1 Day Only Giveaway Winner Tonight

While I appreciate the giveaway, I have to point out that sharing is against Facebook rules. Recently several people had notifications that they were going to have to change their private accounts to business pages because they were sharing so many of these giveaways and I myself recently received a message saying that my account was being secured because it believed there was spam coming from it (and several old giveaway posts of mine have been flagged for spam). So I am now trying not to do these types of giveaways. It would be really nice if those like yourself who are sponsoring them would eliminate the share part and just make it a like, comment and perhaps tag option (although I'm not even sure if that breaks Facebook rules too).
 
While I appreciate the giveaway, I have to point out that sharing is against Facebook rules. Recently several people had notifications that they were going to have to change their private accounts to business pages because they were sharing so many of these giveaways and I myself recently received a message saying that my account was being secured because it believed there was spam coming from it (and several old giveaway posts of mine have been flagged for spam). So I am now trying not to do these types of giveaways. It would be really nice if those like yourself who are sponsoring them would eliminate the share part and just make it a like, comment and perhaps tag option (although I'm not even sure if that breaks Facebook rules too).

I was just wondering about this myself. I usually stay away from the share and tag ones because I don't want to lose my account either, and the only way they can see the share is if we do it publicly. But if we do it publicly, we might get DQ'd on something else from a sponsor who has a problem with people who enter a lot of giveaways!! It's a lose-lose. And even the tag option I believe we can be asked to do, but NOT as a way to gain entries. I think the only allowed ways to enter according to Facebook policy are the like and comment options. I do appreciate the giveaway; SA was the first sweeps site I ever joined but I have to say I was a little surprised to see the share and tag requirement.

Under III.- E-3 (Promotions)- here on this Facebook page guidelines link, is the policy for reference. https://www.facebook.com/page_guidelines.php
 
If you look at the text, Tagging was optional. Commenting is really the only requirement to be selected as a winner as that is how we select the winner.

If you look at all the sweeps apps out their.. Gleam, Rafflecopter, Viralsweep they all have this option to share,comment, etc.

*We'll review and amend if necessary going forward to make sure we are adhering to FB rules.

I was just wondering about this myself. I usually stay away from the share and tag ones because I don't want to lose my account either, and the only way they can see the share is if we do it publicly. But if we do it publicly, we might get DQ'd on something else from a sponsor who has a problem with people who enter a lot of giveaways!! It's a lose-lose. And even the tag option I believe we can be asked to do, but NOT as a way to gain entries. I think the only allowed ways to enter according to Facebook policy are the like and comment options. I do appreciate the giveaway; SA was the first sweeps site I ever joined but I have to say I was a little surprised to see the share and tag requirement.

Under III.- E-3 (Promotions)- here on this Facebook page guidelines link, is the policy for reference. https://www.facebook.com/page_guidelines.php
 
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Okay, well it said like, comment, and share so the way it looks is that one would need to do all three to be considered. And the tagging, optional yes, but you are still rewarding entries for it which I don't think is "allowed" (I don't have that many problems with the tagging part to be honest).

I promise I'm not trying to give you a hard time :) It's just difficult sometimes with the sharing. I try to hide all public evidence of sweeping on my Facebook because more and more sponsors are DQing us for no good reason (btw did you see that nonsense from ReddyYeti??).... When I have giveaways on my business pages I usually go like this:

To enter:

1) LIKE this post.
2) COMMENT what's for dinner tonight (or something related to the prize).

Please share and tag friends to spread the word about the giveaway! (both OPTIONAL and will not gain you more entries, but MUCH appreciated!)

I think many if not most sweepers will gladly share the Facebook giveaways anyway. I've been trying to be strict in not sharing the ones that REQUIRE you to, although today I caved because there were so many prizes on this one page....so I guess I'm not helping the cause there.

Just trying to make it a little easier on myself and other sweepers although I totally get the reasons behind asking for the share. Please don't hate me lol.
 
Okay, well it said like, comment, and share so the way it looks is that one would need to do all three to be considered. And the tagging, optional yes, but you are still rewarding entries for it which I don't think is "allowed" (I don't have that many problems with the tagging part to be honest).

I promise I'm not trying to give you a hard time :) It's just difficult sometimes with the sharing. I try to hide all public evidence of sweeping on my Facebook because more and more sponsors are DQing us for no good reason (btw did you see that nonsense from ReddyYeti??).... When I have giveaways on my business pages I usually go like this:

To enter:

1) LIKE this post.
2) COMMENT what's for dinner tonight (or something related to the prize).

Please share and tag friends to spread the word about the giveaway! (both OPTIONAL and will not gain you more entries, but MUCH appreciated!)

I think many if not most sweepers will gladly share the Facebook giveaways anyway. I've been trying to be strict in not sharing the ones that REQUIRE you to, although today I caved because there were so many prizes on this one page....so I guess I'm not helping the cause there.

Just trying to make it a little easier on myself and other sweepers although I totally get the reasons behind asking for the share. Please don't hate me lol.

