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All Glitz? Or Wise Investment? – Pulling Back the Veil on Facebook Contests

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Whether you are an avid Facebook user or just simply an admirer from afar, you will no doubt have seen companies advertising their Facebook contests.  Whether it is the closing line in their email, a friend sharing a page with you on Facebook, or someone discussing their contest with you in person, you have no doubt heard a similar messages to these: “Like us on Facebook to be entered to win a free iPad!” or “Like our company on Facebook to win a prize!” More often than not, you’ll “like” the page because who doesn’t like free stuff?

However, growing your company’s presence on Facebook with a contest can yield poor ROI for your staffing firm. Here’s why:

  • Gaining Your Page Unqualified Fans. Everyone likes freebies and the more traction your contest gets, the more “likes” you will get from an audience who has no intention of doing business with you and will probably unlike your page as soon as the promotion ends.
  • Bending Strict Facebook Guidelines. Many contests conducted on Facebook go against their guidelines for page promotions and by breaking these guidelines you are putting your company’s page at risk for removal. Two common guidelines that are broken are:
  1. Being entered to win by simply “Liking” a page or post.
  2. Notifying winners through Facebook.
  • Facebook Contests can be Costly. Between the prize costs, promotion/app costs to create the contest and any other promotional costs, Facebook contests can quickly turn into a costly endeavor.

Even if your Facebook contest is run following all of the guidelines, your firm is still looking at a potentially costly investment and may struggle to gain qualified fans. So, how can your staffing firm grow its presence on Facebook and get good return-on-investment? Facebook advertising.

Facebook advertising is an affordable option for staffing firms wishing to grow their presence while yielding the biggest ROI.

  • Target Only Qualified Fans. Facebook allows businesses to target specific individuals by uploading a data list of email addresses. By uploading your existing client and candidate databases, you are limiting the number of unqualified fans from potentially liking your page.
  • Leverage Existing Fan Base. Through Facebook Sponsored Stories, your firm can show ads to friends of your fans, encouraging them to “Like” your business because their friend does. This helps to build your reputation to potential clients and candidates because they trust your friend’s decision to work with you.
  • Only Paying for Engagement. While there may be some initial time investment or minimal setup costs, once your campaign is created you, are only paying for engagement with your ads. That means you only pay if someone clicks on your ads or likes your page/post.

While Facebook contests may be popular, they are not without externalities. If you are looking build your firm’s social media presence, consider investing in a Facebook advertising campaign that will target your specific audience. If you are looking to learn more about social media marketing in staffing, contact us today!

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