How to use the Campaign Checker
The Campaign Checker tells you whether a campaign idea can actually be built and run before you invest in it. Select the entry actions you want and the platforms you'd run them on, and it returns a verdict for each — will work, depends on the details, or won't work — with a workable alternative for anything blocked.
What it does and who it's for
Most failed promotions fail at the idea stage, built around an action no platform will let you collect. The Campaign Checker catches that first. You pick the actions your idea relies on, tick the platforms, and get back what's possible.
Verdicts reflect what each platform's API and promotion policies allow — not what ShortStack can build. It's a planning tool, not a compliance or legal guarantee.
Before you start
- No account needed. It runs in your browser with JavaScript enabled.
- Know which platforms you'd run on and what you want people to do to enter. Don't filter yourself in advance — pick what you want, even if you suspect it isn't allowed. Checking that is the point.
Step by step
1. Pick the actions your idea relies on
Select every action you want people to take to enter. Choose what you actually want rather than what you think is permitted.
2. Choose the platforms for each social action
For each social action, tick the platforms you'd run it on. The same action can be possible on one platform and impossible on another — likes are the clearest case.
3. Add a note about your idea
Optional, and just for your own reference. Anything you write here appears alongside your results, and won't affect the verdict your selections produce.
4. Read your verdict
Results come back in three groups: won't work, depends on the details, and will work. Blocked actions come with a "do this instead" alternative.
5. Reshape anything that hit a wall
Swap each blocked mechanic for the nearest workable one. In most cases that means capturing the real entry through a form and offering a bonus entry for a comment.
Limits and what it can't do
- It is not legal advice or a compliance guarantee. It reflects how platform APIs and promotion policies generally worked when last reviewed, and those change.
- Likes can only be collected on Facebook. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest don't release who liked a post.
- Follows can't be collected automatically anywhere — no platform exposes your follower list to a third-party tool. YouTube returns a partial subscriber list that excludes anyone keeping subscriptions private, so it isn't reliable either. The only workaround is checking a captured username by hand.
- Shares aren't verifiable anywhere, and Facebook's Pages policies prohibit requiring a share to enter.
- Tagging friends is against Facebook's rules. Other platforms do allow it, and it can widen your reach — but no tool can verify a tag, so you'd need to check your winner's entry by hand against your own rules.
- It checks mechanics, not your rules, your prize value or your tax obligations.
Troubleshooting
It says my idea won't work. Now what?
Every blocked action comes with an alternative. The reliable pattern is a form for the real entry, with a comment as a bonus entry. Comments on Facebook Page posts, Instagram Business or Creator posts, and YouTube videos are collectible and verifiable.
Why can't I do follow-to-enter when other tools advertise it?
You can ask people to follow, and plenty of campaigns do. What no tool can do is confirm it, because no platform releases your follower list — so expect some people to enter without following. If following is a condition in your rules, check the winner you draw by hand before you award the prize, and draw again if they don't qualify.
I got a different answer than last time
Platforms revise their APIs and promotion policies fairly often. Something that was allowed last year may not be now, so a changed verdict usually means the tool is up to date rather than wrong.
Can I require a purchase to enter?
That depends on whether your winner is chosen at random or on skill, and it's a legal question rather than a technical one. Use the Rules Generator.
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Privacy and what happens to your data
Everything runs in your browser. Your selections and any note you write are not sent to a ShortStack server. Your answers are saved on your own device so you can come back to them, and Start over clears them.
Related resources
FAQs
Why can't I require a like to enter?
On Facebook you can — the Graph API exposes who reacted to a Page post. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest don't release that data, so entrants can't be retrieved or a winner verified. Use a form instead.
Can I make people follow my account to enter?
You can ask, but no platform exposes your follower list to a third-party tool, so it can't be collected automatically — you'd need to check your winner by hand. The safe pattern is a form for the entry and a bonus entry for a comment.
Which social actions actually work?
Comments are the most reliable — on a Facebook Page post, an Instagram Business or Creator post, or a YouTube video. Beyond that, a simple entry form works everywhere and you keep the lead.
Why is share-to-enter against the rules?
Shares aren't verifiable, and Facebook's Pages policies specifically prohibit requiring a share to enter. For word of mouth, use a refer-a-friend mechanic with a tracked link.
Is requiring a purchase legal?
It depends on random versus skill. For a random draw, requiring a purchase generally makes it an illegal lottery unless you offer a free alternate method of entry. The Rules Generator builds the correct structure.
Does a green verdict guarantee my campaign is allowed?
No. Treat it as expert guidance to plan around, not a legal or compliance guarantee.
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