Yes, the text did say like, comment and share so one would believe all 3 were required to enter. The tagging optional part would mean just that to me and I'd know that was not a requirement. Hopefully future giveaways will be worded differently so that rules are applied and we don't have to worry about FB possibly flagging our accounts.
 
OK, finally had a moment to dig into this and read up on it. :)

I think some FB rules came about because sweeps apps like Gleam, Rafflecopter, etc were forcing people to like a page
in order to get an entry. FB put a stop to that and all the apps changed their programming for this. This is now optional
in all the apps although points are still awarded for all the actions.

The link that was supplied to Facebook guidelines refers to "personal timelines" not "business timeline or pages " .
*It's a very important distinction. FB does not want personal pages being used for a sharing type business or
enterprise. Some personal FB pages are being disabled due the excessive or business like practices.

The actual text: 3. Promotions may be administered on Pages or within apps on Facebook. Personal Timelines and friend connections must not be used to administer promotions (ex: “share on your Timeline to enter” or “share on your friend's Timeline to get additional entries”, and "tag your friends in this post to enter" are not permitted).

We've never had a single complaint from FB and have not been asked to revise a promotion or take it down.

Regarding disqualification for sharing, do you have any proof of this? That companies are disqualifying based on
simple sharing and not abuse of it.

Regarding obsessive sharing I can see how this would not be tolerated as it can be perceived as a type of spam on FB.
Timelines and feeds over cluttered with re-shares, etc.

As long as it is not being abused I'm not sure why a sponsor would DQ for this. I've see many blogs who are still practicing
all forms asking for social actions in return for entries without it being in a programmatic way.

I hope this clears things up.

-Ken
 
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OK, finally had a moment to dig into this and read up on it. :)

I think some FB rules came about because sweeps apps like Gleam, Rafflecopter, etc were forcing people to like a page
in order to get an entry. FB put a stop to that and all the apps changed their programming for this. This is now optional
in all the apps although points are still awarded for all the actions.

The link that was supplied to Facebook guidelines refers to "personal timelines" not "business timeline or pages " .
*It's a very important distinction. FB does not want personal pages being used for a sharing type business or
enterprise. Some personal FB pages are being disabled due the excessive or business like practices.

We've never had a single complaint from FB and have not been asked to revise a promotion or take it down.

Regarding disqualification for sharing, do you have any proof of this? That companies are disqualifying based on
simple sharing and not abuse of it.

Regarding obsessive sharing I can see how this would not be tolerated as it can be perceived as a type of spam on FB.
Timelines and feeds over cluttered with re-shares, etc.

As long as it is not being abused I'm not sure why a sponsor would DQ for this. I've see many blogs who are still practicing
all forms asking for social actions in return for entries without it being in a programmatic way.

I hope this clears things up.

-Ken

The link supplied applies to Facebook Pages. Business Pages, Blog Pages, Author Pages, etc.

"The following terms, as well as our Data Policy and Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, apply to all Pages on Facebook. " Sweepstakes Advantage has a Page.

And under Promotions:

"3. Promotions may be administered on Pages or within apps on Facebook. Personal Timelines and friend connections must not be used to administer promotions (ex: “share on your Timeline to enter” or “share on your friend's Timeline to get additional entries”, and "tag your friends in this post to enter" are not permitted)."

I don't think there is any misunderstanding there; it seems to be very specific to all Pages, and not to Profiles. I agree, the distinction is very important: https://www.facebook.com/help/217671661585622

A Page cannot require entrants to use their personal Profile and friend connections, including sharing and tagging. By doing so, you are administering the promotion through us.

I'm sure you have had ZERO complaints from Facebook- Pages rarely do. Facebook may be free for personal accounts, but it is still a money making machine. So they are not going to go after pages and risk losing all that sponsored ad moolah :)

Regarding the sponsors who have problems with sweepers, I don't think that it's a secret. And many sponsors DON'T have a problem with it (thank goodness), but I think some really do. Not sure if you have seen this by ReddyYeti or if you advertise their sweepstakes here: Sweeper Accounts ? ReddyYeti

^^They even go so far as to imply we should make a separate account and if they are referring to Facebook, that is ALSO against policy.

Many many many many pages ask us to share. I get WHY. I don't like it, I don't have to, and I know why Facebook doesn't enforce this policy. But it is policy nonetheless. Everyone runs their sweeps differently- I get that too. But what occurred to me is this- as a leader in online sweepstakes aggregation, I just think it's good for SA to abide by the policy, because this is a reputable and trustworthy site and if we sweepers can't trust it to administer one of their own sweeps properly, then who can we trust? We already have it tough enough with companies like ReddyYeti who think we are up to no good. So if we don't HAVE to share a post publicly on our timeline to enter something, it just makes things a little easier for us in my opinion.

I believe it's fine to share with discretion, however I don't believe it should be a requirement. :)
 
openmind101 - the ReddyYeti opinion/post is pretty normal for sites that cater to a small demographic


Why are we disqualifying Sweeps/giveaway accounts?

