Social media law 101 |
Promotions
Social media promotions are an effective way to achieve marketing objectives as they have a large reach, are typically easy to implement and have a low overhead for implementation. Their benefits include spreading brand awareness, increasing engagement, and growing overall social reach and followers. Promotions can be an integral part of a social media marketing plan as more than fifty percent of adults in the US enter at least one sweepstakes each year. However, it is important to understand the laws and regulations surrounding these promotions to avoid potential lawsuits.
There are three elements that, when all three are present, are considered online gambling and make a promotion illegal: chance, prize and consideration. In most cases consideration can be eliminated to avoid concerns, however it is important to thoroughly understand each state’s definition as some have a very broad definition
There are three elements that, when all three are present, are considered online gambling and make a promotion illegal: chance, prize and consideration. In most cases consideration can be eliminated to avoid concerns, however it is important to thoroughly understand each state’s definition as some have a very broad definition
ContestsContests award a prize based on some kind of skill or merit, such as submited photos or trivia answers. They differ from sweepstakes as they do not award a prize randomly, rather awards are evaluated based on pre-set criteria. While specific state laws should be considered, national contests should include the following disclosures:
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PromotionsSweepstakes award prizes based primarily on chance. States such as Florida, New York and Rhode Island have particularly stringent legal requirement, such as requiring promoters to register with the state, so it’s important to understand the laws for each state your promotion is open to. General rules should include the following:
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To avoid scrutiny by the state Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission, official rules for contests and sweepstakes should be clearly displayed and easily accessible for all participants. While online submission forms are generally widely accepted, an alternative method such as a mail-in submission should also be included.
Guidelines Per Platform
Facebook: Sweepstakes and contests can be run either directly on a page or through a third-party app. Entries can be obtained through likes or comments on a post, posts published directly to a page, or messages sent to a page. Personal Timelines and friend connections cannot be used. Promotions must include official rules, offer terms and eligibility requirements, and must be compliant with applicable rules and regulations. In addition, promotions must include a release of Facebook by each participant, and acknowledge that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered, or associated with Facebook.
Facebook: Sweepstakes and contests can be run either directly on a page or through a third-party app. Entries can be obtained through likes or comments on a post, posts published directly to a page, or messages sent to a page. Personal Timelines and friend connections cannot be used. Promotions must include official rules, offer terms and eligibility requirements, and must be compliant with applicable rules and regulations. In addition, promotions must include a release of Facebook by each participant, and acknowledge that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered, or associated with Facebook.
Twitter: Sweepstakes and contests on Twitter can be run through a business profile with prizes offered for tweeting a specific update, following a user, or using a specific hashtag. Aside from Twitter’s general rules, they suggest asking entrants to include an @reply for easy tracking, and to discourage entrants from creating multiple accounts for entries and for posting the same tweet repeatedly as they violate Twitter’s rules.
Instagram: Sweepstakes and contests on Instagram must include official rules, offer terms and eligibility requirements, a release of Instagram by each participant, an acknowledgement that the promotion is not sponsored, endorsed, administered or associated with Instagram, and must be compliant with applicable rules and regulations. In addition, you cannot inaccurately tag content or encourage entrants to inaccurately tag content.