User forgotten by Facebook promo changes
Facebook’s new promotion rules are set to diminish the relevance of third-party app providers and result in a “shit user experience”, according to social experts.
The changes allow brands to choose between running a competition directly on their Facebook page’s Timeline or to continue using third-party apps.
Daniel Christos, technical partner at Cypha, said the update is an attempt to boost Facebook’s advertising revenue but has been done at the detriment of the user experience.
“There is going to be a lot of confusion for brands around ‘do I run it on my feed, do I run it on an app?’
“But really the best thing for my brand is going to be to run it on both, but that is going to be a shit user experience and drop offs are going to be quite high.”
Facebook is poised to receive a revenue boost with brands set to lift the visibility of their Timeline based competitions with Facebook paid media such as sponsored stories and promoted posts.
“I really don’t think the user has been thought about in this situation, it does really look like a Facebook push to boost promoted and sponsored posts,” Christos said.
Will apps lose their relevance?
The third-party app providers are going to struggle to sell their propositions now, according to Christos.
“They are going to have to push the angle of those extra functionalities that they provide, which is that it’s going to be difficult for brands to actually trawl through their posts to find votes, likes and comments and tracking themselves is going to be a bit of a headache.”
App providers have already spotted the gap, with third party app platform ShortStack today spruiking its ability to import responses to a Timeline competition to a database where brands can pick a random winner.
“When businesses combine a Timeline Contest with Facebook’s new embed feature and ShortStack’s Comment/Like Importer they have a super powerful marketing tool.”
Christos agrees that running a promotion using both an app and the new Timeline function will be best for brands, as while a Timeline based promotion will boost a brand’s EdgeRank it will limit data collection.
Also, without an app he says brands will need to display the wavier as well as the terms and conditions in its post.
However the combination is likely to result in a clunky user experience.
“The user flow is likely to be: go to my page, like it and comment, but before you do that make sure you opt in to the terms and conditions. So go to our page to view them then go back to the feed to add your comment in. Then go back to the app to put in an email address and further details so we can contact you if we win.”
Tom Brownie, director of social at Melbourne-based agency The Social Garden, said the changes will be negative for users in the short term.
“They might start to see the newsfeed getting clogged up with a lot of these individual competitions and giveaways that are being run through brand's walls.
“In the long term I think the user is going to benefit a lot because community managers and agencies are really going to have to put on their thinking caps and come up with something special.”
Carly Drew, social media manager at MercerBell, said there “will still absolutely be a place for third party apps”, but stressed the need for creative thinking to continue.
“MercerBell sincerely hopes that we continue to see the level of investment in big, creative ideas that come along with well-considered app strategies.”
The bottom lines of digital agencies are also likely to take a hit, according to Christos, who says clients will move to cut agencies out of the process.
“A lot of agencies generate quite a lot of revenue out of simple Facebook apps – some agencies were founded on building Facebook apps.”
“Brands are going to try and do it themselves to save costs by cutting agencies out. But they could potentially get themselves in a lot of trouble when it comes to random draws, permits and terms and conditions.”
Permits
If there is an element of chance in a Timeline competition brands will be required to acquire a permit from the lotteries authority in each state they wish to run the promotion in.
And a competition run purely on likes falls into the area of chance, according to Connor James, director at competition permit and management agency Permitz Group.
Skill based competitions – such as choosing a winner based on how many likes their entry receives – do not need a permit.
With competitions where you win if you are one of the first 50 to ‘like’ is another matter. In this case the rules change state to state.
“But basically it will come down to, for at least the couple of the states, is if there are less prizes than there are likely to be likes than you still need permits, this is definitely the case in NSW.”
“One of the trade promotion requirements is you keep records of everybody who has entered a competition,” explain James who doubts this can be done through ‘likes’ alone.
Accurate records are also important in the case that there is a dispute over the winner.
Permits take anywhere between a week-and-a-half and one month to be awarded, a factor brands should keep in mind.
