This document summarizes a contest that was held to increase engagement on social media. It discusses the initial ideas for the contest and rules. It then describes some issues that arose with the contest regarding social media platform rules and cheating. Ultimately, the contest was able to increase likes, submissions and votes. The document also discusses creating a custom app for future contests and options to pay someone, build it yourself, or forgo an app altogether and use alternative tools. It concludes by outlining lessons learned and plans to improve future contests.

2. Overview:
 The Contest
 Idea & rules
 Tribulation,
 Eventual Triumphs
 The App: a lesson in regret
 Options: Pros & Cons
 Next Time
 Questions?

3. The Contest

4. I’ve got an idea…
 Please Like us!
 Tales of wonder…
 Our intentions (before we
knew better)

5. From
Idea to Contest:
 How will this happen: The
State of Facebook
Guidelines
 What are the rules:
Apprehensions & Revisions

6. The Rules
(as of the start of contest):
 Must Like us to submit
 Anyone can submit, but only
one story per author*
 Anyone can vote, but only
one vote per story**
Degrees of trust = *

7. Promotions

8. Before Contest

9. Bookmarks, handouts & Flyers

10. Slideshare Tutorials

11. During Contest

12. The
Tribulations:
 Storybird rules:
 Author only sales
 Approval time
 Facebook Rules:
 Always changing
 Cheaters & their cheating
ways

13. (Eventual)
Triumphs:
 Increase in Likes: 344
 Stories submitted: 60
 Votes cast: 635
 Tutorial views: 4546

14. The App

15. One day, in the Digital
Library…
Todd: Hey, professionals
charge a lot of money
for custom Facebook
Apps. Can you make
one?
Ben: [shrug] Sure. I never
have. But how hard can
it be?

16. App Building Options:
 Pay someone. A lot.
 Do it Yourself
 Don’t do it.

17. App Option 1:
Pay Someone
(Did we mention it costs a lot?)
PROS
 Gets done by someone
who knows what they’re
doing.
 Full support
 Compatible and up to
date (technically and
regarding FB guidelines)

18. App Option 1:
Pay Someone
(Did we mention it costs a lot?)
CONS
 It costs a lot.
 Reliant on others for
updates and changes
 Gap between your vision
and ultimate design
 It costs a lot.

19. App Option 1:
Pay Someone
(Did we mention it costs a lot?)
THE ONES TO PAY
 Wildfire
www.wildfireapp.com
 Social Cubix
www.socialcubix.com

20. App Option 2: DIY
(It’s hard. And kind of annoying.)
PROS
 Full control of what it
does and how it works.
 Update it and change it
on your schedule
 It doesn’t cost a lot
(unless you count the
cost of your sanity).

21. App Option 2: DIY
(It’s hard. And kind of annoying.)
CONS
 Chances are, you don’t
know what you’re doing.
 No support from
someone who does know
what they’re doing.
 Facebook changes a lot.

22. App Option 2: DIY
(It’s hard. And kind of annoying.)
If you still want to do it…
 We can provide the code
that we used for
modification with some
guidance.
 We can provide a
Resource Guide so you
can start from scratch
and do it even better on
your own!

23. App Option 3: No App
(Do yourself a favor. Go App-Less)
Try a Survey Site like Google
Web Forms or Survey
Monkey
 Call for entries via
website/email
 Participants create
Storybirds and share links
via online form/survey
 Another form/survey is
posted with links to stories
for voting via form/survey

24. App Option 3: No App
(Do yourself a favor. Go App-Less)
Extreme Lo-Tech:
Try an email/paper based Contest
 Call for entries via
website/email, flyers/posters
 Participants create
Storybirds and share links
via email/paper forms
 Links to stories shared via
email, on handouts
 Votes entered via paper
ballots and manually tallied

25. Next time:
Since we will know then what
we didn’t know this time…
 Not on Facebook: no
required “Likes” or
Facebook only participation.
 Incorporate into our new
Nanonwrimo/Readers to
Writers program

26. Next time:
Since we will know then what
we didn’t know this time…
 Storybird-created Contest
site/interface
 Work more closely with
Storybird

27. Thanks!! Questions?

28. Todd Frei:
todd.frei@wakegov.com
Ben McFadden:
benjamin.mcfadden@wakegov.com
Storybird: www.storybird.com
Art by Storybird artists:
Paul McDougall
Pascal Campion
Kathy R. Jeffords