Competitions

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Thousands of people are entering and winning competitions everyday all over the country.

British retail companies offer over 300 million pounds each year in prizes i.e. cars holidays, electrical goods, cash and these competitions are generally free to enter.

Many ordinary people are winning prizes thanks to websites like this, along with listing magazines that provide help and details on literally hundreds of competitions.

Entries into Competitions are much lower then you would expect, particularly slogan competitions, as these require a little effort.

There is a knack to entering and winning competitions so here are our Tips and Other Bright Ideas about competitions and entering them, we hope that you find them useful.

Leaflets
Usually found at customer service desks, at check outs or close to the product. Don’t be shy, ask in the shops etc if you cant find a leaflet for a known competition you want to enter. This will tell the promoter you are interested in the comp, plus if others can’t find the leaflet, this increases your chances of winning!

On Products
You will often find competitions on products i.e. on a packet of corn flakes, label on a tin of beans. Check the small print it may say “no purchase necessary” which means you don’t have to buy the product to enter, you will probably be able to enter via plain paper or postcard.

Qualifier
This type of com generally means you have to purchase a product to qualify and when entering you may have to enclose a till receipt or bar code as proof of purchase.

Plain Paper
These types of competitions you enter you enter with a plain piece of paper with your name, address, phone number and signature printed in block capitals. It may require other information i.e. answers to a question, slogan etc. This is generally then sent in an envelope and unless stated only one plain paper entry per envelope.

Postcard Competitions
With postcard competitions we would recommend you use a colourful postcard as apposed to blank ones. Write the promoters name and address on the right hand side and your details i.e. name, address, phone number and signature along with any other required details i.e. answers, slogans etc on the left hand side. We would recommend that when you write your details, you turn the card round 90 degrees (see sample postcard) this helps in stopping the postman delivering your own postcard back to you!

Question Competition and Prize Draws
These types of competitions are generally drawn from the hat, so to speak. If the promoters use a computerised database to pick a winner then there is an equal chance of winning for everybody. If they are drawn from the hat/box etc then statistics show that the winning cards picked are cards that look interesting/colourful etc

All in One Envelope
Many magazines will run several competitions in one issue, they will usually have different headings but the same postal address. Read the small print etc as most magazines will let you enter all the competitions and put all of your entries in one envelope. This may be an entry form from the magazine or you may have to write separate entries/postcards for each competition but put them all in the same envelope.

One per Household
This is important and does mean exactly “one per household”. Promoters will and do disqualify you if your caught entering more then once. This doesn’t mean to say that you can’t use your wife/husband/kids names at your mums/dads/aunties/uncles/brothers/sisters address. So if there’s a competition you really want to win you could get more then one entry into the competition.

Children
Children (under 18) can enter comps too (in some cases they are more likely to win as not so many children enter competitions compared to adults). Read the small print as generally when a minor enters a competition the entry usually has to be signed by a parent or guardian.

Instant Win
Instant win competitions (no purchase necessary) in short, you have the same chance of winning a prize by sending in an entry as you do by buying the product. Many products however are better value to buy, as opposed to the cost of a postcard and stamp i.e. crisps, chewing gum, chocolate bars. In this case however it generally makes no difference if you use plain post cards, decorative ones, envelopes or plain paper, again read the small print though.

Keep it Neat and Legible
When filling out your entry forms, keep it neat and legible. It’s advisable to use a black pen and always use CAPITAL letters. If you make a mistake, throw the form away and start again. Altered entries will generally be disqualified. Presentation is very important, you may have written the best slogan in the world, but if the judges can’t read it- you have just wasted your time and won’t win that competition

Don’t Just Enter the Big Prize Comps
Enter as many competitions as you can, don’t just enter the “Big Prize” competitions, the lucky winner actually wins a small percentage of the competitions they enter. The odds of winning a competition are much better then winning the lottery! We all want to win the “Big Prizes” i.e. the car, big cash prize, round the world cruise, but the problem being only one person can win at a time. If you enter as many as you can you will win multiple lower value prizes and one day your boat may come in with the “Big Prize” while your winning lower value prizes it will help boost your ego while waiting for that “Biggie”.

Keep Competing Fun
Remember most importantly your competing must stay fun “it’s your hobby” allocate a small amount of time to it each day, maybe 1-2 hours. Only spend 10-15 minutes working on a slogan, if your having trouble, put it down and look at it again tomorrow, move on to a different comp.

Slogans
Entering Competitions isn’t always down to being the lucky name drawn out of the hat. With slogan competitions, these require the completion of tiebreakers, invariably a slogan tiebreaker i.e. complete the following sentence in 15 words or less… “I buy your products every week because….

Every month there are many new competitions that require slogans to be found online, on competition entry forms and in magazines etc. To have a chance of winning you will have to come up with a winning slogan. You may be thinking “How do I do that!” it’s not as hard as you might think. Winning tiebreaker slogans are supposed to be “apt and original” but in most cases many winning slogans are remarkably similar. We are going to give you some information on helping you to write those winning slogans which will hopefully help you win some!

A good slogan will generally have rhyme, rhythm and most often a pun. The best way to learn this is to study past winning entries. You can check this out in our “Past Winning Slogans Section”. By studying them you will see what the judges are looking for. Very importantly you must also ANSWER the opening line and FLATTER the promoter, product or both.

