Facebook just released the latest revision of their Promotion Guidelines - as pertains to promoting a contest, competition, drawing or sweepstakes using your personal profile and/or Fan Page.

As is usually the case with legal jargon, it’s best to seek proper legal advice to interpret these new rules.

However, as one of my passions is to take the complex, simplify it and teach other peeps, here’s my attempt at demystifying these new guidelines and sharing the least you need to know:

1. Facebook members CANNOT use the platform for any kind of contest, drawing, competition or sweepstakes without the prior written approval of Facebook.
   

2. In order to work with a Facebook account representative, here’s the form you’ll need to fill out. [NOTE: the form has two fields - your country and your estimated budget starting at <$10,000. Do you get the impression Facebook is deterring the, um, "small guy?"!]
   

3. IF you get such written approval, then you can ONLY administer the promotion via a third party application, and:
1. The promotion can only appear on the canvas page (landing tab) of a fan page and/or via an application box on the boxes tab.
2. …and, there’s not much point in reading further from here, because you need to have your own Facebook account executive to work with and provide that coveted written approval!!

Basically, when it comes to promoting any kind of competition or contest or drawing or sweepstakes on the Facebook platform, it seems Facebook wants to wash their hands off any potential legal ramifications. Period.

Instead, for Facebook users to run any such promotion on the platform, Facebook is directing us to go through third party applications. That is, only with Facebook’s careful guidance and watchful eye.

You CAN publicize a promotion that is completely outside of Facebook — but it cannot mention Facebook in any way, shape or form, nor can you condition entry upon any action involving Facebook, e.g. joining a Fan Page, uploading a photo, updating a status, etc.

Basically, this means you can run any contest/competition/drawing you wish that has nothing to do with Facebook - you are duly approved to do so. LOL!!!

So there you have it. I thought this would be a lengthy blog post going into all the ramifications of running contests on Facebook… but, without that prior written approval from Facebook, I suggest you run any such promotions far away from Facebook! (Psst - perhaps on a site like Twitter?!)

As Facebook Expert, Justin Smith, says:

By requiring all promotions to occur within applications of some kind, Facebook is both keeping the News Feed cleaner and signaling to the tools community that it wants them heavily involved in the future of marketing on Facebook.

What are your thoughts? Have Facebook gone to the far side with these extreme conditions? Do you think they are justified in protecting themselves against legal ramifications with such promotions? Is the small guy/gal left out? Add your comments below:

Technorati Tags: contest guidelines, facebook, Mari Smith, Social Media, Social Networking

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It’s a social media jungle out there!! Yes, there are many bona fide sources of excellent social media blogs, websites, resources, products, services and service providers.

However, in the exploding social media industry, there is certainly room for additional trusted sources. Especially sources focused purely on the business element of social media marketing - and this is where the hot new online magazine, Social Media Examiner, comes into its own.

I’m proud and honored to be a part of my dear friend, Michael Stelzner’s, “Social Media Dream Team” behind the Social Media Examiner.

Your New Social Media Guides

We believe, just as you wouldn’t embark on a jungle safari without an experienced guide to show you the way, in order to effectively use social networking giants like Facebook and Twitter to boost your business’s bottom line, you need a savvy social media guide to help you!

Just launched today, Social Media Examiner is a colorful, free weekly online magazine that features articles, interviews and tips penned by many of the world’s leading social media authorities, specialists, consultants, trainers and speakers.

  

The online publication gives business owners and marketers every tool they need to leverage social media techniques for success.

“We pulled out all the stops for this new online magazine,” says my friend, Michael Stelzner - he’s the site’s founder and organizer of the smash-hit Social Media Success Summit event.

Stats Show Businesses Don’t Know How to Use Social Media

Facebook boasts 300 million active users worldwide. Fifty million people tweet on Twitter. Forty-three million rely on LinkedIn. Social media sites are worldwide hangouts for everyone from Fortune 100 CEOs to clever young entrepreneurs.

The Social Media Marketing Industry Report, published earlier this year, found that 81% of all marketers who use social media said it generates more exposure for their business; 62% said it helped close more business deals; and 85% of small-business owners said they reaped benefits from social media techniques.

But a July 2009 study by eMarketer revealed that though 81% of executives feel social media marketing enhances brands and business relationships, 51% of them aren’t using it for one simple reason: They don’t know how.

A Jungle of Information

There’s so much conflicting and confusing information about social media available online and offline. Business owners need a reliable source of social media news, resources and sage advice that they can implement with confidence.

