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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
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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 12, 2012 07:36 PM
68,710 Posts
Joined Sep 2007
RyardDec 12, 2012 07:36 PM
68,710 Posts
Quote from cararo20 :
I'm new to this on a big scale, been playing my local market for years.. On IWG like My Coke Rewards, is there a best time of day? I know the current IWG for Southwest has one winner a day...any tip would be appreciated. thx
Most of those games select a winner based on the first person to play after a randomly generated time so the best time to play I guess would be when everyone is sleeping (3am-5am). But it's not worth losing sleep for an IWG in my opinion.
Dec 12, 2012 07:58 PM
118,455 Posts
Joined May 2006
implodeDec 12, 2012 07:58 PM
118,455 Posts
Quote from Ryard :
Most of those games select a winner based on the first person to play after a randomly generated time so the best time to play I guess would be when everyone is sleeping (3am-5am). But it's not worth losing sleep for an IWG in my opinion.
That also makes the assumption that they don't use adjustment algorithms to correct for when the most people are playing...I have reason to suspect they may be doing this. You are assuming an a totally random distribution of times.
Dec 12, 2012 08:34 PM
68,710 Posts
Joined Sep 2007
RyardDec 12, 2012 08:34 PM
68,710 Posts
Quote from implode :
That also makes the assumption that they don't use adjustment algorithms to correct for when the most people are playing...I have reason to suspect they may be doing this. You are assuming an a totally random distribution of times.
Most rules state computer generated random times. Do you have any evidence they are adjusting the times?
Dec 12, 2012 09:36 PM
485 Posts
Joined Oct 2012
erueo139Dec 12, 2012 09:36 PM
485 Posts
Quote from cararo20 :
I'm new to this on a big scale, been playing my local market for years.. On IWG like My Coke Rewards, is there a best time of day? I know the current IWG for Southwest has one winner a day...any tip would be appreciated. thx
As previously stated, the times at which the prize(s) will be given out are completely random for each day. With that, the advantage of playing the early morning hours is that there are less people competing against YOU.
So if the random winning time of the prize for that day HAPPENS to be at 3:25:40 AM, you might be able to win let's say, if you play at 3:26:00 AM simply because no one else is awake and playing whereas during the daytime there very well may be someone playing at every second. Does this make sense, I hope it wasn't confusing...

I personally have won more/better instant win prizes in the early hours myself. Because of this, I also don't believe that there's any algorithmic adjustments happening...
Last edited by erueo139 December 12, 2012 at 01:44 PM.
Dec 12, 2012 10:49 PM
6,889 Posts
Joined Sep 2006
SwampStomperDec 12, 2012 10:49 PM
6,889 Posts
Just wanted to get others input. I won the 1st prize in the All You magazine Nov sweeps. While I appreciate anything I win I had asked if a substitution could be made. Because I have never owned a DW and have no place in my kitchen for one.
The contest rules look like this: • One (1) First Prize for Frigidaire gallery 24'' built-in dishwasher, which has an ARV of $999.00 (ARV: $1,198.00).
For substitution they told me I had to pick something from the Frigidaire website for $699 or less because a $300 shipping fee was included. What would you think? I was thinking the prize would be $999 and the extra in the ARV of $199 would be the shipping.
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Dec 12, 2012 10:53 PM
3,567 Posts
Joined Feb 2009
rachaelm
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QA
Dec 12, 2012 10:53 PM
3,567 Posts
Quote from riverrat317 :
Just wanted to get others input. I won the 1st prize in the All You magazine Nov sweeps. While I appreciate anything I win I had asked if a substitution could be made. Because I have never owned a DW and have no place in my kitchen for one.
The contest rules look like this: • One (1) First Prize for Frigidaire gallery 24'' built-in dishwasher, which has an ARV of $999.00 (ARV: $1,198.00).
For substitution they told me I had to pick something from the Frigidaire website for $699 or less because a $300 shipping fee was included. What would you think? I was thinking the prize would be $999 and the extra in the ARV of $199 would be the shipping.
I promise I'm not trying to be snarky, but I think you should be glad that they're willing to allow any substitution for the prize offered. I'm sorry you won't get the full value, but at least you can pick something that's a better fit. Congrats on your cool win.
Dec 12, 2012 10:53 PM
1,964 Posts
Joined Dec 2005
euuser84404Dec 12, 2012 10:53 PM
1,964 Posts
Quote from riverrat317 :
Just wanted to get others input. I won the 1st prize in the All You magazine Nov sweeps. While I appreciate anything I win I had asked if a substitution could be made. Because I have never owned a DW and have no place in my kitchen for one.
The contest rules look like this: • One (1) First Prize for Frigidaire gallery 24'' built-in dishwasher, which has an ARV of $999.00 (ARV: $1,198.00).
For substitution they told me I had to pick something from the Frigidaire website for $699 or less because a $300 shipping fee was included. What would you think? I was thinking the prize would be $999 and the extra in the ARV of $199 would be the shipping.
Do the rules address substitution in particular? Many sponsors won't substitute so I personally wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth at take the $699 prize. Although first I'd check the rules Smilie Good luck!

