A good idea to diversify communication on our Facebook profile is to hold a contest. However, there are a few things to keep in mind so that everything goes well and that the competition doesn’t cause us more trouble than good. Learn 7 simple rules that will help you avoid problems.
- What do we want to achieve?
Before starting any activity, think about what you want to achieve. This will help us define the target group, as well as create consistent and thoughtful competition.
What is the most common goal of contest creators? Increased brand exposure is just one of the effects we can expect. A well-planned and well-executed contest will help us improve sales results or better understand customer preferences, as well as build positive relationships with them.
After determining the purpose of the competition and the target group, we can move on to choosing the format and finalizing the details of our campaign.
Expert advice: If fans of your brand have added 2-3 comments in total to all posts, it is difficult to motivate them to prepare a poster with your brand logo; )
- How to determine the rules of the competition?
Establishing the rules of the competition is the most important point in the organization of the competition. First, let’s choose a reward – this is the main motivation for participation, so it should be attractive. The format of the contest can be any – most often it consists of performing a creative task, adding a photo of your own authorship or answering a contest question.
However, it should be remembered that although the rules of the contest are established by us – its creators, there are basic rules to which we must adapt to avoid unpleasant consequences from the administration of the portal.
- Rules according to the rules
Sometimes you can meet contests, the condition for participation in which is to share a publication or mark another user in a comment. However, this is against Facebook’s policy of not forcing users to take actions on the site. We have to keep this in mind, because a game with such conditions of participation may be blocked by the administration.
- Regulations are a matter of celebration
The conditions of participation in the competition and its duration are important points that must be taken into account when planning. This information should be included in the regulations. The creation of such a document is necessary – it is required by both Facebook and Polish legislation. The rules don’t have to be in their entirety in the post. We can include the file in a note and mention only the most important questions in the contest publication itself.
An important piece of information that should be included in the terms is the organizer of the contest – Facebook requires us to clearly state that we are us and not a portal.
- Personal data subject to special protection
In accordance with the Act of 29 August 1997 on the protection of personal data and the GDPR Regulation on the protection of personal data, if we process personal data during the competition, we have additional obligations. It is necessary to inform the participants that we store and process their data, as well as familiarize them with the rights and obligations arising from the act, which apply to the organizers and participants.
- Who won? We draw!
What is the easiest way to determine the winners? draw! Is it really so? Unfortunately, if we choose this method, our contest is subject to special rules. According to the legal definition, gambling is “games, including those organized via the Internet, for monetary or material winnings, the outcome of which depends, in particular, on a specific case.” According to the above-mentioned law, they are classified as gambling games, therefore they are regulated by law in a special way. In the case of organizing such a competition, it is necessary to obtain permission from the Tax Chamber and make a payment in the amount of 10% of the gross value of the prize fund. Failure to comply with this requirement can have serious consequences, since the arbitrary organization of a gambling game is a tax offense.
- One thing is certain – taxes
If there is a cash prize in the amount of more than UAH 1,000 in our contest, it is considered income from other sources and is subject to a one-time tax of 10% of the winnings. We may impose tax liability on the winner – the decision on this matter is up to us. However, it is worth considering whether the need to share the prize with the winner will not negatively affect his opinion of us.
In order to avoid paying tax, we may fulfill another condition in addition to the value of the prize. Our competition should be related to sports, culture, science, art or journalism.
Contrary to appearances, organizing a competition on Facebook is not such an easy task. By creating such fun, we will show responsibility and we will avoid unpleasant consequences from the site or management authorities.