Slickdeals is community-supported.Ā  We may get paid by brands for deals, including promoted items.
forum thread
FreebiesRGreat 2.4M Views
Jun 3, 2008 2:50 AM

Contests & Sweepstakes Tips, Advice, and Questions

Sears
See Deal
Good Deal?
9,869Comments
Save
Share
Deal Details
The intent of this thread is for users, both new and not-so-new, to ask questions, and help with tips/advice. This is not by any means the "gospel". Please feel free to add your words of wisdom, and if you have questions, just ask! If you have a tip that will make sweeping easier for folks, please feel free to share. This is a community effort. We all will benefit in some way.


The Basic Advice/Tips for the new-to-sweeping folks.
Enter for the items you want/need. If you have no interest in trips, avoid the sweeps where the only prize is a trip. If you know you can't afford the tax on a new vehicle, avoid entering for those.

Set up folders in your bookmark/favorites. Create a separate one for each month, and file any sweeps you are interested in into the folder corresponding with when it ends. Then, if you have a day where you're pressed for time, enter at least the ones ending that day.

Play the instant win games.

Follow the rules! If a sweep is restricted to only females, a certain age group, certain states, etc, make sure you fit the criteria! If you don't, move on to another sweep that you do qualify for. Do not create a bunch of email addresses so you can enter something more than once, or so you can play an Instant win game more. The Sponsors can tell, and will DQ you. You're better off playing by the rules than cheating and getting disqualified and having NO entries.

Don't immediately dismiss essay required sweeps (or recipes, photos, etc)....well, unless you know you don't want to write something. A lot of people pass on them, so you might have a better shot at winning something.

Don't expect this to be lucrative enough to become a job. Yes, a lot of us win, and often, but not nearly enough to quit a job!

Expect things to go slow at first. It takes a while for the wins to roll in. But once they do...look out!

Expect to occasionally hit a dry spell. It happens to ALL of us.

DEFINITELY USE YOUR REAL INFO! If you use a fake phone number, and a sponsor is calling to notify people of wins, you'll never know what you missed out on. I, and many others, have been doing this for a long time, and we have no problems with sales calls. Also, use your real name. If your name is Robert or Catherine, using Bob or Cathy is ok, as they are known acceptable shorter versions of that name. if your name is Matilda, and you go by Fluffy, don't use Fluffy. Looking at your ID to get an affy notarized, they may reject it because the names don't match. The sponsor may also say "Fluffy won, not Matilda". So stick with using your real name, or something close to it.

Most of all, HAVE FUN! And don't be afraid to ask questions. We were all new to this at one time. Any one of us would be happy to answer questions.


For easy form filling, check out Roboform [roboform.com]. Google Tool bar and the autofill feature on IE also work well.

For Mac users, the best form filler is 1Password: http://agilewebsolutions.com/products/1Password (thanks javaFlower!)

FireFox Form Filler browser extensions: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/...ll&cat=all

To set up the autofill feature in IE: Click on Tools, then internet options, then choose 'content'. When that pops up, click on "Autocomplete", and make sure to check the boxes for forms and passwords on forms. This is not a good idea if you are on a shared/public computer!

February 17, 2009, 3:10 am: System Notice: This thread has been automatically renewed after reaching a post limit. Most of its content has been moved to this thread for reference purposes.

July 12, 2010, 3:23 pm: System Notice: This thread has been automatically renewed after reaching a post limit. Most of its content has been moved to this thread for reference purposes.
Community Notes
About the Poster
Deal Details
Community Notes
About the Poster
The intent of this thread is for users, both new and not-so-new, to ask questions, and help with tips/advice. This is not by any means the "gospel". Please feel free to add your words of wisdom, and if you have questions, just ask! If you have a tip that will make sweeping easier for folks, please feel free to share. This is a community effort. We all will benefit in some way.


The Basic Advice/Tips for the new-to-sweeping folks.
Enter for the items you want/need. If you have no interest in trips, avoid the sweeps where the only prize is a trip. If you know you can't afford the tax on a new vehicle, avoid entering for those.

Set up folders in your bookmark/favorites. Create a separate one for each month, and file any sweeps you are interested in into the folder corresponding with when it ends. Then, if you have a day where you're pressed for time, enter at least the ones ending that day.

Play the instant win games.

Follow the rules! If a sweep is restricted to only females, a certain age group, certain states, etc, make sure you fit the criteria! If you don't, move on to another sweep that you do qualify for. Do not create a bunch of email addresses so you can enter something more than once, or so you can play an Instant win game more. The Sponsors can tell, and will DQ you. You're better off playing by the rules than cheating and getting disqualified and having NO entries.

Don't immediately dismiss essay required sweeps (or recipes, photos, etc)....well, unless you know you don't want to write something. A lot of people pass on them, so you might have a better shot at winning something.

