Facebook contests are now easier.

• Author: Brennick, Joshua
• Position: SOCIAL MEDIA

SOCIAL MEDIA TRENDS AND PRACTICES are constantly evolving. Most recently, Facebook made changes to its promotion guidelines that make it "easier for businesses of all sizes to create and administer promotions on Facebook." Specifically, businesses can now run contests and collect entries right on their Facebook page timelines. This means, companies may:

* Collect contest entries by asking users to comment or like a page post.

* Collect entries by asking users to post a comment or photo on the timeline.

* Collect entries when users message the page.

* Use likes as a voting method.

Now, banks with a Facebook page have more options for quick promotions that enhance connections with users.

Running a timeline contest Here are some things to keep in mind in order to make the most out of a Facebook timeline contest.

1. Post a photo that announces your contest and gives the basic description. A picture is more engaging and shareable than a text post, and the text will travel with the picture as it's shared.

2. Make the rules clear in the post. if you need more space to explain the rules, consider referring people to a website with a link to a rules page or post the rules in a note on Facebook.

3. Make the length of a timeline contest short. Daily contests for minor prizes can be fun, but a week at most makes sense considering you'll repost the link a few times over the course of the promotion.

4. Require a comment, even though likes alone can be used to count entries and votes. That way, when you select the winner, you can tag the person in a comment to notify him or her.

There are still some things Facebook prohibits. You cannot

* Require that people share a post or photo to be entered.

* Require someone to post something on his personal timeline or a friend's timeline to enter.

* Require people to tag themselves in a photo to either vote or...