Brand-sponsored social media sharing is as old as The Hills (at least the MTV version), but up until recently, many major brands have been shy about linking their Facebook Fan pages to contests with tangible -- not just virtual -- rewards.

In recent months, we've seen brands like Pizza Hut, Electronic Arts, and Intel tie Facebook "fandom" to real-life rewards like free food, discounts and game credits. And now, Hyatt Resorts has joined the fray.

The hotel chain is launching their new Best of All Worlds campaign today with a Facebook-centric contest: The Best of All Worlds Challenge, and it's tied to the Hyatt Resorts Facebook fan page. Users select a resort from the company's roster of hundreds worldwide, and then upload a photo of themselves participating in an activity that they would most enjoy during their vacation. It could be feeding iguanas in Curacao, or snorkeling in Puerto Rico -- the key here is that people need to be Hyatt Resort fans first, to participate.

The challenge will run from July 6 to July 26, 2010. Five winning contestants will earn enough Hyatt Gold Passport points (the company's rewards currency) for a two-night stay at any Hyatt Resort destination worldwide. And that's a smart contest policy, as winners will likely want to upgrade to a full week's vacation if they pick a destination that's far enough away from home.

Still, there's certainly room for brand mishaps. The most obvious would be that an entrant could upload a hilariously inappropriate photo, for example, and have it posted to the front of Hyatt Resorts' Facebook fan page. However, the company's use of the often lifeless Facebook Fan page is a great trial balloon to send up. Hyatt Resorts is leveraging its existing social capital, while enticing non-Facebook users -- often an older, more affluent demographic -- with a "soft" seduction to become "fans."  Release.