“Timeframes for permits is really dependent on total that is being given away as well,” James added.
“If you are giving away less than $50,000 you can expect to get permits back within a couple of weeks. If it is under $5,000 than you only need permits from NSW and ACT.”
Level Playing field
The changes have opened the door for small to medium sized businesses to engage their audiences without big marketing budgets, according to Drew who added: “If we’re honest, they’ve probably been doing this all along- now it’s just ‘legal’.”
One comment on yesterday’s story announcing the shift by B&T welcomed the new rules for leveling the playing field.
“As the manager of a company Facebook page that played by the rules it was always so frustrating to see how many companies were continuing to run promotions on their pages illegally,” the post said.
“This puts us back on a level playing field and we can be more competitive, more flexible and cater better to the needs of our social media audience.”
Last year, social media experts told B&T a lot of brands were unaware of the rules surrounding competitions with a media lawyer warning marketer’s their pages could be torn down.
Please login with linkedin to comment
Latest News
The Mars Agency Announces Latest Findings Of Retail Media Report Card
The Mars Agency has developed a scorecard that assesses the capabilities of leading platforms across key criteria required to optimally plan, execute, and measure effective retail media programs. The scorecard aims To help brands efficiently evaluate their spending options across retail media networks in Australia (and New Zealand). With spending on retail media advertising in […]
‘It’s The Lesser Of Two Evils’ – NRL Eyes US Betting Market As Aussie Regulators Circle
US betting firms will be delighted by the circa 50,000 Americans who could soon watch the NRL on their favourite app.
A-League In Deep Discussions With New Partner To Keep Games On TV After Production Company Enters Administration
The A-League's insatiable appetite for scoring own goals continues.
TV Ratings (27/03/2024): Jungle Members At War Over Concealed Lipstick
A heated argument between two jungle members did the numbers for Ten last night, with I’m A Celeb obtaining a total national reach of 1,282,000. Fans were delighted as Candice Warner and influencer Skye Wheatley got into it over a stick of lipstick, leading Warner to dub the Instagram star “selfish.” Wheatley, best known for […]
Is The Australian Music Industry In Trouble? Inquiry Launched Following Splendour Cancellation
Earlier this week, an inquiry was launched into the challenges and opportunities currently facing the Australian live music industry in the wake of multiple festival cancellations. On 25 March 2024, the Minister for the Arts, the Hon. Tony Burke MP, asked the Committee on Communications and the Arts to inquire into and report on the […]
Liana Dubois, Leandro Perez, Aimee Buchanan & More Gather For Inaugural Compadres Leadership Event
Didn't get the invite? Perhaps you're not as important as you thought.
Cathay Captures The Unforgettable Thrill Of Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, Via Publicis
Nobody does rugby like Hong Kong, apparently. Certainly nobody does it as badly as Australia.
Cocogun Nabs Christine Watts, Kirsty Reynolds & Shev Tan Bolstering Management & Creative Teams
Cocogun bolsters its team with new hires. Committed to purchasing a bigger sofa, too.
The Media Store’s Jacquie Alley & Sam Cousins Take The Plunge With Pro-Bono Work For Cure Cancer
B&T chats with The Media Store bosses about their great pro-bono work and sponsored swim.
Hawke’s Brewing Co. Taps Rocket Comms For PR Agency Following Competitive Pitch
We're expecting Rocket Comms productivity to crash in spectacular fashion following this win.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Patties Serves Up A Taste Of Home For Olympians & South Sydney Rabbitohs Recommit To Gambling Reform
While the Rabbitohs commits to gambling reform, B&T reckons the team should commit to a decent auto sponsor.
Google: “Inevitable” That Bad Actors Will Abuse Ads Platform As Advertiser Account Suspensions Double
Google maintains it's simply impossible for it to entirely stop bad people placing & paying for ads using its service.
Quantcast Expands APAC Sales Team With Appointment Of News Corp Account Manager
No pressure at all when you are appointed as a client success manager.
