(Originally posted Sept. 2002 issue) These sweepstakes tips may
not all be new, but they are the most important "rules"
or "tricks" of the trade.
1) Follow the rules. It cannot be
stressed enough that it is important to follow the official rules
for the sweepstakes you are entering. If you enter multiple times
in a one-time entry sweepstakes, or if you enter using multiple
email addresses, you will likely be disqualified. Database "scrubs"
are usually performed both before a drawing (to remove entrants
who are not eligible, such as company employees and their families)
and afterwards, to check if the winner followed the rules. In
most drawings, alternates are chosen in case the winner is disqualified.
2) Enter as often as you can. If
a sweepstakes allows you to enter every day, then by all means,
you should enter every day! Each time you enter, you are drastically
increasing your odds of winning! Think about this: If 10 people
enter a sweepstakes once and you enter 10 times, you have increased
your odds of winning from 1:11 to 1:2 - you now have a 50% chance
of winning!
3) Bigger is not always better.
Many people enter contests giving away cash, cars, and trips,
while passing on the ones with smaller prizes. Since these smaller
sweepstakes will likely have less entries, the odds of winning
are usually much greater. Also, sweepstakes that have lots of
restrictions will generally receive less entries. For example,
if a sweepstakes is only open to households with children under
a certain age, you should enter that more often than sweepstakes
that are open to everyone. This should increase your odds of winning
drastically.
4) The first drawing usually has the best
odds. Many sweepstakes with weekly or monthly drawings
gain momentum as the weeks or months pass. Often, during the first
week or month of a sweepstakes, there hasn't been a large media
push and there are generally not a lot of entrants. Also, the
first few weeks will have less entrants because many of these
sweepstakes have rolling entries, which means that all entrants
that are not chosen will be included in the subsequent weeks/months
of the sweepstakes.
5) Tell your friends. If a sweepstakes
offers you additional entries for telling your friends, then you
should tell everyone you know! If you are going to take the trouble
to enter a sweepstakes in the first place, you certainly should
go the extra mile to get your "free" or bonus entries!
Some sweepstakes make it a little more difficult by requiring
your friends to enter before awarding your sweepstakes entry.
If you really want the prize, send your friend a personal email
and ask them to enter.