The goal of ReddyYeti is to help build exposure for action sports startups and to help action sport enthusiast discover new brands that offer awesome products. We are not a giveaway site that caters to giveaway junkies just looking to win as many products as they can. We know the majority of you are not these people and that this rule may seem harsh, however to protect our community and the brands we work with I ask that you enter with a non sweeps/giveaway account.
 
openmind101 - the ReddyYeti opinion/post is pretty normal for sites that cater to a small demographic


Why are we disqualifying Sweeps/giveaway accounts?

The goal of ReddyYeti is to help build exposure for action sports startups and to help action sport enthusiast discover new brands that offer awesome products. We are not a giveaway site that caters to giveaway junkies just looking to win as many products as they can. We know the majority of you are not these people and that this rule may seem harsh, however to protect our community and the brands we work with I ask that you enter with a non sweeps/giveaway account.


I didn't think calling us Giveaway Junkies was necessary-- also what about those folks who are outdoor enthusiasts and also like to win things? Thirdly- Enter with a non sweeps account- so- break Facebook policy, and/or create a fake profile? Hm.
 
Oh I know - just meant I've seen that type of "warning" from small sites that cater to a small demographic after they've been inundated with the "win anything at any cost" type of sweepers - usually newbies who haven't settled in to the hobby yet :p

As to being rude to an actual possible customer? I'd bet the odds were tiny, and if there were any? They'd probably agree!

I didn't think calling us Giveaway Junkies was necessary-- also what about those folks who are outdoor enthusiasts and also like to win things? Thirdly- Enter with a non sweeps account- so- break Facebook policy, and/or create a fake profile? Hm.
 
Oh I know - just meant I've seen that type of "warning" from small sites that cater to a small demographic after they've been inundated with the "win anything at any cost" type of sweepers - usually newbies who haven't settled in to the hobby yet :p

As to being rude to an actual possible customer? I'd bet the odds were tiny, and if there were any? They'd probably agree!

Guess I'm a little touchy about it...you'd think sweepers were the scum of the earth sometimes the way they talk about us. :(
 
I try to enter for promos where I use/would use the product/service but most sweepers figure if it's open/legal to them to enter, they will & when a sponsor gives away prizes *other* than site specific {like cash/electronics instead of action sports type prizes} IMO they invite newbies & bad apples - smart sites give away prizes only their customers would want. :cool:





Guess I'm a little touchy about it...you'd think sweepers were the scum of the earth sometimes the way they talk about us. :(
 
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It looks like we interpret this differently. I will contact Facebook directly and get their interpretation of this guideline and post it back here.

As for ReddyYeti I really can't comment on another site's reasoning for what it does.

The link supplied applies to Facebook Pages. Business Pages, Blog Pages, Author Pages, etc.

"The following terms, as well as our Data Policy and Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, apply to all Pages on Facebook. " Sweepstakes Advantage has a Page.

And under Promotions:

"3. Promotions may be administered on Pages or within apps on Facebook. Personal Timelines and friend connections must not be used to administer promotions (ex: “share on your Timeline to enter” or “share on your friend's Timeline to get additional entries”, and "tag your friends in this post to enter" are not permitted)."

I don't think there is any misunderstanding there; it seems to be very specific to all Pages, and not to Profiles. I agree, the distinction is very important: https://www.facebook.com/help/217671661585622

A Page cannot require entrants to use their personal Profile and friend connections, including sharing and tagging. By doing so, you are administering the promotion through us.

I'm sure you have had ZERO complaints from Facebook- Pages rarely do. Facebook may be free for personal accounts, but it is still a money making machine. So they are not going to go after pages and risk losing all that sponsored ad moolah :)

Regarding the sponsors who have problems with sweepers, I don't think that it's a secret. And many sponsors DON'T have a problem with it (thank goodness), but I think some really do. Not sure if you have seen this by ReddyYeti or if you advertise their sweepstakes here: Sweeper Accounts ? ReddyYeti

^^They even go so far as to imply we should make a separate account and if they are referring to Facebook, that is ALSO against policy.

Many many many many pages ask us to share. I get WHY. I don't like it, I don't have to, and I know why Facebook doesn't enforce this policy. But it is policy nonetheless. Everyone runs their sweeps differently- I get that too. But what occurred to me is this- as a leader in online sweepstakes aggregation, I just think it's good for SA to abide by the policy, because this is a reputable and trustworthy site and if we sweepers can't trust it to administer one of their own sweeps properly, then who can we trust? We already have it tough enough with companies like ReddyYeti who think we are up to no good. So if we don't HAVE to share a post publicly on our timeline to enter something, it just makes things a little easier for us in my opinion.

I believe it's fine to share with discretion, however I don't believe it should be a requirement. :)
 
I didn't think calling us Giveaway Junkies was necessary-- also what about those folks who are outdoor enthusiasts and also like to win things? Thirdly- Enter with a non sweeps account- so- break Facebook policy, and/or create a fake profile? Hm.


LOL! Giveaway junkies,,,,,,,
 
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