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forum threadFreebiesRGreat posted Jun 03, 2008 02:50 AM
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forum threadFreebiesRGreat posted Jun 03, 2008 02:50 AM

Contests & Sweepstakes Tips, Advice, and Questions

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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.

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Nov 16, 2012 04:05 AM
532 Posts
Joined Oct 2005
stp6435Nov 16, 2012 04:05 AM
532 Posts
I have FB account just for entering contests. However FB is asking for mobile no verification! I dont want to give my mobile no to FB!. How do you guys deals with such a situation? do you give the actual mobile no?
Nov 16, 2012 07:15 AM
1,268 Posts
Joined Dec 2008
melan26Nov 16, 2012 07:15 AM
1,268 Posts
Quote from mj025 :
Ok, got a question. I won a Samsung Galaxy Note II, but I can't use it right now. Didn't want to win that prize, so I'm going to have to sell it I guess. I have a choice of which carrier model to pick and was wondering if there was one that would make it easier to resell? Like, Verizon over AT&T, etc? Thanks.

Funny how I win something everyone else wants, but I'd be much more happy with a tv, or camera... Please let me win a camera! lol, that is one thing I really could use...

-MJ
If you haven't decided yet, is there an option for an unlocked phone, meaning you can use it with any phone carrier that uses the same band frequency (eg. GSM, CDMA)? Those usually sell really well since buyers doesn't have to commit to a phone carrier itself. I won an ATT branded phone and am with T-Mobile, so I had it unlocked by buying a code on Ebay because ATT was being a pain about not finding the unlock code for me, blah.
Last edited by melan26 November 15, 2012 at 11:19 PM.
Nov 16, 2012 07:50 AM
1,430 Posts
Joined Sep 2010
mj025Nov 16, 2012 07:50 AM
1,430 Posts
Quote from melan26 :
If you haven't decided yet, is there an option for an unlocked phone, meaning you can use it with any phone carrier that uses the same band frequency (eg. GSM, CDMA)? Those usually sell really well since buyers doesn't have to commit to a phone carrier itself. I won an ATT branded phone and am with T-Mobile, so I had it unlocked by buying a code on Ebay because ATT was being a pain about not finding the unlock code for me, blah.
I already chose, but thanks... Had a family member that could use it so just asked them... And yeah, that would have been the course I'd have went, too...

-MJ
Nov 16, 2012 09:49 AM
208 Posts
Joined May 2009
empyreanNov 16, 2012 09:49 AM
208 Posts
Quote from stp6435 :
I have FB account just for entering contests. However FB is asking for mobile no verification! I dont want to give my mobile no to FB!. How do you guys deals with such a situation? do you give the actual mobile no?
You have to if you want to continue using your Facebook account - no ways around it other than sending in a copy of your license (ugh, would never think about doing that with Facebook!) You can't use a landline and you can't use a mobile number that has already been tied to a Facebook account. I had this happen to me once with my only FB account (I now only use it for sweeping) and they sent me the verification code via text msg.
Nov 17, 2012 05:54 PM
105 Posts
Joined Oct 2012
MOSCHUNONov 17, 2012 05:54 PM
105 Posts
I also have a facebook count only for contests - though I don't have a personal one. I did ot want to put my phone number in, but have been asked many times to give my mobile number and I finally did and now it says "your timeline is live." I don't know much about facebook, but does this mean that all of the contests I have entered were not seen prior to verification? I just joined FB about a month ago and have only won very small prizes from IWGs.


Also, I need advice. I won a small prize ($25 itunes gift card, from a social media contest ran by a school. They told me to give them my information, so I did, and they emailed me saying I had to fill out a prize claim form. I actually have lost the email so i emailed them asking me to send it again, but i remember it asking for Social Security Number.....
I don't want to put my real SSN.. Was thinking of making one up... What do you think I should do? I definitely don't want to give up my SSN for a $25 gift card..
Thanks in advance.
Nov 17, 2012 07:29 PM
118,455 Posts
Joined May 2006
implodeNov 17, 2012 07:29 PM
118,455 Posts
Quote from MOSCHUNO :
I also have a facebook count only for contests - though I don't have a personal one. I did ot want to put my phone number in, but have been asked many times to give my mobile number and I finally did and now it says "your timeline is live." I don't know much about facebook, but does this mean that all of the contests I have entered were not seen prior to verification? I just joined FB about a month ago and have only won very small prizes from IWGs.