The Social Media Examiner is colorful and interactive! The site provides how-to articles; case studies that give specific examples of how top business leaders use social media; video interviews with trusted experts; and summaries of the latest research.

Interesting Social Media Factoids

· In 2010, 50+ Percent of Marketers Will Be Using Social Media (Center for Media Research) http://bit.ly/J3Wdt

· 75% of Marketers Plan To Increase Social Media Use in 2010 (eMarketer) http://bit.ly/1bzqlx

· 1/3rd of Web Users Visit Social Media Sites Monthly (mostly for research & recommendations) (Silverpop) http://bit.ly/d8toq

· Facebook Users Increase “Time on Site” to Nearly 6 Hours per Month! (Nielson) http://bit.ly/liwYC

Your Input Is Welcome!

We look forward to welcoming you to this fabulous new online resource!! Let me know in the comments below what subjects you’d particularly LOVE to see covered in-depth on the Social Media Examiner:

Technorati Tags: chris garrett, denise wakeman, jason falls, Mari Smith, michael stelzner, mike stelzner, Social Media, social media examiner

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I had the great pleasure of speaking at the recent 140 Twitter Conference on a branding experts panel (Growing Your Brand on Twitter: Strategies and Tactics from the Trenches) with @Starbucks @mprasad @msuster @andrewblair, moderated by one of my favorites in the socialmediasphere, @guykawasaki.

The panel was fun and informative! We talked about building community, what to tweet about, how to tweet, whether to auto follow or not, how to measure ROI, how big brands can engage their followers and more.

[Pic: @msuster @marismith & @guykawaski in background. Photo credit: @ErkChristiansen @ParnassusGroup]

I gave a shoutout to some of my fave follows [for content: @mashable @mike_stelzner @techcrunch @rww] as well as:

Twitter tools I use frequently:

• Twhirl - I love the simplicity of this small desktop app for @ & DM management.
• Hootsuite - excellent platform for pre-scheduling, synch with Ping.fm & saved searches/groups just like Tweetdeck only web-based!
• Ping.fm - multi platform broadcaster; I post to LinkedIn, Twitter, my Facebook profile, Plaxo, Plurk & Identica. I stopped posting to my Facebook Fan Page as I use the new Facebook Twitter app.
• SocialToo - one of my longtime faves by @jesse for selective autofollowing. (I was the only one on the panel who autofollows! See this post for further insights: Twitter Autofollow and Auto DM etiquette)
• SocialOomph - formerly known as Tweetlater, I use this site for prescheduling broadcasts to Twitter only. It also does keyword alerts, autofollowing and more.
• TwitPic - though there are several other photo platforms that synch with Twitter (along with Facebook), I find I always get the highest click and interaction rate with TwitPic.
• Utterli - perfect for dialing in an audio tweet from the road!
• 12Seconds.tv - record just 12 seconds of video from your webcam!
• TweetMic - my fave app is actually FaceMic for recording audio messages, attaching a photo and posting to my Facebook profile (or even a specific friend!!) But TweetMic is a decent alternative to Utterli for broadcasting audio tweets.
• Tweetie iPhone app - I’ve tried the rest, Tweetie is the best.
• Facebook Fan Page Twitter app - of course being the Pied Piper of Facebook, I had to get a good plug for the platform even though I was speaking at a Twitter conference (!). What this app does is allow you to write up to 420 characters as your Fan Page status update and then it posts to Twitter with a bit.ly link back to your Fan Page! You can also select to have links, photos, videos and notes tweeted out. I have all but Notes because my blog posts are imported to Notes and also go out on Twitter so I’d end up with duplicate tweets.

Turquoise and bling, that’s my thing!

Of course, I wore my signature brand of blue/turquoise and bling… cuz that’s my thing. Yep, even my iPhone skin is turquoise and bling, a rare find last year! And I love this real orchid blue neckpiece I recently found on Etsy.

When Guy asked us how we measure ROI, it was clear the number of followers was not as important as the amount of engagement, how much traffic gets driven to blogs/sites and new revenue generated.

Part of my measurement is increase in number of Facebook fans. (Yes, I spotted a couple tweets commenting on how I was talking about Facebook at a Twitter conference!!)

In fact, in a side conversation with Brad Nelson of @starbucks, he mentioned they are highly active on their Facebook Fan Page as part of their overall social media strategy. That’s the thing with singling out just one platform. Other than Twitter app developers, I can’t think of any business that would use Twitter exclusively for their marketing. Hmm, wonder if Facebook and Twitter would ever team up to host a conference?! LOL.