Don't expect this to be lucrative enough to become a job. Yes, a lot of us win, and often, but not nearly enough to quit a job!

Expect things to go slow at first. It takes a while for the wins to roll in. But once they do...look out!

Expect to occasionally hit a dry spell. It happens to ALL of us.

DEFINITELY USE YOUR REAL INFO! If you use a fake phone number, and a sponsor is calling to notify people of wins, you'll never know what you missed out on. I, and many others, have been doing this for a long time, and we have no problems with sales calls. Also, use your real name. If your name is Robert or Catherine, using Bob or Cathy is ok, as they are known acceptable shorter versions of that name. if your name is Matilda, and you go by Fluffy, don't use Fluffy. Looking at your ID to get an affy notarized, they may reject it because the names don't match. The sponsor may also say "Fluffy won, not Matilda". So stick with using your real name, or something close to it.

Most of all, HAVE FUN! And don't be afraid to ask questions. We were all new to this at one time. Any one of us would be happy to answer questions.


For easy form filling, check out Roboform [roboform.com]. Google Tool bar and the autofill feature on IE also work well.

For Mac users, the best form filler is 1Password: http://agilewebsolutions.com/products/1Password (thanks javaFlower!)

FireFox Form Filler browser extensions: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/...ll&cat=all

To set up the autofill feature in IE: Click on Tools, then internet options, then choose 'content'. When that pops up, click on "Autocomplete", and make sure to check the boxes for forms and passwords on forms. This is not a good idea if you are on a shared/public computer!

February 17, 2009, 3:10 am: System Notice: This thread has been automatically renewed after reaching a post limit. Most of its content has been moved to this thread for reference purposes.

July 12, 2010, 3:23 pm: System Notice: This thread has been automatically renewed after reaching a post limit. Most of its content has been moved to this thread for reference purposes.

Community Voting

Deal Score
+101
Good Deal

Join The Conversation

Share your experience with the Slickdeals community

Share information with the community. Please follow our Community Guidelines and be kind!

9.9K Comments

Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.

Nov 27, 2017 10:12 PM
412 Comments
Joined Nov 2011
dorsy28Nov 27, 2017 10:12 PM
412 Comments
Close to 400 emails today. Not only Cyber Monday, but 'last chance Black Friday'. Can't wait for the Christmas car commercials for pricey vehicles I can't afford.
Nov 30, 2017 11:54 PM
27.6K Comments
Joined Dec 2006
suncat77Nov 30, 2017 11:54 PM
27.6K Comments
For the first time in my years of entering contests, I have FINALLY taken the time to work out a system for my dailies and organized them. WOOOO!!! Hoping this cuts some time off of my entering!
Dec 1, 2017 12:49 AM
119K Comments
Joined May 2006
implodeDec 1, 2017 12:49 AM
119K Comments
Quote from suncat77 View quoted comment :
For the first time in my years of entering contests, I have FINALLY taken the time to work out a system for my dailies and organized them. WOOOO!!! Hoping this cuts some time off of my entering!
I'm very organized...
1) sort by dailies.
2) go down list of 6 to 7 pages
3) ignore threads that I don't qualify for
4) ignore threads that are expired

Use roboform to store page info...

Then sort by single entries...marking entries with thanks.

Do my weeklies at start of week on Monday's...I post once I enter these threads, then mark off my entries by editing my original post

Since IWG are like dailies, I do them the same way.
Dec 1, 2017 1:08 AM
27.6K Comments
Joined Dec 2006
suncat77Dec 1, 2017 1:08 AM
27.6K Comments
Quote from implode View quoted comment :
I'm very organized...
1) sort by dailies.
2) go down list of 6 to 7 pages
3) ignore threads that I don't qualify for
4) ignore threads that are expired

Use roboform to store page info...

Then sort by single entries...marking entries with thanks.

Do my weeklies at start of week on Monday's...I post once I enter these threads, then mark off my entries by editing my original post

Since IWG are like dailies, I do them the same way.
I only wish I could be as organized as you! LMAO

But, I did get more organized than I was, so it's a plus! Thanks for your tips!
Dec 1, 2017 6:16 AM
2.9K Comments
Joined May 2007
sah0724Dec 1, 2017 6:16 AM
2.9K Comments
Two questions,

1. Should I use my real email address? what about spam?

2. I get spam calls from a 954-558 number daily, I use google voice for sweepstakes but everything goes to voicemail. I want to use my real number but the spam is concerning.
Dec 1, 2017 6:29 AM
119K Comments
Joined May 2006
implodeDec 1, 2017 6:29 AM
119K Comments
Quote from sah0724 View quoted comment :
Two questions,

1. Should I use my real email address? what about spam?

2. I get spam calls from a 954-558 number daily, I use google voice for sweepstakes but everything goes to voicemail. I want to use my real number but the spam is concerning.
I would use a dedicated email address when starting out. You will get a ton of spam even with opting out. Even more spam around xmas.