Also, I need advice. I won a small prize ($25 itunes gift card, from a social media contest ran by a school. They told me to give them my information, so I did, and they emailed me saying I had to fill out a prize claim form. I actually have lost the email so i emailed them asking me to send it again, but i remember it asking for Social Security Number.....
I don't want to put my real SSN.. Was thinking of making one up... What do you think I should do? I definitely don't want to give up my SSN for a $25 gift card..
Thanks in advance.
I think you should ask to omit soc sec info for security reasons...if they refuse, just don't accept the prize. Doing otherwise is an act of fraud and will likely get you in trouble. You don't want to get in pissing match with the IRS, especially over a meager $25.
Nov 17, 2012 10:05 PM
105 Posts
Joined Oct 2012
MOSCHUNONov 17, 2012 10:05 PM
105 Posts
Quote from implode :
I think you should ask to omit soc sec info for security reasons...if they refuse, just don't accept the prize. Doing otherwise is an act of fraud and will likely get you in trouble. You don't want to get in pissing match with the IRS, especially over a meager $25.
Thank you for your advice. Will do! Repped!

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Nov 19, 2012 05:31 AM
313 Posts
Joined Dec 2009
caitybatesNov 19, 2012 05:31 AM
313 Posts
If you win a prize that is a donation to a charity, is that tax deducible? Also, do you have to consider that as income as well? Or does something like that just cancel itself out?
Nov 19, 2012 06:08 AM
26,018 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
User1144648Nov 19, 2012 06:08 AM
26,018 Posts
Quote from caitybates :
If you win a prize that is a donation to a charity, is that tax deducible? Also, do you have to consider that as income as well? Or does something like that just cancel itself out?
My understanding on sweeps like that, from reading official rules, it's not tax deductible, nor is it considered income for the "winner".
Nov 19, 2012 06:13 AM
313 Posts
Joined Dec 2009
caitybatesNov 19, 2012 06:13 AM
313 Posts
Quote from MLx3 :
My understanding on sweeps like that, from reading official rules, it's not tax deductible, nor is it considered income for the "winner".
Thanks! I haven't won any, but it was always something I was curious about.
Nov 19, 2012 06:36 AM
26,018 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
User1144648Nov 19, 2012 06:36 AM
26,018 Posts
Quote from caitybates :
Thanks! I haven't won any, but it was always something I was curious about.
I won a $100 worth of BoxTops for Education, and the sponsor contacted me to verify my school of choice for the donation. That's been my only personal experience with sweeps that the prizes are donations.
Nov 20, 2012 02:26 AM
1,457 Posts
Joined Apr 2011
Xebec01Nov 20, 2012 02:26 AM
1,457 Posts
I have a question: when you win a facebook contest, how are you notified? Do they email you? Message you on facebook? Or do you have to go back and check their webpage?

I've never used facebook before I made an account for sweeps, so I'm not too familiar with it....

Thanks,

- X
Nov 20, 2012 02:59 AM
26,018 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
User1144648Nov 20, 2012 02:59 AM
26,018 Posts
Quote from Xebec01 :
I have a question: when you win a facebook contest, how are you notified? Do they email you? Message you on facebook? Or do you have to go back and check their webpage?

I've never used facebook before I made an account for sweeps, so I'm not too familiar with it....

Thanks,

- X
Could be all of the above. Technically, according to Facebook Promotion Guidelines, pages are supposed to use a 3rd party app to collect entries, and notify winners outside Facebook (ie: email, mail, phone). However, many pages still do the small comment-to-win type giveaways, and will either send you a message through Facebook, or you have to bookmark the page so you can go back and check the winner.
Nov 20, 2012 05:56 AM
118,455 Posts
Joined May 2006
implodeNov 20, 2012 05:56 AM
118,455 Posts
Quote from MLx3 :
Could be all of the above. Technically, according to Facebook Promotion Guidelines, pages are supposed to use a 3rd party app to collect entries, and notify winners outside Facebook (ie: email, mail, phone). However, many pages still do the small comment-to-win type giveaways, and will either send you a message through Facebook, or you have to bookmark the page so you can go back and check the winner.
Agree, good anwer.

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Nov 20, 2012 05:51 PM
43,372 Posts
Joined Mar 2006
DeegeedeegeeNov 20, 2012 05:51 PM
43,372 Posts
Anyone know if Comedy Central still does the Thanxgiveaway? I googled around and couldn't find anything. TIA

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