Nonetheless, the 140 Twitter Conference was exceptional!! Kudos to @sbroback @jasonp107 & @pcrampton of @parnassusgroup and two thumbs up to @brettschulte.

[Pic: @guykawaski @andrewblair @msuster @marismith @halfnelson / @starbucks. Photo credit: @ErkChristiansen @ParnassusGroup]
Yep, I really am tweeting live while on the panel! Just a couple times. Mostly I was viewing my saved search for #140tc on Tweetie to keep my finger on the sentiment pulse of our panel. Watching the tweetstream, I actually chose to circle back to a comment I made about “ABM: Always Be Marketing” which I’ve written about on my other blog. I definitely stirred some controversy which is not like me at all. Oh well. You can’t please all the people all the time, but you can please some of the peeps some of the time, right?!

Of course, @TonyRobbins was the HIGHLIGHT of the event, pumping the crowd and delivering terrific inspiration to all. (At the peak, the livestream of #140tc had over 1000 people tuned in!)

[Photo credits: (L) Jim Alden @TechFrog: Flickr #140tc slideshow (R) @ErkChristiansen @ParnassusGroup]

PS - can you spot me in the front row, signature turquoise?! “Always Be Marketing” ;)]

Other awesome tools gleaned from the 140 Twitter Conference:

• TidyTweet
• Tweetstats
• TweetOclock
• TwitterSheep
• TweetReach
• TweepSearch
• TweetBeep
• BackTweets
• FeedMyInbox
• Trendistic (great for trends, not complete in tracking/monitoring brands)
• Xefer
• Search.Peoplebrowsr - amazing sentiment tracker by savvy @wingdude, founder of PeopleBrowsr
• twendz
• inView - in private beta just now, awesome tweet stream/search/notification debuted at the #140tc
• Twitturly
• FriendorFollow
• Twitter Groups
• The Archivist - save and export Twitter searches
• Klout - measure your or anyone’s influence factor! I was honored to be high on the influence list for #140tc

Here’s my short wee video interview by @SallyFalkow talking about how PR companies might approach Twitter/social media - see Sally’s full blog post with this video here.

Related posts & photo collections:

• Live Blogging Tony Robbins Keynote 140/Twitter LA: celebrate for no reason
• Twitter for the Enterprise by @tkontzer
• The 140 Twitter Conference.. for the Win! by @davepeck
• Rockfish Presents TidyTweet to 140 Twitter Conference: TidyTweet Named Best New Twitter Application
• Culture and Authenticity: Lessons from 140: The Twitter Conference by @ProfJonathan
• Brands Find Twitter Effective - includes short video interview with me! by @SallyFalkow
• Awesome photo collection by Jim Alden @TechFrog: Flickr #140tc slideshow
• 140|The Twitter Conference: It’s a Wrap - great photos & post by @BrianSolis
• Steve Broback’s Parnassus Group photo collection
• 140tc Flickr photo collection by Eyeficard
• View the #140tc hashtag tweets here.
• View some of my best tweets that got retweeted here.

Hope you enjoyed this collection of goodies! Let me know which tools, tips and tactics you find to be helpful. Feel free to add your own too in the comments below:

Technorati Tags: 140tc, branding, guy kawasaki, Mari Smith, starbucks, Twitter

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[IMPORTANT UPDATE June 28 at 3:30pm PDT: Wow, I'm shocked - Facebook overnight just increased the fan limit from 25 to 100!! I was literally just looking at this Fan Page/Help Center section 24 hours ago... and Facebook's eligibility limitation for fan page username registration was 25, and has now mysteriously jumped up to 100. Dang, that is not nice!!]

 

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[IMPORTANT UPDATE June 27, 2009 10:00pm PDT: How to verify your Facebook account via your mobile phone. I hadn't realized how elusive it is for Facebook users to verify their account; and the last thing you want is to have your heart set on a username and you can't get it or are delayed because your account isn't verified.

Try this:

(1) First, get a confirmation code from Facebook by sending a text message to 32665 (FBOOK) with the word "On" (without the quotes).

(2) Then, go to this help page (Mobile: Bugs and Known Problems - screenshot below), click the second line down (that says "I received a confirmation code, but there is nowhere to enter it") and you'll see a field there to enter the code texted to you by Facebook. Click Confirm.

NOTE: if you have already verified your account, when you text 32665 "On" instead of getting a confirmation code, you'll actually be turning on text message updates. If you don't want text messages from Facebook, just send the word "Off" to 32665.

