Social Media Contest at Your Fingertips

Are you trying to improve your professional presence on the social media scene? If you’re mad for social media (like us at Patch), there’s a local (and national) contest at your fingertips—literally.

The Social Madness Challenge is a one-of-a-kind competition that measures the growth of a company’s social presence. Presented by Capital One Spark Business, the challenge begins on June 1 and will spotlight the best social media programs of companies in 43 cities.

So, is Pittsburgh worthy?

The promotion will culminate in a national bracket challenge that will crown Social Madness champions in three categories based on company size.

This is a chance to improve your social profile and followers, and gain expertise and insight into social media best practices for business. Also, a charitable donation will be made on behalf of the three national winners.

Companies with headquarters in Pittsburgh; U.S. headquarters of a foreign company in Pittsburgh; and Pittsburgh headquarters of a separately branded operating division of a larger company are all eligible.

Companies will be ranked based on a scoring algorithm that measures social influence. Votes will be gauged on bizjournals.com, LinkedIn connections, Facebook activity and Twitter followers.

The deadline for submitting a nomination is Tuesday, May 15. To enter, you must fill out all fields on this nomination form. Entries will be vetted by the Pittsburgh Business Times newsroom to ensure contestants meet eligibility requirements.

Companies will receive verification that their submission has been accepted or rejected based on the rules, according to PBT. Accepted companies will receive more information prior to the June 1 start of the challenge. The newsroom is the final arbiter on all entries and eligibility disputes.

When entering, entrants should submit URLs for company pages on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Only company pages or accounts are eligible.

Remember: Submitted URLs must be for the same company that is entering the challenge. For example, a local Ford dealership entering as a stand-alone business must submit LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter URLs for that local dealership, not for Ford Motor Co.

Click here for the nomination form. For contest rules, click here.

Are you and your business up for the challenge? Tell us in the comments.