social_giveaway_playbook v1.0.0

name: "social_giveaway_playbook" description: "Plan and run a social media giveaway end to end: pick a legal structure (sweepstakes vs skill contest), choose a prize that fits the audience, set bot-proof entry mechanics, write official rules, handle registration, run a fair audited winner draw, and fulfill. Triggers on 'run a giveaway', 'social contest', 'sweepstakes', 'giveaway rules', 'pick a giveaway winner'." metadata: { "includeInPrompt": true }

Social Giveaway Playbook

Purpose

Run a social media giveaway that grows the right audience and survives legal and platform scrutiny. A careless giveaway breaks three rulebooks at once: promotions law, platform policy, and consumer-protection disclosure. This playbook walks through each one in order, then gives you a fair, auditable winner draw and a clean fulfillment path.

Workflow

1. Pick the legal structure first

Every promotion has three elements: prize, chance, consideration. All three together = an illegal private lottery. Remove one:

• Sweepstakes: prize + chance, NO consideration. Free to enter, with a genuinely free alternate entry method ("No purchase necessary"). This is the default for most social giveaways.
• Skill contest: prize + consideration, NO chance. Winners chosen purely on merit by stated judging criteria (no random draw, no voting that is really chance in disguise).

If the mechanic asks people to buy something to enter, it cannot be a sweepstakes. Add a free mail-in or web-form entry or restructure as a contest.

2. Fit the prize to the audience you want

Pick something the ideal follower would want and a random freebie hunter would not. Brand product, relevant gift card, or a niche experience beats cash and iPads. List the approximate retail value (ARV) of every prize; ARV (not what you paid) is what the law measures.

3. Design entry mechanics that block bots

• Keep the action count low (benchmarks show the median campaign uses 7 actions; fewer converts better).
• Prefer: comment with a specific answer, follow, like, secret code from an email or post (rising in use), or UGC photo/video entries.
• Bot defenses: one entry per person/household, no third-party entries, accounts must look human (minimum age, no obvious spam pattern), organizer's right to disqualify suspicious accounts.
• Avoid engagement bait ("tag 10 friends, share to 5 groups"): platforms demote it and Facebook bans share/tag-to-enter mechanics outright.

4. Write the official rules

Fill in references/official-rules-template.md completely: sponsor, eligibility, dates, exact entry steps, free alternate method (sweepstakes), odds, prize ARV, selection method, notification, platform release, FTC disclosure clause, modification/termination clause. Publish at a stable URL and link it from every promo post. Keep entries, draw proof, and the rules at least 90 days.

5. Check the registration trigger BEFORE launch

If total prize ARV exceeds $5,000 and the promotion is open to New York or Florida residents, you must register and post a surety bond in each state before the first entry (New York: at least 30 days ahead; Florida: at least 7 business days, with fines for late filing). Rhode Island requires registration for retail sweepstakes over $500 (no bond). The cheap alternative is excluding NY/FL residents in the rules.

6. Launch with the required disclosures

• Rules link on every post.
• Platform release line ("not sponsored, endorsed, or administered by [platform]").
• If entrants post about your brand or product, the rules must require the word "contest" or "sweepstakes" inside the entry itself. A contest hashtag alone does not satisfy the FTC, and the sponsor is expected to reasonably monitor entries for compliance.

7. Draw the winner fairly

Export the eligible entries to JSON and run bin/pick_winner.py:

python3 bin/pick_winner.py entries.json --winners 1 --out draw_audit.json

It uses a cryptographically secure RNG and writes an audit record (timestamp, entry count, RNG method, entry-list hash, winners). Keep the audit JSON with your promotion files. For judged contests, score every entry against the published criteria and keep the score sheets.

8. Fulfill and document

Notify winners by the method in the rules, give the stated claim window, and draw alternates if someone does not respond. Get written consent before announcing a winner's name publicly. For prizes awarded after Dec 31, 2025, collect a W-9 and issue Form 1099-MISC when a recipient's calendar-year prize total reaches $2,000 (the OBBBA raised the old $600 threshold; inflation adjustments begin 2027). Prizes are taxable income to winners regardless of the reporting threshold.

Output Contract

When asked to run or plan a giveaway, deliver:

1. The chosen structure (sweepstakes or contest) and why it passes the lottery test.
2. Prize description with ARV, and the registration call (needed / excluded states / not triggered).
3. Entry mechanics with bot defenses, per platform.
4. Completed official rules (from the template) with a stable rules URL.
5. Launch checklist: rules link, platform release, disclosure clause.
6. The draw command used and the audit file kept; for contests, the judging score sheets.
7. Fulfillment notes: notification, claim window, 1099/W-9 handling.

Operating Rules

1. Never invent numbers, dates, quotes, or legal claims. Every factual claim in a skill output must be verified or cut.
2. This skill is operational guidance, not legal advice. Say so when the stakes are high: prizes over $5,000 ARV, unusual structures, or regulated products go to counsel before launch.
3. No em dashes ever. No "delve", "tapestry", "landscape" as metaphor, no "in today's fast-paced world", no "it's not X, it's Y" pivots, no "moreover/furthermore", no stacked triple adjectives, no rhetorical-question-then-answer setups, no hollow inspirational filler. Plain direct language, varied rhythm.
4. Platform policies change; verify the current policy page before every launch rather than trusting the cheat sheet alone.
5. Announce winners only with written consent. Keep entry data and draw audits 90 days minimum.