You may also see the captcha pop-up box when writing on walls, commenting, sending friend requests etc. If you do see this captcha box, be sure to click the Verify link below the word:

If you're still having trouble verifying your account, fill out the form here and select Account Verification from the dropdown menu. You might also check your the Mobile tab of your Account Settings and your Mobile Texts settings.]

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[ADDITIONAL UPDATE: June 27, 2009 11:00pm PDT - okay, how odd! I just got the captcha popup box (see screenshot below) when writing a comment on a friend's status, yet there is no Verify link... because my account is already verified! Yet the captcha still comes up. Hmm.]

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Original post follows:

Get ready to register your Facebook Fan Page username if you were not previously eligible (fewer than 1000 fans by May 31st, 2009). On Sunday, June 28th at 8:59pm PDT / 11:59pm EDT go to http://facebook.com/username to register the username of your choice. See what time this is in your timezone here.

Quick Checklist:

Be sure to first read my original blog post: How To Secure Your Facebook Username (Vanity URL) - summary criteria repeated below for quick ref:

• Think carefully about the username you choose. Once you’ve selected it, you won’t be able to change or transfer it.
• Your username has to be at least five characters in length, e.g. you couldn’t register “jim” but you could register “jimmy.”
• You CAN use numbers (0-9), e.g. “jim007″
• You CAN use periods, e.g. “james.bond”
• Choose a name that exactly matches your real name for your personal Profile and your business name for your Fan Page.
• If your real name has been registered already by someone of the same name, get creative with the period or numbers. [Note username and user.name are one and the same, e.g. periods make no difference to the actual URL].
• Generic usernames (like “flowers” or “pizza”) are not available… at this time, according to Facebook.

NOTE: you must have more than 25 fans.

IMPORTANT: you may be asked to verify your account first via your mobile phone. I recommend you do this long BEFORE Sunday night.

Set Your Alarm

Facebook seem to have moved the time of this second wave of username registering by 24 hours as, previously, they stated the next round would take place at 12:01am EDT June 28th (9:01pm PDT June 27th). But, now I’m not seeing this time anywhere and instead the new time is indeed Sunday night 11:59pm EDT. See what time this is in your timezone here.

In fact, there are several mentions by Facebook with no time, or no timezone (see screenshot below).

However, I found these answers on one of the help pages:

 

If you have your heart set on a particular username and it is currently available, then for sure set your alarm! Usernames go very, very FAST!

Is Someone Squatting Your Business Username?

See this helpful post by Facebook blogger, Nick O’Neill: How To Get Your Facebook Username Back From A Squatter - quick excerpt:

If you weren’t able to get a username or are still waiting to register one for your page that has under 1,000 fans and has already been taken, head over to the Facebook client username form. Remember that you should only fill out the form if you have rights to the name and currently can’t reserve it because someone else took it or it appears to be reserved by Facebook.

NOTE
This is not for personal usernames! This is only for business names that you had taken. Keep that in mind to avoid needlessly emailing Facebook when they won’t be able to help you.

Are You Brand New To Facebook?

If you just recently joined Facebook for personal and/or business purposes, you’ll be able to claim your personal username (and Fan Page username provided you have more than 25 fans) on Sunday, June 28th at 11:59pm EDT (8:59pm PDT):

Does Someone’s Username Infringe On Your Intellectual Property?

To report IP infringement, fill out this special form.

Related post: How To Secure Your Facebook Username (Vanity URL)

Good luck! Feel free to check out my Facebook Fan Page and add your shiny new Fan Page username when you get it to this discussion thread. I do my best to check out as many Fan Pages and add a comment as I can!

Technorati Tags: facebook usernames, Mari Smith, Social Media, Social Networking, vanity url

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[IMPORTANT UPDATE 6/12/09 4:30pm PDT: Though it's still not possible to register your Facebook Username for Fan Pages starting tonight, June 12, at 12:01am EDT, the GOOD NEWS is that Facebook will open the doors for those Fan Pages with less than 1000 fans on June 28th. See Mashable's post on this subject: Good News: Small Brands Can Get Custom Facebook URLs Too].

First, what is a Vanity URL and why would you want one? Instead of your Facebook Profile URL and Facebook Fan Page URL being a big, long unwieldy URL that you can never remember, as of this weekend you’ll be able to register facebook.com/yourname for your PROFILE *and* facebook.com/yourcompanyname for your FAN PAGE(s).

