SweepsU.com

It's finally here and I am so excited! The 21st Annual National Sweepstakes Convention better known as "Lucky 21", where sweepers from all over the country come together to...what else...discuss sweepstakes! I absolutely love getting to visit with all my sweepstaking friends and making new ones as well. I have one whole weekend to talk about 3x5s, NAZs, SASEs and AMOEs without having anyone look at me like I've  lost a screw upstairs.

This is going to be such a blast! There will be speakers and socials and prize drawings. A vendor room full of all the sweepstaking supplies you can imagine. Bob M. and Gail U. are heading up this year's event and I just know it will be the best one yet! If you aren't able to go this year, you can still get in on some of the fun! I'll be posting pictures on SweepsU.com regularly or as often as possible. Sorry folks, not even for SweepsU.com am I going to miss out on any of the fun! If you are not attending this year's convention, then start making plans to join us next year.

A list of sweepstakes abbreviations can be found in Sweeps University by following this path: Sweeps University - Library - General Sweeping Articles - Sweepstakes Abbreviations

Minnesota...here we come!

Gwen Beauchamp

This is an online sweepstakes with a twist. A lot of people are going to pass on entering because each entry requires a recipe, but it is not a recipe contest. The rules clearly state that you can get the recipes from other sources as long as you name the source (cookbook, website, grandma, etc.) and do not use any of the recipes from the sponsor's website.  Your recipes will not be judged. Winners will be selected via a random drawing. So even though it is not a recipe contest it does require a little extra effort to enter this one. The old saying is true...the harder it is to enter, the easier it is to win!

To find the “Cooking With My Honey Bear” Sweepstakes on the SweepsU.com Sweepstakes and Contest list do a Custom Search by typing honey in the Contest Name field. To find true Cooking Contests and Recipe Sweepstakes select "by Type" and then select "Recipe/Cooking/Food Contest".

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

Let's face it everyone wants to win Cash Sweepstakes, Car Sweepstakes and Travel Sweepstakes, but what about those sweepstakes offering off the wall prizes that would only interest a few?

For example, the New Orleans Hotel Collection/Saints Ticket Sweepstakes would only be of interest to a person who either lives within driving distance of the Superdome in New Orleans or is planning a trip there. Okay, there might be a few die-hard New Orleans Saints fans who would go all out on this one, but not many! This promotion will only receive a small percentage of the entries sent in on a Cash, Vehicle or Trip Sweepstakes and you should constantly be on the lookout for sweeps like this offering less popular prizes. If the prize is of interest to you and few others, your odds of winning are much better.

When I know that I am traveling somewhere several months in advance.  I start looking for sweeps offering smaller prizes for tickets and gift cards to events in that area of the country. It can really help the travel budget when you are able to visit a few of the tourist attractions for free. Be sure to watch the eligibility on each sweepstakes to make sure that you are allowed to enter.

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

The FAO Schwarz Fall Into Fun Sweepstakes is offering 4 fabulous bundles of toys as prizes. The Best Buy® Halo®: Reach New York City Flyaway Sweepstakes is giving Xbox 360 consoles to 25 winners. There are dozens more current sweepstakes offering great prizes that you can use for gift giving during the holidays. But you need to be entering these Game and Toy giveaways right now in order to have any prizes you win delivered before the holidays.

Judging agencies can be notoriously slow in shipping prizes to sweepstakes winners. You will receive them, but not always as soon as you would like. I have always entered the sweepstakes offering hundreds or thousands of small prizes throughout the year than hide them as they are delivered. It has been a big help with my holiday budget to start the season with free gifts and stocking stuffers. So, if you haven't already started working on your holiday stash...GET BUSY! Oh...and be sure to keep an eye out for local promotions. Not only do they give you better odds of winning, they are usually a little quicker with the prize deliveries as well.

To find the FAO Schwarz Fall Into Fun Sweepstakes, Best Buy® Halo®: Reach New York City Flyaway Sweepstakes and other sweepstakes offering games and toys as prizes on the SweepsU.com Contest and Sweepstakes list do a search by clicking on "by Prize" and "Games/Toys/Video Games & Systems". To find a specific prize such as Xbox 360 consoles, do a Custom Search by typing xbox in the Prize Description field.

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

Mitsubishi's Win a Trip to Japan Sweepstakes will award one lucky person a trip to Tokyo and Kyoto, while the TripAlertz™ Pre-Launch Sweepstakes will be giving 251 people a hotel package of their choice.

Trip and Vacation Sweepstakes are a great way to see the world on a budget and they are the most frequently offered sweepstakes prize. But remember they are not totally free. Uncle Sam will be asking for his share of anything you win. So watch the prize value and make sure you can afford to pay the taxes before you enter.

To find trips to foreign countries on the SweepsU.com Sweepstakes and Contest list do a Search "by Prize" and select "Travel - International". To find trip sweepstakes awarding hotel only or airfare only select "Travel - Partial". To find trips to a specific location do a Custom Search and type japan (or hawaii, vegas, disney, etc.) in the Prize Description field.

