Facebook Graph Search Now accessible to All U.S. English Users

Facebook Graph Search, a way to find out people, interests and more on Facebook, has finally rolled out to all U.S. English users after nearly eight months since its inception.

If you haven't yet used Graph Search, Facebook in its announcement recapped some scenarios users can take advantage of:

•    Find old friends or meet new people who share your interests: For example, "people from my hometown," or "friends of friends who live nearby and like playing tennis."

•    Revisit your preferred photos or photos you missed: "Photos I like" or "photos of my family."

•    Find out restaurants and places recommended by others like "hotels in Seattle visited by my friends" or "restaurants in New York liked by former students of the Culinary Institute of America."

•    Look for interesting tricks to explore such as "movies my friends like" or "music liked by people who like the music that I like."

Facebook Graph Search, a way to realize people, interests and more on Facebook, has finally rolled out to all U.S. English users after nearly eight months since its inception.

If you haven't yet used Graph Search, Facebook in its announcement recapped some scenarios users can take advantage of:

•    Find old friends or meet new people who share your happiness: For example, "people from my hometown," or "friends of friends who live nearby and like playing tennis."

•    Repeat your favorite photos or photos you missed: "Photos I like" or "photos of my family."

•    Find out restaurants and places recommended by others like "hotels in Seattle visited by my friends" or "restaurants in New York liked by graduates of the Culinary Institute of America."

•    Look for exciting activities to explore such as "movies my friends like" or "music liked by people who like the music that I like."

For more visits: https://www.facebook.com/ContempoTechnologies

Facebook for Business

Facebook is looking to make it even easier for businesses to market themselves efficiently on the social media platform by initiation a new Facebook for Business center. The new hub not only features tools for businesses, it also gives useful information such as case studies as well as announcements and marketing tools.

The new Facebook for business hub is a huge development from their previous Business Guide they originally launched in 2011.

Facebook for Business has made a strong impact for business owners who are brand new to promotion on Facebook. The Facebook Basics section details everything from how to set up your Facebook page to how to create useful and compelling content for your audience, and how to view how each of your posts are performing. And yes, it also informs businesses how to advertise on Facebook.

For advanced users, there are plenty of tips and techniques that Facebook is offering, such as help on how to launch of new products, how to build your brand alertness, and how to increase online sales. There's even information on how to convert Facebook traffic into physical in-store traffic.

They have also added a fresh video library on specific Facebook areas, which they refer to as Facebook Live covering things like performance marketing and powerful app install traffic through Facebook mobile.

They also have a very striking number of case studies accessible. If you're used to seeing sites with only two or three case studies, you're in for a shock. Not only do they have many dissimilar case studies, you can also filter down the success stories for things that are applicable to how you are trying to market on Facebook.

For example you could filter for success stories by exact industries, product types, country, business size and what is the most valuable, by aim. When you filter the case studies by goal, you can view them based on how to build awareness, drive in-store sales, initiation new products, increase online sales, or to promote an app.

Fascinatingly, Bing is one of the case studies, and search marketers might find it motivating to read theirs specifically. Other businesses consist of everything from CafePress to MGM Resorts.

Facebook for Business is a big resource for business owners, particularly those who aren't as familiar with marketing on Facebook, or those who just need a review or some new thoughts to change how they are presently handling their Facebook pages.

5 Things You maybe Didn’t Know are “Illegal” on Facebook

Facebook has an ever-changing list of guidelines, limitations and policies that are almost not possible to keep up with. Not only are these rules dotted throughout Facebook’s site under different names, but they can be confuse and long-winded. Add to that the actuality that most people don’t even know that these policies exist and you end up with a lot of people on the wrong side of the Facebook “law” when it comes to their profile or business Pages.

Business Pages on Facebook have their own set of rule which you can read here, yet I frequently see countless Facebook Pages posting illegal images, running illegal contests or just doing things that aren’t welcomed by Facebook. So what happens when users crack Facebook law? Pages can be shut down. It doesn’t happen all that often, as faraway as we know, but it is a possibility and potentially a huge hassle.

To avoid your Facebook Page from getting shut down, don’t break these 5 rules.

***UPDATED:  This got changed in the past week to no longer exist.

The Rule: A cover photo cannot contain more than 20 percent text.

Where you can find it: Facebook Page rule – Article III section – B

The Facebook cover photo is one of the places I most often see rule violations. Facebook newly changed their rules about text and cover photos: calls to action are now allowed but overall the picture can only contain 20 percent text. I’ve noticed that many businesses aren’t aware of the new guidelines and I’ve also noticed that lots of businesses are breaking the 20 percent text regulation. If you need some help thinking of ways to force these new rules, check out this article. There are plenty of great tools out there that will help you determine whether your cover photo is within the 20 percent text law, but this one is my favorite.

The Rule: Promotions on Facebook must be administered within Apps on Facebook.com, either on a Canvas Page or a Page App.

