We put out the call-for-entries on Facebook. Small business owners across the country recognized the unique opportunity and over 11,000 entered—each receiving $50 in free Facebook Ad Credits to get started with social media. Expert judges from Amex and Facebook, along with Guy Kawasaki and John Batelle, narrowed the field to 10 finalists. Then the Facebook community chose the 5 winners.For each finalist, we created a comprehensive marketing kit—including shareable videos and social media tools—to help them campaign for votes and reach new customers. Through “likes” and video shares, consumers helped their favourite finalists campaign for votes.

1.2 billion program impressions across paid, earned and owned channels; 39.5 million in PR.Big Break videos: 628,000+ views11,000 small businesses entered the contest: 177% higher than projections. Increase of nearly 50K fans for OPEN and Small Business Saturday Facebook pages, without “like gating” the experience.Finalists saw an average of over 100% increase in fans through the program period.Big Break participants reported significant increases in sales (up to 100%) during the program.Leveraging Big Break case studies, OPEN and Facebook continue to educate and inspire small business owners to use Facebook’s business tools through a national roadshow.