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

The Gadling and jetBlue AYCJ Sweepstakes started on August 25th and ends on September 1. On Tuesday, August 24th the Entertainment Weekly “LOST” Box Set Contest ran for 8 hours only. Both of these are extremely short running sweepstakes which really ups your odds of winning. If sweepers do not check their sources regularly, these short ones are over before they even know about them.  To get in on as many of the short running sweeps as possible check the SweepsU.com Sweepstakes and Contest list regularly and keep an eye on the "Start" date as well as the "Ends" date. Your sweepstakes entries have a much better chance of being selected when there are fewer entries to compete with.

To find the Gadling and jetBlue AYCJ Sweepstakes on the SweepsU.com Sweepstakes and Contest list do  a Custom Search and type gadling in the Contest Name field. To find the EW “LOST” Box Set Contest, look in the SweepsU.com Forums under "Urgent Sweeps".

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

As the Back-to-School sweepstakes begin to die down a new season of television programming is almost upon us. The networks are gearing up to promote their new Fall lineups and many will be running sweepstakes to get your attention.

The goal, of course, is to get as many eyeballs as possible on specific programs. Many will involve watching to get a code word displayed during the programs and entering the code online. Not all television sweeps are promoting new programs. Sometimes they are used to draw attention to an established series being put in a new time spot. These TV sweepstakes can be local as well as national. Frequently networks will state that a set number of prizes will be awarded in specific MSAs (Metropolitan Statistical Areas). You want to be sure to get in on these! I know I sound like a broken record, but it's true...Local sweepstakes are the best!

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

Blog Giveaways are wonderful and you only have one week to enter the ones participating in the Back-to-School Giveaway Bash. All of them end at 3 p.m. EST on Monday, August 23rd. Eleven different blog sites are participating in the event in conjunction with some great product sponsors.

Blogs are fast becoming a very popular way for sponsors to promote their products. There are so many blogs out there on every subject imaginable and many of them have thousands of followers. Marketing reps have realized that having bloggers review their products and give a few away to their readers is an incredible marketing strategy. It must be paying off because we are seeing it more and more. These blog giveaways are handled very differently from traditional sweepstakes and contests, but the prizes are every bit as good. So do yourself a favor and give it a try, but be warned...you may end up staying for more than the giveaway. These blog sites can be very interesting!

To find all the blog listings on the SweepsU.com Sweepstakes and Contest list, do a search for "by Type" and select "Online Blog".

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

Meijer has two new sweeps that just started, the Sweet Style Sweepstakes and Back to College Shopping Spree Sweepstakes, but only five states are eligible to enter. That makes these a great promotion to get in on. Any time a sweepstakes is limited to a specific area of the country…

…your odds of winning are increased. At SweepsU.com we list local sweepstakes alongside nationals, because we want you to win! So always watch for locals sweepstakes that increase your chances of winning!

We also want to save you the time of looking through sweeps you may not be eligible to enter. The SweepsU.com Sweeps Management System (SMS) knows your home state and color codes each sweeps listing for you. If the wording “Only in…” or “Void in…” under and to the right of the Sweeps name is RED, you are not eligible to enter. If the wording is BLUE, you are eligible to enter the promotion. If you prefer not to even view sweepstakes that you are not eligible to enter, select “by Status” in the Search menu, then check the box next to the words “Hide listings you are ineligible for (by region)”. All of those sweeps with red letters that you couldn’t enter are now hidden from your view. If you want to see them again, just uncheck the box and they will reappear on the list instantly.

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen Beauchamp

The Soup Scan Sweepstakes requires that you find a can of Campbell's soup with the new label and take a photo of you holding it. Sears Big Switch Sweepstakes allows you one entry online and one through Facebook, but if you really want to win one of the appliance packages worth thousands of dollars...

...you can submit an unlimited number of essay entries. Neither the photos nor the essays will be judged. These are not photo contests or writing competitions, but these methods of entry will scare off a large percentage of sweepers.  Most people are afraid of skill contests. The minute they saw that a photo was required they passed on entering the Campbell's cash sweepstakes. Many may enter the Sears Sweepstakes once through the online and Facebook entries, but they won't even try for the extra essay entries which is how they could really get ahead of the competition. Even knowing that the winners will be randomly selected, People just don't want to take the extra time or do the extra work.

Most sweepers are looking for the quick and easy entries, which could be to your benefit. If you are that rare person who is willing to do the extra work you will have way fewer entries competing with you for the prizes being offered. One fact I have learned over the years, the harder it is to enter, the easier it is to win!

To find the Soup Scan Sweepstakes on the SweepsU.com Sweepstakes and Contest list, do a Custom Search by typing the word soup in the Contest Name field. To find the Sears Big Switch Sweepstakes on the list type switch in the Contest Name field.

Take care and win BIG!

Gwen