Updates: New Widget Code & Facebook Entry Options

*Hey-o* – it’s the weekend! We wanted to give you a quick ‘hello’ & let you know about several updates that we’ve recently made, specifically to the Rafflecopter widget code and the Facebook entry options.

New Widget Code, Nofollow, & Landing Pages

Earlier this week, we released an update to the Rafflecopter widget code that went largely unnoticed and while it’s seemingly a small change, it should have a positive impact.

Prior to this update, the old widget code looked like:

The new widget code you’ll find on the embed page now looks like:

First, all links in the new Rafflecopter widget code that would be otherwise ‘crawlable’ by search engines are now tagged with “rel=nofollow”. When a widget finishes loading on your site, there will still be a link on the bottom of the widget that says “a Rafflecopter giveaway” that points to our homepage, but this link now loads inside the script of the widget, a section that’s not crawled by search engines.

In summary, all the links in every Rafflecopter widget created now moving forward won’t be visible by search engines.

Second, if the widget doesn’t completely load for a user for one reason or another, we’ve built a ‘safety net’. Instead of seeing only a link that points to our homepage like they might with the old widget code, there will now be a link that will point the entrant to a unique URL on our site that hosts your giveaway as a way to try to show the entrant your widget a second time.

As an example, look at the new widget code above. You’ll see in the first line of the code a URL that says http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/greg212/. This is a page an entrant would be sent to if the widget isn’t loaded completely (whereas up until yesterday, they would be sent to our homepage). This is the only link that would be crawlable by search engines. As stated earlier, we’ve included a ‘rel=nofollow’ tag in the widget code so that doesn’t happen.

Facebook Entry Options Updated

We’ve changed the way Facebook entry options are displayed to entrants in your giveaway widgets. Before, the entry options simply said “Like Rafflecopter on Facebook” or “Like the Blog Post“. Now, the entry option titles read “Easy entry for Rafflecopter fans on Facebook!” and “Easy entry for fans of this blog post!” respectively.

Why the change? According to Facebook: “We also allow for specific rewarding around the Like button, provided the incentive is open to all new and existing users who Like your Page.”

There was some confusion around whether or not the wording of these entry options meant that you’d only be rewarded for the physical act of liking a page, meaning that these entries only applied to new fans of the page.

With the help of several folks from Facebook’s platform policy team, we’ve re-worded these entry options to make sure giveaways running through Rafflecopter fall within compliance with Facebook’s guidelines. Despite the changes in wording described above, the functionality of these entry options remains the same.

*Update* Tuesday, July 10th

Thanks for your comments and concerns about the new wording over the past few days! We’ve made some further alterations to the wording of the Facebook entries hoping that they’re more clear. Below are some screenshots of how the entry options will now read moving forward. If you don’t see these changes immediately in your browser, clear your cache!

‘Like on Facebook Entry Option’

*Update* Thursday, July 19th

We’ve had to remove the ‘like a blog post’ entry option completely. Here’s a blog post that describes why.

What do you think of the new changes?  Comment below!

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About the author

Greg Goodson

Greg Goodson is the cofounder of Rafflecopter. 25x ultramarathoner, bluegrass guitarist, & weather enthusiast. Owner of one doge.

  • I appreciate that you are trying to remain within Facebook guidelines, but the new wording is more confusing than before, particularly the option for liking the posts. “…for fans of this webpage” is confusing because most people consider a Webpage the main domain, not the individual posts. Users will wonder why they have to do this again if they are already fans of the main page on Facebook. It should still state specifically that this option is for liking that specific post on Facebook, not a “webpage.” Additionally, the whole “you’re missing out” portion of the entry language feels sarcastic. I don’t want sarcastic language on my giveaways. The moment I saw it, it turned me off to the giveaway I was entering, and I’m sure my readers will feel the same about my next giveaway (there has been a lot of talk about this sarcasm on various blogging groups). The language should simply state something like the following, “Entry for all new and existing fans on Facebook.” There’s no need for the “Free entry” part or the “missing out” part. And I think the new wording makes it sound even more like you are supposed to be an existing fan to enter. Frankly, you need to go back to the drawing board on this language. Until it is changed, I will be using another giveaway widget for my giveaways.

