Not many people, even those who are active on Facebook, are aware of the social networking site’s strict promotions guidelines. As Page Wonder Paulina Singhapok referenced in her recent blog, Facebook published a long list of legal do’s and dont’s in December that restricts the housing of promotional contests on a Facebook Page.

I first got word of Facebook’s new guidelines when I considered designing a Facebook contest for a client. After getting in contact with a Facebook employee, I learned creating a custom tab to promote a contest would cost me an ad buy of $10,000 per month.

$10,000? Facebook contests used to be free, simple, and spur-of-the-moment campaigns. Long gone are the days when any Page could ask trivia questions to their fans via wall post, and the Page would pick a random winner from the answers they received in the comments. For marketing professionals, contests and giveaways are a great way to attract new fans and encourage existing ones to interact with a brand. But now, only companies with a substantial advertising budget can use this method of increasing their fan following on Facebook.

Part of Facebook’s appeal to me is that it’s a great outlet for small businesses, new brands, and indie artists to build a loyal legion of fans. $10,000/month is out of their reach. I understand Facebook needs to make money. But once upon a time, Facebook also started out as a small start-up. They too spread virally through word-of-mouth because they found a niche market and provided a useful service. Now that they’re a big gun, I hope they don’t forget about the little guys that need them the most.

I’ve always declared myself to be (in an admittedly blissful manner) somewhat of a social media purist. For me, social media’s biggest value is that it facilitates relationships – for both the big corporation and for the local indie band. Social media is most effective when a brand is able to connect with consumers on a deeper level that is never achieved with traditional advertising or marketing campaigns. The basic framework of social media platforms allows for instant feedback, interaction, and engagement. When it comes to using contests as a strategy to quickly attract and engage fans, Facebook’s promotions guidelines give an unfair competitive advantage to large advertising budgets.

To reiterate, the new guidelines are a smart way for Facebook to make some money, and to cover their bases when it comes to liability. But I think the $10,000/month price tag is too steep, and I guess I can’t help but root for the underdog. I confess, I don’t have a solution that will make both parties happy. I’ll give it some more thought and will hopefully have some concrete conclusions in my next blog installment. But until then, there is always Twitter. Zing!

Facebook has changed a lot since I first started using it in college four years ago. New users may be shocked to learn that the “News Feed” didn’t even exist back then.  While college students may have a legitimate complaint about Facebook being usurped and transformed since the “good old days,” I can say that this popular social networking app is becoming increasingly useful for social media, PR and marketing professionals. With each update, Facebook increases the opportunities for content and conversations to go viral and to reach more users.

One of the key things for marketers to understand about Facebook is when to use Groups or Pages to organize a community. When organizations join Facebook, they have to decide between starting a Group or a Page. In basic terms, both Groups and Pages are forums for self-selected users to connect around a common interest. Pages are specifically designed for companies and organizations to reach their “fans.” Groups can be organized around virtually any topic, although there’s nothing stopping an organization from starting a Group as well.

Just a few months ago, I would have declared a toss up between Groups and Pages in terms of their relative effectiveness for marketers looking to make an impact in the social media space. While Groups are more antiquated and less customizable than Pages, Groups allow administrators to send messages to all members, which are sent as emails. Pages, on the other hand, only allow “Updates” to be sent through Facebook itself to the homepages of fans. When Page One PR ran a social media campaign for Wine.com in late 2008, we created a Page and found only limited features available that would be useful for reaching potential new fans (save paid advertisements). The Page was an important part of our campaign, but I wanted more.

Since our Wine.com campaign, Page One PR has set up both Pages and Groups for our company and for our clients. After working on several campaigns, I would now recommend that organizations choose Pages over Groups for their effectiveness in marketing campaigns.

What’s changed? In the most recent alteration of Facebook, Pages took on the appearance and functionality of a personal profile. This means that a Page comes fully equipped with a “Wall” where the administrators of the Page as well as fans can post comments, links, videos, and pictures. Fans can also comment on wall posts, “Like” posts or share them on their personal profiles or through direct messages. Most of these Page interactions will show up on users’ “News Feeds,” making the information more viral.  If fans share information from Pages on their own profiles or engage in conversations on the Wall, their friends see this information on their own News Feeds. Hence, another viral effect is born. Pages also come with traditional applications like “Events” and “Notes”.

Another benefit of Pages is the analytical capability called “Insights”. Measuring the results of social media is crucial if social media campaigns are to demonstrate value and ROI. With “Insights,” organizations can track growth of their fan base over time, unique views of the Page and specific areas such as pictures, demographics of the fans, and even how fans are engaging with the site over time. For one of our current clients, Meltwater, we’re discovering that Insights actually does yield interesting data about fan interaction with the Page. In particular, we’ve noticed the popularity of rich content such as pictures by tracking clicks and views over time.

Finally, the coup de gras that sold me on Pages over Groups was a vital feature improvement called “Suggest to Friends.” Previously, it was difficult for Page administrators and fans to get the word out to other Facebook users. Now, any administrator or fan can suggest the Page to their friend networks AND these suggestion notices are sent as emails.

With all of these new Facebook updates, Pages have become more useful for marketers and PR professionals. Groups have the same largely static characteristics as before. There is no Wall that interconnects content and people through the News Feeds, although Groups include pictures, videos, discussion boards, and events capabilities. This means it is more difficult to spread content virally. The best feature of Groups, from the perspective of marketers, is the ability to send messages that are sent as emails to members. However, this feature, along with Events, is the only way that members learn of Group activities without having to revisit the Group itself.

I’m not saying that the Facebook Page is the best social media tool for every organization, but I am finding that Facebook can play a helpful role in larger social media efforts.

What do you think about the transformation of Pages? Please feel free to comment on personal experiences or give your own take on Facebook as a marketing/PR vehicle.