You want to answer calls, you may only get one shot at a big prize before they move on. Calls usually mean a bigger prize then emails in my experience.
Dec 1, 2017 6:44 AM
2.9K Comments
Joined May 2007
sah0724Dec 1, 2017 6:44 AM
2.9K Comments
Quote from implode View quoted comment :
I would use a dedicated email address when starting out. You will get a ton of spam even with opting out. Even more spam around xmas.

You want to answer calls, you may only get one shot at a big prize before they move on. Calls usually mean a bigger prize then emails in my experience.
I'll give it a shot again with my real number, I get a ton of spam/ fraud calls though.

Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.

Dec 3, 2017 4:29 PM
412 Comments
Joined Nov 2011
dorsy28Dec 3, 2017 4:29 PM
412 Comments
So my goal for December is to sign up for as many newsletters as possible, and to get at least 500 emails each day. Who's with me?
Dec 4, 2017 2:55 PM
22.2K Comments
Joined Nov 2010
BoydSchidttDec 4, 2017 2:55 PM
22.2K Comments
Quote from dorsy28 View quoted comment :
So my goal for December is to sign up for as many newsletters as possible, and to get at least 500 emails each day. Who's with me?
I'm way ahead of y'all!! Party:
Dec 4, 2017 10:12 PM
1.1K Comments
Joined Nov 2017
AskOksanaDec 4, 2017 10:12 PM
1.1K Comments
Does anyone enter PRIZE GRAB ???

It's so time consuming! šŸ•”šŸ˜Æ

I question whether it's worth it?

Has anyone WON a prize from PRIZE GRAB?šŸ¾

Thanks
šŸ‘±
Dec 5, 2017 12:26 AM
119K Comments
Joined May 2006
implodeDec 5, 2017 12:26 AM
119K Comments
Quote from AskOksana View quoted comment :
Does anyone enter PRIZE GRAB ???

It's so time consuming! šŸ•”šŸ˜Æ

I question whether it's worth it?

Has anyone WON a prize from PRIZE GRAB?šŸ¾

Thanks
šŸ‘±
Nope. I also avoid video triggered sweeps as NOT worth it. I try to be as streamlined and efficient as possible.since I typically do 300 a day.
Dec 6, 2017 4:20 AM
1.2K Comments
Joined Aug 2008
splatteredDec 6, 2017 4:20 AM
1.2K Comments
Something seems to be up with my twitter verification for contests right now?? On contests like the various Gleeam style from Twitter for example I try to enter and verify via Twitter and it pops up a new window that says "Are you a robot?" or something like that. I have to sit and SLOWLY get all the "Click on all the cars!" or street signs.. whatever. And when I succeed it just sits there. If I refresh or do anything it makes me go through it all again and I'm not able to get to the actual contest entries. Very frustrating.
Dec 6, 2017 7:14 AM
1.1K Comments
Joined Nov 2017
AskOksanaDec 6, 2017 7:14 AM
1.1K Comments
Thanks.

What are video triggered sweepstakes??
Dec 8, 2017 12:57 AM
1.2K Comments
Joined Aug 2008
splatteredDec 8, 2017 12:57 AM
1.2K Comments
Quote from splattered View quoted comment :
Something seems to be up with my twitter verification for contests right now?? On contests like the various Gleeam style from Twitter for example I try to enter and verify via Twitter and it pops up a new window that says "Are you a robot?" or something like that. I have to sit and SLOWLY get all the "Click on all the cars!" or street signs.. whatever. And when I succeed it just sits there. If I refresh or do anything it makes me go through it all again and I'm not able to get to the actual contest entries. Very frustrating.
Anyone else experiencing this right now? I'm having issues with twitter verification in general now... any contests I enter that want me to retweet or follow etc I can't do it cause after I complete the user verification it just sits in a white box and doesn't close out and confirm within whatever contest i'm entering.

Super frustrating Mad

Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.

Dec 8, 2017 1:48 AM
645 Comments
Joined Jun 2015
weasulDec 8, 2017 1:48 AM
645 Comments
Quote from splattered View quoted comment :
Anyone else experiencing this right now? I'm having issues with twitter verification in general now... any contests I enter that want me to retweet or follow etc I can't do it cause after I complete the user verification it just sits in a white box and doesn't close out and confirm within whatever contest i'm entering.

Super frustrating Mad
I haven't had problems with twitter verification, but I have noticed through my searches lately that twitter has been MUCH slower than normal.

Join The Conversation

Share your experience with the Slickdeals community

Share information with the community. Please follow our Community Guidelines and be kind!

Related Searches