    • thanks Sarah! we’ve updated the widget a bit based on what we heard… just updated the blog post :)

  • Kandi S

    I have to agree with Sarah- I understand why they did it- but instead of “if your not then your missing out” it should read something like- click like to be able to earn your free entry as well. If I was going through a giveaway and came across that and say “Earn a free entry if you are a follower, if you are not then you are missing out” I would think- well that is rude for one and for two- it leads me to believe that I will not get those bonus entries because I am not a follower. It does not direct me to click like to become a new follower- it just seems like saying “tough for you” for not following, I think the wording needs to be looked at again and FAST! I will continue to use RC but if this does not change soon I will look at different giveaway platform.

    • thanks for your feedback – we’ve updated the widget a bit based on what we heard… just updated the blog post :)

  • Mommy Outside

    I agree with the other posters here. The language is not positive and borders on insulting. And, yes, it’s more confusing that the older wording….

    • thanks for your feedback – we’ve updated the widget a bit based on what we heard… just updated the blog post :)

  • Kristin

    I also agree with all these comments. And, it’s pretty misleading. It’s not a “free entry.” You still have to do something (or have done something at some point) to earn that entry. Now that I see this wording in giveaways, I get instantly annoyed. I just think it sounds patronizing and almost as though you’re trying to trick entrants into thinking they’re getting something for nothing, when that isn’t the case. It turns me off.

    • thanks for your feedback Kristin – we’ve updated the widget a bit based some feedback we’ve heard… just updated the blog post :)

  • I also agree with the other posters. I have been using rafflecopter since I started blogging a long time ago. I have several giveaways lined up and I will be using a different competitor widget until the language is changed. I don’t like how sarcastic and misleading it is. There has to be a different way to get the same message across.

    • Hey Christine, thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think! We just updated the widget a bit based on the feedback we got, and just updated the blog post to point it out. Thanks again!

      • I love the changes to it now! Great Job and you have my continued support of Rafflecopter!

  • JamericanSpice

    I agree with Kandi S

    • Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think! We just updated the widget and updated the blog post to highlight the changes. Thanks again!

  • Much better! Thank you!

  • LOVE the change in the wording now! Thank you so much for listening to your users of the Rafflecopter widget!

    • definitely… thanks again for the feedback :)

  • Thanks! I’m happy to see the change to the “fan of this blog post”…much clearer than saying page! Can you just say “entitled to an entry” rather than calling it a “free” entry?

  • I like this much better. The wording for liking blog posts is far clearer and the Facebook Fans wording is easier to understand and feels less sarcastic. Thanks for listening to our feedback and responding with positive change!

    • thanks for the feedback! glad it’s better now :)

  • JanetGoingCrazy

    Thank you so much for the changes again!! I can use RC again, yippee!!!!

  • Socialmediaconsultant

    The Facebook one would be better to read: if you are not… Rather than if not….

  • What about Facebook users where you need to “add a friend”? I know that when you plug in the url into the “like a Facebook page”, it doesn’t work. Will there be a feature that will also allow “add a Facebook friend”? Right now, I’m doing it manually under “Choose Your Own Task”, but I think people like the ease of being able to click to follow without having to leave the Rafflecopter entry form.

    thanks for your consideration!

  • Looks much better now, thanks.

  • I was super upset with the initial Facebook wording changes as they looked really spammy to me. I felt a bit better about it when I read this & learned WHY they were changed, and then even better when I saw you changed them again to something much less spammy. Thank you for listening & responding to complaints. :)

    • you bet – we’re always listening!! *wink* ;-)

  • bossiniusa.com

    This is a good post

  • I just really want to know if this has anything to do with the fact that I can’t enter via facebook anymore? :/

  • Is anyone else getting the link “a Rafflecopter Giveaway” instead of the full widget when then post the code into the HTML of their site? Anyone know how to fix this?

  • Love the updated changes! Thanks so much Rafflecopter;)