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Dec 12, 2012 11:15 PM
1,964 Posts
Joined Dec 2005
euuser84404Dec 12, 2012 11:15 PM
1,964 Posts
As an "old school" sweeper from back to 2001, can I just can I can't STAND these FB contests?? Have you all had luck with them? I just can't see liking a random page for a company I'm not interested in to win some piddly little prize.
Dec 12, 2012 11:21 PM
26,018 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
User1144648Dec 12, 2012 11:21 PM
26,018 Posts
Quote from atomala :
As an "old school" sweeper from back to 2001, can I just can I can't STAND these FB contests?? Have you all had luck with them? I just can't see liking a random page for a company I'm not interested in to win some piddly little prize.
Personally, I've had very good luck with Facebook sweeps, winning a number of tablet computers, lots of gift cards, and cash. I rarely enter sweeps, Facebook or otherwise, for "some piddly little prize". For many Facebook sweeps, I keep track of pages I'm not interested in, and when the sweeps is over, unlike the page.
Dec 12, 2012 11:37 PM
1,844 Posts
Joined Jun 2009
JangDec 12, 2012 11:37 PM
1,844 Posts
Quote from riverrat317 :
Just wanted to get others input. I won the 1st prize in the All You magazine Nov sweeps. While I appreciate anything I win I had asked if a substitution could be made. Because I have never owned a DW and have no place in my kitchen for one.
The contest rules look like this: • One (1) First Prize for Frigidaire gallery 24'' built-in dishwasher, which has an ARV of $999.00 (ARV: $1,198.00).
For substitution they told me I had to pick something from the Frigidaire website for $699 or less because a $300 shipping fee was included. What would you think? I was thinking the prize would be $999 and the extra in the ARV of $199 would be the shipping.
Think about it this way: It would be a little less in taxes you'll have to pay.

Do you need a new washer or dryer? I'd ask if you can substitute for one of those.
Dec 12, 2012 11:40 PM
1,844 Posts
Joined Jun 2009
JangDec 12, 2012 11:40 PM
1,844 Posts
Quote from atomala :
As an "old school" sweeper from back to 2001, can I just can I can't STAND these FB contests?? Have you all had luck with them? I just can't see liking a random page for a company I'm not interested in to win some piddly little prize.
The two largest prizes I've ever won came from FB sweepstakes so I love them. As with MLx3, I've won tablets and many gift cards from them. Facebook wins account for like 90% of my winnings in terms of value.
Dec 12, 2012 11:51 PM
6,889 Posts
Joined Sep 2006
SwampStomperDec 12, 2012 11:51 PM
6,889 Posts
Quote from Jang :
Think about it this way: It would be a little less in taxes you'll have to pay.

Do you need a new washer or dryer? I'd ask if you can substitute for one of those.
First, I am very thankful for receiving anything. I would even accept the Dishwasher gratefully. I was just getting others input before making my final decision. A stove or refridgerator would work better for me.
I was only questioning how others would take the ARV as listed in the prize rules. $999 ARV with shipping to make ARV $1198 or $999 ARV shipping included and who knows what the $1198 means.
They did tell me I could pick something with a $699 ARV and then $300 shipping would make it a $999 ARV.
Dec 13, 2012 01:14 AM
1,964 Posts
Joined Dec 2005
euuser84404Dec 13, 2012 01:14 AM
1,964 Posts
Quote from MLx3 :
Personally, I've had very good luck with Facebook sweeps, winning a number of tablet computers, lots of gift cards, and cash. I rarely enter sweeps, Facebook or otherwise, for "some piddly little prize". For many Facebook sweeps, I keep track of pages I'm not interested in, and when the sweeps is over, unlike the page.
Thanks for the input Smilie I'll try some more FB contests.
Dec 13, 2012 01:49 AM
26,018 Posts
Joined Dec 2010
User1144648Dec 13, 2012 01:49 AM
26,018 Posts
Quote from atomala :
Thanks for the input Smilie I'll try some more FB contests.
You're welcome & good luck to you!

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Dec 13, 2012 02:09 AM
72 Posts
Joined Nov 2009
badandy888Dec 13, 2012 02:09 AM
72 Posts
thanks

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