bacon" phenomenon. There are invisible strings that lead us to virtually every other person. It is best to keep generating contacts and clients to expand the base of people a person knows over time. This action gives them a tremendous advantage over those people who do not network effectively over time.

A person or business owner can generate an understanding of certain types of people before they meet them in real life. This will give them the ability to feel more relaxed when meeting them in person. A person or business owner who does this can develop their social skills in a relaxed environment. There is no need to feel anxiety or wonder what to say because they will have cultivated the relationship before the first meeting ever took place. A successful business meeting is when two parties agree on a mutually beneficial result and feel confident in each other's ability to hold their end of the bargain.

Pacing is another important skill that can be learned through social networking systems. The ability to pace a person who is talking is a good skill to obtain. Pacing a person means that their language patterns and tone is matched. If the language pattern and tone is matched, then that person usually feels more at ease because they believe that the other party understands them. Pacing is much easier to learn through social media because there is time to think about what the other person is saying and how they will react to the next response. This is chess in language. Just like chess, pacing is a skill that can be developed. A smart person develops this skill as soon as they can.

The online world is the perfect place to practice social skills and gain contacts that can help a business grow. No anxiety needs to be felt while relating to another user online. There is no pressure and no need to worry about what the other person thinks of the clothing the business owner is wearing that day. Social networking for business is the perfect place to learn how to network in the real world. A business owner should use their social networking skills and practice them online. They should, then take those skills and meet more people at events and functions to extend the reach of their business.

Youths And Social Networking   Why Privacy Is the Key Against Social Bullies and Identity Thieves   

Uses of Business Page On Facebook for Business Owners

Facebook is availed by many firms in various ways to build their brand image, generate traffic to blogs and websites, receive comments on new goods, attract employees, manage online reputation and to intercept potential prospects. To benefit from Facebook in your business you must start by creating an account. From here, you should build a profile describing information about yourself. According to the Facebook policies, you can build one profile and it should be tied to the human name, like your original name and not in the business name. This social networking site contains a friend finder function which lets the users look for other individuals by school, organization or industry. To be found by others, you should list all of the schools you've studied at, employers and the company in the profile. The about me section, should hold information explaining your company, products and services you offer.

There is also an information box on the profile page where you should add links to the websites newsletter, address, blog and other business details such as your firms contact address, photo, logo etc. The profile page must be regarded as the branding page. Facebook was made according to the principle of connecting with friends. So you can send and get friend requests and after accepted, you can see your friend views and your friends can see your profile. You can also have the facility to see the friends list of every individual with whom you are linked. You can also develop your friend list through inviting all the customers, clients, business associates, co-workers, friends, school alumni, family and any people you consider will be interested in connecting with you. Every Facebook member contains a wall, in which friends can publish messages. In the business networking market, it is equivalent of inviting your friends on the phone.

You can also send a complement, product offerings, and comments on the new service or convey any networking opportunity or upcoming training to your company colleagues. On the top of the Facebook page you can see a status box. If you post a status update, your friends will be able to view your update on the home page. The business owners use Facebook to promote events, share tips, release information about new items, post blog updates, link to audio or video presentations, articles, websites and newsletters, and link to the affiliate programs. Online communities let you network virtually with prospective customers. You can join communities on Facebook which are associated to the business work.

There are many groups for every possible profession including coaches and teachers. You can join and study much more information from the professional in the field. You can also browse numerous communities by the area of interest, market, business and location. Networking works effectively if there is two way sharing.

Facebook also contains an online marketplace which lets you list products and services. It is the best method for you to obtain good exposure.

Youths And Social Networking   Why Privacy Is the Key Against Social Bullies and Identity Thieves   

How Twitter Can Help You to Find a Job

As a social media tool that is still lagging behind LinkedIn, Facebook and My Space, Twitter may not be the most popular but it does have some advantages when it comes to job search. Knowing how Twitter works may help you understand why it's so useful searching for work and with an insight in to it's working it may offer more appeal to you than it probably does at the moment.

Tweeting on Twitter, sometimes known as micro-blogging, allows you no more than 140 characters to get your message across. With millions of people tweeting billions of tweets, all available to everyone on the site, your selection of who to follow and read reduces the mass of information available to you personally.

Your ability to have short and pertinent snippets to read from your chosen areas can be a refining tool, and reduce the mountain of information available to a manageable amount. Using the site in the same way as other social networking sites, it allows you to connect with recruiters. Unlike other social network sites there is no requirement to ask to connect and wait to be accepted, you can simply 'follow', you are then able to see all of their writings.

By following recruiters and hiring agents, you are able to listen and learn from their words. You can reply to anything you read that they have written, hopefully drawing attraction to yourself from recruiters.

To begin making connections Twitter search and Twellow will find the people you want to follow. Some may well follow you back but don't worry if they don't, your 'follow' will enable you to communicate with them. You can follow conversations and reply if you have anything to say. If you have found a post informative a 'thank you' is very welcome.

Twitter search allows you to search any keywords you choose, identifying your niche, and searching for jobs and vacancies within the tweets. Many hiring managers/recruiters will tweet about vacancies they have. Keyword search for your job you are looking for, and Twitter will provide a stream of tweets containing these words. The search term can then be saved and reviewed several times throughout the day. When using a Tweet reader, e.g. Hootsuite, Tweetdeck keyword searches can be entered and when these words appear in any conversation the tweet will appear in your feedreader.

As many businesses track social media sites to check when they are being talked about, good or bad, responses to tweets can be rapidly executed. Likewise if you are tracking companies for job vacancies you can be first to respond and have your application in before the crowd.

Tell Twitter you need a job. Using Twitter to announce that you are looking for work gets the message out quickly and to an audience that you could never hope to reach with just an email. The information is not reliant on an email being read, it's there for all to see in 140 letters or less. In the same way that you are looking for work with keyword searches, likewise companies are looking to recruit. Select your 'follows' by researching them, checking that they are the right people to follow, this will build a good network for you to read and learn from. Follow your industry and recruiters within your area of expertise will help improve the possibility of someone noticing when you tweet that you need a job or that someone that you follow will know of an opening. Choose your 'follows' wisely, focus on people who can help with your job search and don't just add for the numbers.

Make your Twitter presence a balanced one. Try to involve all aspects of yourself in the Twitter feed. It's nice to see the person behind the words, with some personal '140s', but don't concentrate on this entirely. It's good to add some words of value, whether it is links to your blog, things you have found valuable and think others might benefit from or re-tweeting other people's words of wisdom. Don't let your content fall into the 'spam' category, there is nothing more likely to lose your following or get you ignored. Aim to impress your prospective hirers and add value in your tweets.

At this point, if you feel you need to keep your work life and private life separate, set up two individual accounts and organise settings of the account to make sure that people need to be authorised to view your private account. Better still, don't put it on the internet if you have any doubts, the web has an awful habit of coming back and biting you.

In your bio, briefly describe yourself and include a link to your site, ensure the information that people will be directed to is professional and honest. If I find that the information I'm sent to is in any way unprofessional, I don't feel the need to follow them. Your bio on Twitter can be linked to your blog, website, LinkedIn profile or a visual CV. Don't miss this opportunity to impress people, letting them know all about you and your abilities.

Twitter has the ability to reach an audience that you would be hard put to match in any other way and on a personal level too. But remember if you don't want the word spreading don't put it on the internet.

Youths And Social Networking   Why Privacy Is the Key Against Social Bullies and Identity Thieves