PR 101: Is Your Facebook Promotional Campaign Legal?
I couldn't help but notice a variety of Facebook promotions swirling around over the holidays.... many were hosted illegally on Facebook.
Yes, that's right, illegally.
Did you know that Facebook has very specific guidelines for hosting promotions as part of your PR campaigns on Facebook? You can read those guidelines in detail here: http://www.facebook.com/promotions_guidelines.php
In general, the promotional guidelines state:
Promotions must be hosted on a third-party app. This means you can't host a sweepstakes that says, "I'll pick a random fan to win" - NO! You have to have a third party app with an entry form that someone has to complete in order for them to win. Also, someone cannot win just for "liking" your page. So when you tell people to like your page to win, that's against Facebook policy. We wrote about our favorite third party Facebook apps here.
Promotions must absolve Facebook of any liability. Your promotion must state that Facebook is not associated with your promotion in anyway - it is not endorsed by or adminstered by Facebook, for example. We highly recommend you put this statement in your promotion's "official rules."
You must notifiy winners outside of Facebook. While you can announce the winner's of the promotion on your page, you must also contact them outside of Facebook, either through email or phone. This is another reason you must have a third party app with an entry form.
These are some of the rules I've seen broken the most. Always check with your legal advisor to ensure your Facebook marketing is okay and legal.