• Supermarkets
• Bookshops
• Chemists
• Cinemas
• Music Stores
• Banks
• Petrol Stations
• Free Magazines (i.e. supermarket, shops own magazines)
• Magazines
• Newspapers (Inc. Free Newspapers)
• Internet
   

The Small Print

Don’t find yourself disqualified, always make sure you read THE SMALL PRINT. That way you can make sure you do exactly as requested and complete all requirements needed to enter a comp i.e. you may find it states you have to purchase a product and enclose a till receipt with you entry.

Here are some terms and acronyms you may encounter when entering competitions.

Chestnut
A tiebreaker that has been used and reworked for many years, they still crop up as winning slogans even though originality is asked for.

AIOE - All in one envelope.
You can sometimes send multiple entries to one address in just one envelope; This is common for magazine comps e.g. Wetherspoons. Look out for this it can make you hobby more cost effective.

CD - Closing Date
The date by which an Entry Form must arrive at its destination i.e. the address on the entry form or in the in-store box.

EF - Entry Form
The official form required to enter a competition, photocopies are not normally allowed. Sometimes the writing space can be very limited so make sure you get spares for practice!

FPD – Free Prize Draw
A competition where no qualifier is required and usually very little effort. At their simplest, you just need to supply your name and details (address, telephone number, email etc) on a postcard or an entry form. Others, may require that you to complete a simple survey-style questionnaire. Either way, the winner is chosen at by drawing the winning entry out of a hat.

LWE - Long White (Winning) Envelope.
We hope you see lots of these! This is the usual format used to give notification of a prize.

NPN - No Purchase Necessary
In no skill competitions, there must be an equal opportunity for those who have not purchased the product. Therefore you will see a 'No Purchase Necessary' route. This means you can enter by sending a plain paper entry or a postcard with your name and contact details.

OOM - Order Of Merit
This a type of competition where items/features have to be placed into an order usually pre-determined by the judges. e.g. ordering a number of design and safety features of a car.

PC - Postcard
These are often required for free prize draws, you just place your name and address on the left hand side and the competition address on the right. But avoid to the postcard being returned to you put your name and address at an angle to the competition address. To make your postcard stand out you could use coloured or picture postcards. You do not have to buy these, if you keep your eyes open, you will find a rich source of advertising postcards out there, such as the Boomerang postcards found in cinema foyers and public houses.

POP - Proof of Purchase.
This could be a label, a bar code, a ring pull, or most likely a till receipt. Make sure you circle you purchase you purchase on the till receipt and do not attach it to your entry form unless specifically asked to do so. Most competitions will not accept photocopies of till receipts so if you require qualifiers for various items in one shop, ask for separate till receipts.

PP - Plain Paper
These are often used for free prize draws. Plain paper means a piece of plain paper with your name and address clearly printed on it and sent to the competition address. You will save yourself time by word-processing your self a batch of these. With respect to size, it is sometimes specified, if not make sure it is a good size, an A4 piece of paper cut into four makes ideal size plain paper entries.

PH - Phone In Competitions
This is where you will need to telephone the competition phone number to enter the competition. Take care to check the cost of the phone call, it is often very high as this is how they raise the cash for the competition prize and make a large profit.

SAE - Stamped (Self) Addressed Envelope
You will be asked to provide one of these if you want to know the winning entries. Write your name and address on the envelope, stick a stamp on it and include it in your envelope to the competition house.

STD - Spot The Difference
This is where you have to find the differences between two or more pictures or drawings. You will usually have to 'circle the differences' on a specified picture but follow the instructions carefully.

T&C - Terms & Conditions*
Usually in very small print at the bottom of entry forms, so invest in a magnifying glass!!! These tell you who is eligible to enter the competition, the number of entries you can make, age restrictions, closing date, the notification of the results date, and specific details of the prizes. You must read these very carefully or you could be disqualified.

TB – Tiebreaker
A slogan often required which will determine the winners of a competition. It generally involves the phrase "complete the following sentence in an apt and original manner". You are usually asked to do this in a set number of words or less. Always stick to this and be careful when it comes to hyphenated words and apostrophise, our advice is don't take any chances.

TXT - Text Competitions
This is where you will need to text in your answer and or details to the competition. Like phone-in competitions, check the cost and details of your phone contract as you could be running up a big bill!

WEM - Winning Email.
This is when you are notified of a competition prize via email. Internet competitions generally work in this way. You will probably have to reply to the email to give your address for the prize.

WTC - Winning Telephone Call.
This is when you are notified of a competition win via phone. With so many telesales these days you need to make sure of the authenticity of the call. Many unscrupulous companies try to woo you into making a purchase or making an expensive phone call by guaranteeing a prize, these are usually clever scams. On the other hand don’t be too quick to put down the phone; it may not be another double-glazing salesman, but that phone call telling you that you have won a cruise!!

WWW / W³ - Online Competitions
These are Internet competitions, and there are loads of them around. They are usually run in order to get you email address, so be ready for the onslaught of junk email you will receive henceforth. On the other hand they are easy to enter and do seem to provide a good success rate.

Don’t find yourself disqualified, always make sure you read THE SMALL PRINT. That way you can make sure you do exactly as requested and complete all requirements needed to enter a comp i.e. you may find it states you have to purchase a product and enclose a till receipt with you entry.

Sample Postcard