Entrepreneurship

Facebook Marketing Rules, Regulations & Ethical Principles To Increase Exposure

Rules That Must Be Considered When Planning Marketing Strategies.

Facebook is can be one of the best ways to market your products and services to your customers.

However, keep in mind that there are a few important rules and regulations you need to follow when hosting paid or unpaid advertising on Facebook.

Some of these rules are implemented by Facebook itself while others depend on your own government regulations regarding online advertising and consumer data collection. Make sure you take the time to familiarise yourself with all the regulations in order to avoid legal implications further down the track.

For example, when posting on Facebook in specific third-party groups, we must take into consideration the different rules that apply to each group. Some groups clearly state that no promotion of any sort should be published in their group. Other groups state that no more than one post a day should be published by each user while other groups state that no third-party links to events should be posted.

A notepad with each group name and the rules of that group is essential to have handy to reflect on when it comes the time of the day to post the daily menus as well as links to future events.

Another ethical principle I came across as part of the survey creation and promotion is the legal need to clearly state at the top of the survey that it is not a sponsored Facebook post, so users understand that Facebook has no access to the information shared by them and that Facebook is not sponsoring the survey.

Additionally, an important regulation when offering an incentive to complete the survey is to be very careful not to give off the impression that it is a competition or a draw or include the word ‘winners’ in the sentence.

Alternatively, I had to say the following :

OPTIONAL: If you are interested in a chance to receive two free meals, forward your details including your name, email, and number to (insert email ).

Also, when asking for the contact details of the users who filled the survey, I had to keep in mind (cultural appropriation) that some people may not feel comfortable giving out their details inside the survey and had to redirect them to a more secure private way of disclosing their information through the manager’s email.

I stated that it was optional and only used as a way for the manager to contact them at the end of the month in the case that they were selected to get the two free meals.

What regulations have you followed when advertising your products or services on social media?