Apr 5, 2010

Ways to Make & Save Money Update: The Proof is in the Pudding - Er, I mean the Winnings

Every Monday, I share a way to make and/or save money, as I strive to achieve my New Year's Resolution of banking a large sum of money by year's end. You can read the rest of the series here.

Today, I want to follow up on Ways to Make & Save Money #10: Enter Blog Giveaways and Sweepstakes. Shortly after I published that post, I won a $25 Visa gift card by playing Huggies Enjoy the Ride Rewards. And then a few days later, I won a $25 Barnes & Noble gift card.

Not long after that, A Thrifty Mom wrote that her husband won a cruise (!) from JetBlue. I was particularly struck by her reaction to her brother's comment that she always seems to win:
HELLO you have to enter, yes MOST the time we do not win….but sometimes we do!!!
It's so true. I usually don't win, but sometimes I do. As I mentioned in my original post, I don't drive myself crazy over it, but it's a more productive way of spending my time than just sitting around, and most contests take just a couple of minutes to enter.

One thing to keep in mind: I never pay to enter anything. That means I never play the lottery, gamble, etc. There's no risk to what I'm doing, so it doesn't matter if the odds are long. (Note: I am careful to only enter contests and giveaways that seem legitimate and don't ask for more information than necessary. There's no sense in taking unnecessary risks with my privacy and identity.)

Have you ever won anything?

4 comments:

lbellomy said...

I really liked the March to Savings instant win game at Kroger. It seemed like everyone could win something. I won two California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizzas. Not a cruise, but paired with DVD it made for a nice evening.

Gina @ MoneywiseMoms said...

I love entering Blog giveaways. The odds are so much better than the huge corporate giveaways, and I seem to win often. I've won hand-painted Etsy items, stationery, a vacuum cleaner, and lots of other goodies over the past two years.

Christina said...

I like blog giveaways but sometimes they are not run well. I won a prize on a blog months ago and have never actually received it. I asked about it and the blog owner responded that she would contact the prize sponsor but nothing ever arrived. Oh well.

Chief Family Officer said...

@Lauren - Yes! I agree that game was great, I won a $5 credit and free cheese. I love anything that helps with my grocery budget!

@Gina - Ooh, a vacuum cleaner. I keep trying to win one of those :)

@Christina - That happened to me once, a few years ago. The blog owner herself never responded to me, so needless to say I never read her blog again. It's one thing if the sponsor is difficult in some way, but the blog owner her/himself needs to be responsive to her/his reader. I'm sorry you missed out on a prize!