Publicis Sapient Tests Microsoft-Powered Gen AI Search Tool With Homes & Villas By Marriott Bonvoy
Given Gen AI's record for mangling stuff, B&T cannot see the problem with letting it decide your next holiday digs.
Volkswagen & DDB Group’s “Roo Badge” To Reduce Kangaroo Related Road Collisions
Watch out for RooBadge as Cannes Lions' most debated campaign this year.
Twilio Launches Unified Profiles & Agent Copilot Features To Boost Productivity & Engagement
Agent Copilot sounds like James Bond's less interesting cousin.
Reebok & Honda Among New Clients For onetwo agency
OneTwo finally lives up to its name with this double billing.
Ogilvy Report: Throw Out The Social Strategy Rule Book, The Rules Of The Past No Longer Apply
B&T was puzzled that all 'influencers' aren't, effectively, 'virtual', but here we are.
WhiteGREY & AKQA Merge In Australia, Lee Simpson Departs
Fortunately, the combined agencies aren't opting for a trite portmanteau for the new name.
Splendour In The Grass 2024 Music Festival Cancelled!
Music fans all over the country reportedly relieved they can pack away their rain coats and gumboots for another year.
TV Ratings (26/03/2024): “Fairy Bread, F***ing Disgusting”: Gordon Ramsay Slams Aussie Food In Food Stars Launch
Ramsay not one for mincing his words, even when it comes to minced meat pies.
Paramount+ International Boss Doubles Down On Aussie Content, Says Ad-Tier will Grow Audiences And Revenue
Good news as Paramount will not be binning I’m A Celebrity for re-runs of Frasier.
Brent Smart: Telstra Pushing For 50-50 Brand-Performance Split But Warns Numbers ‘Won’t Look Great’ Initially
The old brand vs performance debate continues. But here, Brent is firmly sitting on the fence.
Crowded House, Tones And I & Dom Dolla Win Big At The Shure Rolling Stone Music Awards
B&T staffer reports back with humdinger of a hangover & feeling seriously uncool after mixing with music types.
Opinion: Dyslexia “A Hidden Gem” For Brands & Agencies
Dyslexics offer underappreciated benefits in the corporate field, according to this op-ed.
David Jones Taps Criteo To Power Online Retail Media Arm
Want to see ads for things you probably can't afford? David Jones has got you covered with new retail media play.
oOh!media Sets Up Team To Target Business Audiences Across Airports & Offices
oOh! wants brands to harass you every minute of your next business trip.
QMS Launches Australian First DOOH & TV Partnership With Samba TV
Samba TV, of course, is not a channel dedicated to dancing. Much to our dismany.
Slew Of New Hires At Amplify
Four new faces join the Amplify offices. Team say desk scarcity becoming "acute".
Adobe Announces Content Authenticity Initiative Expansions To Counter Deep Fakes
Try as they might to enlighten them, we suspect Trump supporters will continue to watch and believe Fox News.
The PR Group Appoints TechCrunch Senior Reporter Catherine Shu As Director Of Content & Media
Catherine Shu makes the bold leap from journalism to PR. Says inevitable pay bump was "unrelated".
HERO Nabs Ebony Santin From AMPR
Rumours Santin cleared out the stationery cupboard before departing are as yet unconfirmed.
Karena Noble Checks Out Of EVT Hotels & Resorts To Launch Comms Consultancy
Noble still managed to squeezed in a continental breakfast before departing.
Canva Acquires Design Platform Affinity To Bring Professional Design Tools To Every Organisation
Canva & Adobe face off continues. We're not picking sides but keenly aware that Canva's office is next door to ours.
“Lean On Our Team To Help You Find An Audience”: Why Understanding Audience Engagement Is Essential In Journalism
Engaging the audience is critical to journos, apparently. We'd thought self-loathing & alcoholism were key.
Adobe Summit: Major Gen AI Developments, Data Concessions & Partnerships
What happens in Vegas stays there. Unless it's the Adobe Summit and then you get to read about in B&T.