Here Are Five Tips to Win More Contests

I won $100!

 
A couple weeks ago I entered a pie recipe to Sandra Lee’s Semi-Homemade Pinterest contest. I’m always up for a challenge and thought it would be fun. Five days later I found out I WON! My recipe won a $100 Sears/Kmart Gift Card!
 
Cutting spending and saving are one part of the equation. In order to throw more money at our debt and have extra at the end of the month; we also need to make some!
 

Enter Online Giveaways

 
Entering online contests is a great way to earn some extra money or win cool gear.I know you’re thinking..come on, it’s ALL sheer luck. I put my name, and *maybe* I’ll get picked. We think the only thing under our control is praying and wishing as hard as possible. Not true! There are easy tips that can help curb the odds in your favor; if only a teeny tiny bit.
 

Five Quick Tips to Increase Your Odds of Winning!

 
We are all pressed for time. Instead of trying to enter every contest out there, I follow these guidelines to give me a slight edge!
 
1.BLOGS
Ahh, blogs. I have a soft spot for blog giveaways. Hmm, wonder why? So, why enter blog giveaways?

• Low entries! Blogs are not corporations. We don’t have millions of dollars to promote and market our site. Lower entries equals better odds!
• Practical. The prizes are items we could really use. For example, I have a giveaway coming up for cereal. Yep, cereal!
• Easy Entry. Most blogs use a secure form called ‘Rafflecopter’  or leave a simple comment on the blog. No address to fill out, no extra verification.

Here are 5 BLOG giveaways to get you started:

• E.P.T. Pregnancy Test Kits  Tales From The Nursery
• Springfree Trampoline for Kids  7 on a Shoestring
• $15 iTunes GiftCard  Literary Winner
• ConAgra Food Prize Pack The Wic Project
• The First Years Newborn to Toddler Bathtub Life with Captain Fussybuckets

 
2.ENTRY FORM
Maximize your entries.

• If the form says you can enter once a day, go back everyday and enter! The more entries you get, the better your chances of winning.
• Read the rules. Big sweepstakes often have entry forms on different sites and they all count. If you get one entry on each site, go to every site; chances are most people won’t!
• If you don’t like to enter everyday, find contests that only allow “one entry per person.” This way all the odds are equal and at least you got your chance!

• All You $599 Gift Card- 2 winners every week, 16 chances to win EVERYDAY.
• GSN Deal or No Deal Just like the game show, but you play at home.
• More Magazine Daily Sweepstakes They give a different product every 24 hours.
• $5000 ValPak Shop Sears with Sandra Lee Sweepstakes  Enter daily to win the complete line and a $5,000 Sears Gift Card.
• Lifetime for Moms $1000 Nothing like cold hard cash!

 
3.NICHE
If the contest has some unique entry it will deter A LOT of competition. They are harder, because there is skill involved, but really so much more fun!

My first niche contest was entering the All You Grocery Challenge 2011. It was a 4 week challenge to eat and live creatively on a small budget. I won runner-up and got a $200 Whole Foods Gift Card.

Niche involves: recipes, photography, design, crafts, etc…anything that requires you to do more! I HIGHLY recommend them! The number of contestants pool is much smaller and they really are so fun, even if you don’t win. (And I don’t win A LOT!)

If you have a hobby or passion enter the contests that let you explore that and the chance to win something.
Here are 5 NICHE contests to check out:

• Sally Hansen Mother-Daughter Manicure Upload a picture of two hands (yours and your daughters/niece/granddaughter) showing a cute manicure 5 winners, grand prize is a $500 Spa Gift Certificate! (Hurry ends 5/22!)
• $10,000 Eggland’s Best Egg Recipe Contest Enter up to 2 recipes in each of the 4 categories (8 chances to win!)
• $5,000 KozyShack Taste and Shout Just tell them why you love KozyShack, if you’re one of the top 10 favorites, you could win up to $5,000!
• $1,000 Nestle Best Chocolate Recipe Submit your best chocolate recipe using one of their listed ingredients and you could win! Yum!
• Submit A Pic To Win A Year of Groceries From  Ball Park Frank’s Submit a picture or video celebrating a ‘guy time’ moment and you could win a $15,000 prize!

 
4.REGIONAL
If the contest is limited to certain locations, i.e. only open to US or excludes NY, CA, your odds just got a lot better!

 
Here are 5 REGIONAL contests to enter:

• Albertson’s Monoply Sweepstakes open to residents of AZ, AK, CO, FL, LA, NM, and TX
• $44,000 Chevy Silverado open to residents of TX only
• Radisson Resort in St.Martin void in CA, KY, UT, and Puerto Rico, just one entry per person,  get yours in!
• $10,ooo Prize Includes Year’s Supply of Stouffer’s Steam Bags void in HI and AK
• Foster Farms Chicken Cooking Contest prizes up to $10,000 open only to residents of  CA, OR, and WA (regional and niche!)

 
5.TWITTER PARTIES

Throughout the one hour, they will randomly pick tweeters to win a prize! The odds are fabulous because it’s just ONE HOUR and only for those on twitter participating..not ALL twitter! If there is an RSVP, do it! They give prizes even for just an RSVP! Note the hashtags of the events, that’s all you need to know!

 
Have you ever won a contest or sweepstakes? What tip would you add?