Recent Posts
- The Reality of Careers in Social Media: Insights from...
January 29, 2024 - Do Google SEO Tactics Work on Social Media?
January 24, 2024 - YouTube Is Testing AI-Generated Video Summaries
August 7, 2023 - Meta Prepares To Launch AI Personas To Retain And Engage...
August 7, 2023 - TikTok To Discontinue TikTok Now, Its BeReal Clone
June 27, 2023 - Miller Lite Created Beer Ice Cubes To Cool Your Beer
June 27, 2023 - Meta Launches 'Meta Quest+' VR Subscription For $7.99
June 26, 2023 - New Feature Helps Creators Choose The Best YouTube...
June 24, 2023
Creative Campaigns
- Miller Lite Created Beer Ice Cubes To Cool Your BeerJune 27, 2023
- Streamberry: Joan Is Awful, And You Can Be Too
June 20, 2023 - Find Your In: LinkedIn Transforms Laundromats into...
May 30, 2023 - MissJourney AI: Fighting Biased Gender Stereotypes
May 23, 2023 - Dove Shatters Beauty Stereotypes In Gaming
May 15, 2023 - Why Fetch Pet Insurance Is Getting Into The Craft Beer...
May 4, 2023 - Red Ink Got A Bad Rep, So Heinz Made Its Own Tattoo...
May 2, 2023 - Hendrick's Chat G&T Poses As A Human-Centered Alternative...
April 28, 2023
To celebrate the change, the ShortStack team came up with five awesome Timeline contest ideas.
Drive Comment Entries
If your business or client is planning to launch a new product, use a Facebook Timeline contest to get feedback (or first impressions) in advance. In your post, share a photo of your soon-to-be-released product and ask users to share their thoughts in a comment as a way to win a prize.
This Timeline crowdsourcing-style contest is a great way to drive lots of comment entries, and it’s also a smart way to get valuable feedback about your products from your fans. The feedback you receive might even encourage your brand to make some beneficial adjustments to the products before you take them to market.
Drive Like Entries
For businesses that want to drive lots of like entries on their Timeline contest, keep it simple by asking a yes-or-no question. For instance, you can ask, “Who’s excited for Labor Day Weekend? Like this post for a chance to win an awesome prize!”
The simpler you keep your Timeline contests, the better. Users don’t have to think — they just have to click “like,” and they’re entered. The really cool thing about this kind of Timeline contest is that if you use a tool (e.g., ShortStack’s new Comment/Like Importer feature) to collect Facebook IDs, you can create a large custom audience, and then run highly targeted ads on Facebook.
Drive Both Comment And Like Entries
If you own a brick-and-mortar store, host a Timeline contest to promote your in-store promotion. Upload a photo that gives details about your deal or promotion (for example, you’re having a Labor Day Weekend sale). Next, ask users to like and comment on your post to enter to win. An appropriate prize would be a gift card to your store.
This kind of Timeline contest idea is great for rewarding one (or a few) of your loyal Facebook fans and getting the word out about your store’s sale, thus bringing in some extra foot traffic and sales.
Collect Valuable Data
For businesses wanting to grow their mailing lists before the holiday season begins, it’s best to host a Timeline contest and build a complementary contest app with an entry form.
In the copy for your Timeline contest, drive users to your Facebook app by sharing a link to it. Also, provide an incentive so users will want to go to your app. For example, users who enter into your contest via your app can receive extra entries, giving them a better chance to win your company’s awesome prize. We did this earlier this week when we first rolled out our new feature.
Encourage Contest Sharing, More Entries, And Page Likes
One question we got a few times this week at ShortStack was, “Are my fans able to share this contest/giveaway/sweepstakes on their personal page?”
The answer is: No. According to Facebook’s new promotion guidelines, pages cannot ask fans to share to be entered into their Timeline contests — only likes and comments can be used as entries. A solution to this is to use a Facebook app that has sharing features.
Remember: Facebook still does not allow pages to require users to like their page in order to enter contests — only status updates. This means that non-fans that see Timeline contests in their News Feeds can also enter.
The only way to really drive page likes with a Facebook contest or promotion is to host it using a fan-gated app.
Did anyone get a Timeline contest out yet? I’d be curious to know what you learned, what sorts of data you were able to gather, and what you might do differently next time.
Jim Belosic is CEO of ShortStack, a self-service custom app provider.
Related Stories:
You might also like
Meta Is Killing Its Messenger For Apple Watch App
Pinterest Opens Up To Third-Party Ads With Amazon Ads Partnership
TikTok Keyword Insights: Find The Right Keywords For Your Ads
More from Facebook
Meta Prepares To Launch AI Personas To Retain And Engage Users
According to industry sources, Meta is preparing to launch its AI personas feature in an effort to increase engagement with …
Facebook Probably Owes You Money
Meta has agreed to pay out $725 million to Facebook users to settle a class action lawsuit concerning user privacy. If …
Meta Verified Service Goes Live In The US
Want to get the coveted blue verification checkmark on Facebook and Instagram? If you're in the US, now you can. …
Facebook And Instagram Start Selling Blue Checks With Meta Verified
Meta Verified will give you a blue check badge on both Facebook and Instagram, along with other benefits for $12 …
Meta Brings Back #BuyBlack Friday For A Third Year
Meta is bringing back #BuyBlack Friday for a third consecutive year in North America. Meta emphasized the importance of the Holiday …
Facebook Is Giving You More Controls Over What You See On Your Feed
Facebook is introducing new "show more" and "show less" controls to let you adjust what you want to see on …
Meta Introduces Facebook Reels API, Offering An Option To ‘Share To Reels’
Meta has introduced the Facebook Reels API, a solution allowing developers to build a 'share to reels' option into their …
Facebook Gets Into Delivery With DoorDash Partnership
DoorDash is partnering with Meta to pilot Facebook Marketplace deliveries across multiple cities in the U.S. Drivers will only transport items …
Meta Rolls Out Horizon Worlds In France And Spain
Meta Horizon Worlds, the VR community and game, is now available in France and Spain.