Hello! After the success of my previous comping conundrums post <check it out here>, I thought that I would have another go at answering some of your comping questions! I chose questions from the original post and also the recent giveaway I launched, which asked you to comment a comping question you wanted answered. Here are the answers to 3 questions I saw crop up a lot! These are just my opinions, but I hope that they help you!
How can you find Instagram competitions more easily?
The reason I chose this question is that it's a tricky one, and I like to be challenged! Instagram is an amazing source of wins, and is the place where I get most of my prizes from, yet these competitions can be hard to find. However, if you master the art of finding and entering Instagram comps, you may find that they are much lower entry, thus increasing your ca There are three main types of Instagram competition:
- Like, follow, tag, comment etc. - Simply follow the instructions given by the promoter. I would recommend finding some friends on Instagram that don't mind being tagged (check my Facebook Group <here> for this) and agreeing to tag each other in comps, resulting in you both being exposed to more competitions! I like these ones in particular as they don't clog up the newsfeed of my followers and are very easy to do!
- Repost/Regram - I am not as big a fan of these ones, as I feel they don't look quite as pretty as some of the other pictures on my account. When I do enter, I use the Repost it! app to easily regram the competition post and copy in the original caption (which may include the crucial hashtag). i would recommend going through your account every so often and deleting old regrams for competitions that you know have ended as it will stop future promoters labelling you as a 'comper' (even if you are one) and perhaps not choosing you as the winner.
- Creative Comps - This has to be my favourite Instagram competition, as it can be so much fun to do! Often a promoter will give you a theme to follow, and you have to take a picture expressing this. Try to do something a bit different that will make you stand out, and don't forget to include the hashtag and tag the promoter so they know you have entered. For one competition I had to show what I was doing instead of studying, so I went to the Aberdeen beach on a freezing cold day and balanced precariously over the water (shown below). This resulted in me winning a 'student essentials' hamper!
Okay, so how do we find these competitions? Well, it's all in the hashtags. Unlike Twitter, you can only search for one hashtag at a time on Instagram, which can make it much harder to find the competitons (but when you do find them, this means they are more likely to be lower entry). The thing is, when you type in the trusty #win, you end up with a screen full of body buildings, sporty folk and people who apparently #win at life. Try hashtags such as #giveaway #entertowin #winme and always have a wee comping session on #winitwednesday and #freebiefriday!
For more Instagram tips and hashtags, see my blog post <here>.
How do you chase up a promoter about a win? Will nagging them make you less likely to win?
Ah the age old comping ire, a missing winner. It can be so frustrating to wait for ages and ages for a competition winner to be announced (especially if you put in a lot of effort) only for one to never appear. So how do you chase it up, without getting on the promoters bad side?
Well, to start with, be nice. Sometimes a promoter may have become caught up in other business and forgotten. Give them a couple of weeks and then I would start with a gentle nudge asking privately on Twitter, or some other form of social media, if a winner has been chosen. If you know other compers who have entered, ask them to do the same. Remember to check the T&Cs in case it gives a date by which the winner will be chosen, and only get in touch after that date.
If this doesn't work, have a look at the T&Cs of the comp to find a contact email address and try the same thing.If the company do get back to you saying that they have chosen a winner but won't be giving out the name, this is against the CAP code, so make sure to (politely) tell them this and even quote it.
Another idea is to send a recorded delivery letter to the company asking who has won the competition. You can even include an envelope with your address on it with a stamp attached so that they have no excuse for not replying.
If all else fails, go to ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) as a last resort. Complete the form online at www.asa.org.uk and be sure to include details of any communication you have had (or attempted to have as it may be) with the company.
As for nagging reducing your chances of winning, in my opinion, I don't think it will do any harm. As long as you are polite and friendly (perhaps slipping in how exciting the giveaway is), there's nothing wrong with making sure a competition is completed fairly. I've even heard stories of people who have spent a long time trying to find out who the winner is, only to be told it's them! Coincidence? Maybe, but there's no harm in trying.
I wondered what you thought the biggest waste of time in relation to entering comps that people might be doing?
Put simply - entering competitions for things that you don't want or need.
It can become so easy to fall into the trap of just entering any old competition, but when the prizes start to come through, it may not feel like so much of a win if you have no use for it. Sure, you could sell it, but there may be someone out there who would really have loved that prize.
Instead of entering any old giveaway on auto-pilot, try making a wish list <tips on this here> and start focussing on these prizes. You can update your wishlist every few months, and it can be so satisfying to see the objects being ticked off (so be sure to include big and small prizes to keep you motivated). When it's coming up to birthdays and Christmas, I create a whole new 'presents wish list' so I can save money and win my friends and family the things they really want.
By investing more time on finding certain prizes, you may be entering less competitions but end up winning more exciting prizes. Similarly, you could invest time in finding creative and effort competitions, which tend to be lower entry. It may take some time and thought to come up with that winning entry, but it can be a lot of fun and a much better use of your time.
In summary, organise your comping better by concentrating on the things that you want to win. It will make it more rewarding, and also more motivating! And anyway, taking a picture on a freezing cold beach is way more invigorating than sitting in front of a laptop for another hour!
Thanks for joining me for another episode of comping conundrums! Please leave any queries you may have in the comments below and I may just answer them next time!
Luck and love,
Laurie