Fan Page examples:

• http://www.facebook.com/PizzaHut
• http://www.facebook.com/Target
• http://www.facebook.com/AshtonKutcher 
• http://www.facebook.com/VinDiesel
• http://www.facebook.com/gary [Our own @GaryVee!]

Personal profile example:

• http://www.facebook.com/james [Facebook staffer]

Having your own Facebook username for both your personal Profile and your Fan Page(s) will help streamline your brand and “findability factor” (and, dare I say, Google indexing!)

Facebook says:

[Regards usernames for personal profiles:] From the beginning of Facebook, people have used their real names to share and connect with the people they know. This authenticity helps to create a trusted environment because you know the identity of the people and things on Facebook.

Your new Facebook URL is like your personal destination, or home, on the Web. People can enter a Facebook username as a search term on Facebook or a popular search engine like Google, for example, which will make it much easier for people to find friends with common names.

Important points to note When Choosing Your Username:

Prior to this Friday night, be sure to review these points:

• Think carefully about the username you choose. Once you’ve selected it, you won’t be able to change or transfer it.
• Your username has to be at least five characters in length, e.g. you couldn’t register “jim” but you could register “jimmy.”
• You CAN use numbers (0-9), e.g. “jim007″
• You CAN use periods, e.g. “james.bond”
• Choose a name that exactly matches your real name for your personal Profile and your business name for your Fan Page.
• If your real name has been registered already by someone of the same name, get creative with the period or numbers.
• Generic usernames (like “flowers” or “pizza”) are not available… at this time, according to Facebook.

Also, if you signed up for a Facebook Page after May 31, 2009 or a user profile after June 9, 2009 at 3 p.m. EDT, you may not be able to sign up for a username immediately because of steps Facebook have taken to prevent abuse or “squatting” on names.

Register just one username for your one profile:

Facebook Terms of Use stipulate you can only have ONE account which comes with your ONE personal profile. If you already have two set up, you’ll need to choose the one you want your new Facebook username to point to, as you can only have one. (Granted, I imagine those with multiple profiles will have entirely different logins and email addresses so could theoretically register more than one username. However, such folks run the risk of having those multiple profiles deactivated).

Registering a username for your Facebook Fan Page:

In order to register a username for your Fan Page, you have to meet these TWO criteria:

1. Your Fan Page must have been LIVE (published) on Facebook prior to May 31st, 2009, AND
2. You must have a minimum of 1000 fans also prior to May 31st, 2009.

You can set up usernames for any Fan Pages that you administer. If someone else administers your Fan Page for you, make sure they are aware of the importance of the day/time coming up this weekend to register the name you want… assuming you meet the two criteria.

Secure your Trademarks:

If you have a registered Trademark and wish to ensure nobody else registers this name, fill out this important trademark form.

Three Steps To Registering Your Username

Step 1: Login to Facebook then go to http://www.facebook.com/username/ on or after Friday, June 12, 2009 at 9:01 Pacific Time [that's Saturday, June 13th, 2009 at 12:01am Eastern Time]. See what day/time this will be in your part of the world here.

Step 2: You will see a form that will look something like this:

Either choose the name Facebook suggests, or type your own in, then click the Set Username.

Step 3: Repeat for any Facebook Fan Pages you administer (assuming the Pages have more than 1000 fans - I sure hope they do away with this limiter for all folks new to Facebook and just building a fanbase).

If you cannot get the username you want for your personal Profile and/or Fan Page, you can still get creative with numbers, a period, abbreviations, etc. You could also make your own redirect link, e.g. http://marismith.com/fanpage and http://marismith.com/facebook. Or, use the Memorable Web Addresses app to create likes of http://profile.to/marismith and http://companies.to/marismith. You could use any of the link shortening services like http://budurl.com. And, you could always buy a domain such as yournameonfacebook.com.

Of course, if you’re a big brand or recognizable name, securing the right Facebook username could make a difference.

Will you be ready? I sure hope so. Good luck … and start your engines!

Related posts:

• Coming Soon: Facebook Usernames [Facebook blog]
• Facebook Usernames Coming Soon for Pages [Facebook blog]
• Facebook Begins Rolling Out Free Profile Usernames For Vanity URLs [AllFacebook.com]
• Facebook Usernames: Good Idea or Not? [Mashable.com]
• You Have Three Days To Pick Your Facebook Vanity URL. Choose Wisely, Or You’re Screwed. [TechCrunch.com]

Technorati Tags: facebook, Mari Smith, Social Media, Social Networking, vanity urls

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