Where you can find it: Facebook Page Guidelines – Article III- section E- clause i

In layman’s terms this rule means that you need to use a third-party claim in order to run a promotion on Facebook. Many businesses on Facebook like to disregard this rule by running promotions that consist of posting a photo and saying “share this to be entered to win” or “comment on this post for a chance to win.”

If you’re planning to run a promotion on Facebook, do it the correct way. Third-party platforms exist to make it easier for businesses to have custom Facebook apps. Most third-party software providers already obey with the majority of Facebook’s guidelines so when you’re building an app you don’t need to worry about the small details. This article from Jon Loomer provides a comprehensive list of Facebook application platforms available.

The Rule: You must not use Facebook features or functionality as a promotions check or entry

 Where it can be found: Facebook Page Guidelines – Article III – section E- clause iv

This rule piggybacks on the last rule by stating that a business cannot use Facebook’s features – such as Liking, commenting, sharing, or uploading a photo — as a means of usual entry into a contest. Basically, you can’t say “Do this and you are entered!” You still need to have the user submit an entry and agree to some basic terms. You can of course propose that the user share something, upload a pic or leave a comment, but it can’t be a condition.

One thing that you are allowed to do is require that users Like your Page or Check in to your Place in order to go in. The Like or Check-in is the exclusion to the rule, but again, it can’t automatically enter anyone into your help. The Like or Check-in simply allows them to continue to the entry form.

If you want to require people to like your Page in order to join, try creating a custom app that is fan-gated. When users see your app but haven’t liked your Page yet, the app should give confidence them to do so to proceed to the entry form. After they enter, feel free to ask them to share your contest with their friends .

The Rule: You must not notify winners through Facebook

Where it can be found: Facebook Page Guidelines – Article III – section E- clause v

It seems natural that when you’re running a Facebook competition, you pick a winner and then announce the winner’s name on Facebook. The problem is, according to Facebook’s guidelines, you’re not imaginary to use Facebook as the initial means of contacting a winner. This includes Facebook messages, chat or posts on profiles, Timelines or Pages.

The best way to notify a winner is via email. If you’ve used a third party application to run your contest you’ve most likely collected some data, including email addresses, from your entrants. As long as you’ve notified your winner outside of Facebook, you can then say the winner to your audience on your Timeline or in your app.

The Rule: If you gather information from users, you will: obtain their consent, make it clear you (and not Facebook) are the one collecting their information, and post a privacy policy explaining what information you collect and how you will use it.

Where it can be found: Statement of Rights and Responsibilities – Article 5 – Section 7

My company is a third-party application and our users ask us just about every day why our app requests access to Facebook profiles. If you’re a business and you’re using a Facebook app to gather data from your users, it’s your task to tell your users what information you’re collecting and exactly how that information will be used. If you’re transparent and honest with your users about what you plan on doing with their information you’re likely to receive more commitment on your data collection app.

The (Unspoken) Rule: Don’t break local, state, national or international laws some states/regions have their own rules and plan for a business that is giving away any prize, including prizes won via Facebook contests. Check with your region’s business agencies to ensure that you’re abiding by local, state and international laws.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the rules and guidelines on Facebook for Pages, but these are the rules I see businesses crack most often. Although it can be time overriding and tedious to make sure you’re Facebook Page and apps comply with all of Facebook’s policy and guidelines, it’s worth it to stay up to date with Facebook’s policies.

Only 37% of Marketers believe Their Facebook Advertising is successful [Study]

Social Media Examiner has released the 2013 Social Media Marketing Industry statement. Of all the questions they posed to marketers this year, the thing that stands out the most is not how many businesses are using social media, but how many aren't actually tracking how effective their social media marketing actually is.

Of those who participated in the survey, 97 percent said they were using social media for their businesses and 86 percent considered it to be an significant part of their marketing efforts.

Moving onto Facebook specially, it isn't surprising that 92 percent were using Facebook as part of their social media efforts and that 49 percent considered Facebook to be their most essential social media platform.

But what is surprising is the actuality that only 37 percent of marketers think their Facebook advertising is successful. That is a pretty astonishing number. Is this a metric that shows Facebook marketing isn't efficient, or is it really to do with the fact marketers aren't properly tracking those Facebook efforts into ROI?

The report also reveals that larger businesses were much more likely to agree that Facebook was effective, but this might also be from a number of factors, such as higher brand awareness overall and targeted traffic from their company brand site to their Facebook page. For smaller businesses and lesser-known brands, Facebook marketing might definitely seem to have a lesser impact without a well-known and familiar brand behind it.

Another interesting factor is the relationship among the amount of experience using social media and the amount of time spent marketers spend on their social media efforts. Fifty percent of those with less than 12 months experience with social media are spending 5 or fewer hours on social media, while for those who have been doing social media for at least two years, 70 percent of those are spending 6 or more hours on their social media efforts each week.