Chatter Yak! is making it easier to run worry-free contests,sweepstakes via social media channels like Facebook andTwitter.

The technology-based marketing solutions CUSO has unveiled Yak!Tracker, a third-party social media contest management applicationdesigned to go beyond just acquiring fans but also statistics,analytics and demographics about those new fans.

In addition, Yak! Tracker can be customized to align withcurrent branding efforts and includes promotional tools rangingfrom custom QR codes for print materials and shortened URLs forposting across social media platforms to Facebook landing page andwebsite widgets.

The brainchild of CitizensFirst Credit Union CEO Kevin Ralofskyand Bryce Roth, director of marketing/social media at the $371million CitizensFirst in Oshkosh, Wis., the CUSO got its start atVacationland FCU in Sandusky, Ohio, as a way to help increasecredit union awareness, engage credit union members, todifferentiate credit unions from other institutions within thefinancial industry, and to help reach younger age groups.

CitizensFirst credit union recently acquired Chatter Yak!LLC.

According to Roth, who in 2011 was also named a CU TimesTrailblazer 40 Below, the idea for Yak! Tracker came with therealization many credit unions were violating Facebook's terms ofservice by running contests on their page without using athird-party application.

“When we developed the product, we looked at other third-partyapplications, but quickly discovered that to offer a sweepstakesand stay within Facebook's rules, things were prettycostly. Also, most applications were built for Facebook fanpage administrators to use them for one contest and then they hadto pay again,” said Roth.

“We designed Yak! Tracker so the credit union has a full-yearsubscription and can run unlimited contests. We also made sureto price it so credit unions of all sizes could afford to followthe rules,” he said.

“It is my opinion that if we are expecting our members totrust us with their money, and we have so many other complianceissues we have to follow, we should not be breaking rules onFacebook,” Roth added.