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forum threadFreebiesRGreat posted Jun 03, 2008 02:50 AM
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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Dec 07, 2012 06:02 AM
1,577 Posts
Joined Feb 2008
MarceilleDec 07, 2012 06:02 AM
1,577 Posts
Quote from implode :
Probably around 25 pages of dailies in monthly view or roughly 750 active dailies...probably around 4 pages of active instants or 120 of them...probably roughly 3 pages of new single entries or 90 of them...so that's a pool of somewhere around 1,000 things you can enter. Mind you its impossible to enter all of them. You want to trim that list for things you don't need or companies you don't trust as running legit contests.
I see. Smilie I'm going to have to create a system for tracking daily's efficiently. Maybe a bookmark folder for each day based on expiration dates, and put links that I'm interesting in winning the most. Spending time on daily's probably isn't the best use of the limited time I generally have, but there are some that I'd certainly love to increase my chances.
Dec 07, 2012 06:10 AM
1,577 Posts
Joined Feb 2008
MarceilleDec 07, 2012 06:10 AM
1,577 Posts
Questions:

Do people frequently delete all their facebook apps collected from entering sweeps? It seems the more apps, the slower browsing facebook is (I'm not 100% certain tho.)

Is the downside of aggressively entering sweeps the need to unsubscribe to tons of newsletter and promo lists? I'd hate to miss a 'win' amidst all the clutter. Stick Out Tongue
Dec 07, 2012 06:05 PM
14,856 Posts
Joined Jan 2012
princess101Dec 07, 2012 06:05 PM
14,856 Posts
I received an email from rue la la reveal. I supposedly won a mixer. The email had an attachment that I need to fill out an email back. Can someone tell me how to do that?
Dec 07, 2012 06:23 PM
118,455 Posts
Joined May 2006
implodeDec 07, 2012 06:23 PM
118,455 Posts
Quote from princess101 :
I received an email from rue la la reveal. I supposedly won a mixer. The email had an attachment that I need to fill out an email back. Can someone tell me how to do that?
open attachment, print it out, fill it out, scan it--attach scan to an email back to them? If you don't have a scanner, may have to mail the paperwork back to them instead.
Dec 07, 2012 06:23 PM
26,018 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
User1144648Dec 07, 2012 06:23 PM
26,018 Posts
Quote from princess101 :
I received an email from rue la la reveal. I supposedly won a mixer. The email had an attachment that I need to fill out an email back. Can someone tell me how to do that?
Edit: Never mind, question already answered. Congrats on the win!
Dec 07, 2012 06:25 PM
14,856 Posts
Joined Jan 2012
princess101Dec 07, 2012 06:25 PM
14,856 Posts
Quote from implode :
open attachment, print it out, fill it out, scan it--attach scan to an email back to them? If you don't have a scanner, may have to mail the paperwork back to them instead.
thank you!!!! If I scan it, how would I attach it to an email?
Dec 07, 2012 06:27 PM
118,455 Posts
Joined May 2006
implodeDec 07, 2012 06:27 PM
118,455 Posts
Quote from princess101 :
thank you!!!! If I scan it, how would I attach it to an email?
In hotmail--its insert Attachments...
In gmail its Attach file directly under the subject line...

varies from program to program...then lets you select a location of the file, and it uploads it.

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Dec 07, 2012 06:28 PM
14,856 Posts
Joined Jan 2012
princess101Dec 07, 2012 06:28 PM
14,856 Posts
Quote from implode :
In hotmail--its insert Attachments...
In gmail its Attach file directly under the subject line...

varies from program to program...then lets you select a location of the file, and it uploads it.
thank you!!!!
Dec 07, 2012 10:25 PM
331 Posts
Joined May 2006
RedSnoopy1977Dec 07, 2012 10:25 PM
331 Posts
wow what a day! Its been a long time since Ive had to do an affidavit but its required for the earrings. I guess im on a winning streak finally:

Congratulations Redsnoopy1977,

We are pleased to inform you that your entry has been randomly selected to win a prize in the SanDisk Extreme SSD Sweepstakes (For your reference, here's the Official Rules of the Sweepstakes)
Prize won: one (1) 4GB SanDisk Cruzer Fit USB flash drive, $22.99 ARV
_______________________________________________________________

Congratulations, you're one of the winners in our Santa Chuck's Jewelry Gifts Giveaway! You're taking home a gift from the Gem Treasures Collection. What great news! Sterling Silver Black Spinel Teardrop Shaped Drop Earrings
Dec 07, 2012 10:36 PM
6,323 Posts
Joined Sep 2006
KMADec 07, 2012 10:36 PM
6,323 Posts
Does anyone know how to take a Facebook interest list and add it to a reader? I see the RSS logo next to the group's name, but the URL I get isn't accepted by the reader.
Dec 08, 2012 12:48 AM
2,562 Posts
Joined Aug 2008
lemontart68Dec 08, 2012 12:48 AM
2,562 Posts
I won 4 of the $10 vouchers on the tomtom game, does anyone know if these are stackable?
Dec 08, 2012 12:51 AM
6,323 Posts
Joined Sep 2006
KMADec 08, 2012 12:51 AM
6,323 Posts
Quote from lemontart68 :
I won 4 of the $10 vouchers on the tomtom game, does anyone know if these are stackable?
No, they aren't.
Dec 08, 2012 12:52 AM
2,443 Posts
Joined Apr 2008
bsg75Dec 08, 2012 12:52 AM
2,443 Posts
Quote from lemontart68 :
I won 4 of the $10 vouchers on the tomtom game, does anyone know if these are stackable?
Lol no, everybody "wins" vouchers. With their shipping cost and prices, the vouchers are useless. Unless MAYBE you want one of those silly voice downloads that costs $12.xx
Dec 08, 2012 01:04 AM
2,562 Posts
Joined Aug 2008
lemontart68Dec 08, 2012 01:04 AM
2,562 Posts
Ohhh I see, thank you both for your help! Smilie

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Dec 08, 2012 07:33 AM
4,394 Posts
Joined Aug 2006
BaconCommandoDec 08, 2012 07:33 AM
4,394 Posts
Do you guys check your junk mail for these sweepstakes?

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