Extra emails?

[theamira]

I've won several small wins over the past couple of month but was wondering about something. Does everyone use extra emails..such as one for your spouse, your siblings, your parents, etc.? Is this the secret tip I'm missing that no one talks about?

[JoniHaynes]

Many sweepers do use multiple email addresses to enter family members, etc. However, this is done only after a very, very careful reading of the rules to be sure it's not in violation of the rules of any particular sweep. You can easily disqualify yourself (sometimes when it's not even specified in the rules!) and they might not even tell you that you've been disqualified. Whether it's worth the chance or not is an individual decision.

Joni

[gcomstock]

Joni is right...a few contests will all multiple entries per household, but many/most will not. Part of the problem is that the rules are often not completely explicit- it will state one entry per person, but you may not know what goes on "behind the scene" (eg. if they delete or DQ multiple entries from the same IP address).

I've won several sweepstakes, NEVER using multiple addresses, so while some folks have won by signing up Grandma, the goldfish, etc...I don't think it's the technique of choice.

If you feel pretty comfortable that other family members MAY enter, per the rules, then it would be a safer approach to submit the additional entries from a completely different IP address (eg. at work, or if you use broadband for most entries- from a dial up account, etc.)

[snookers]

Now you got me worried, George. Is there some way to know if they are tracking your IP address....a clue in the URL address such as a number, or something?

If the rules state one entry per person or per email, I've always assumed it was OK to enter myself and husband using our own individual email addresses. If the rules say one entry per household/computer/street address, I only enter one of us.

So all these years I may have been disqualifying myself?
Waaaaaahhhhh :confused:

[alwitmayer]

When I first started sweeping online, I entered every sweep for myself, my wife, and my [then] 28 year old son in a different city. Many times I received the "you have already entered today" message when submitting the second person's entry, and realized that, at that site at least, one per person actully meant one per IP address. However, it was when I won an instant win prize, and clicked on the claim your prize button and was told I was disqualified because I had already entered - I realized that they don't always tell you when your entry is not valid.

As a newbie, I spent hours searching for sweeps and entering every one I could find, regardless of the prize. Sweeping got old fast. Now I enter "others" only for sweeps I'm not entering myself, like my son for trips to Las Vegas. Sometimes I'll enter a sweep at work, then enter in my wife's name from home. But for the most, I enter in my name only. I'm now a lot more selective as to which sweeps I enter, and spend about an hour a day sweeping. PS although I am entering much fewer sweeps than when I first started, I am winning more often and regularly.

[dspack]

My family uses multiple email address for contests ONLY if I first check with the company holding the sweeps. I email and ask if more than one person in a family can enter their sweep. They will usually, but not always, email you back. The answer that I have received most often is that each member of the family can enter as long as they have their own email address.

[rickindallas]

I believe it depends on the rules.
However, be honest who has time
to read all of those.

[pstanos]

I don't think as many contest track IP#'s as we think. Just a hunch, but I can't imagine them spending a whole lot of time on it. They are more likely to place "cookies" on your pc than to track IP addresses. The best way to beat that (if you are using IE6), is to block "cookies" from different websites. Most of the time that works and you won't get the dreaded "YOU'VE ALREADY ENTERED TODAY!".

On some contest I will enter multiple email addresses using just my name and on others I will just enter once. I'm mostly playing a hunch on certain contest, that the information is not tracked very well, so it can work out to my benefit. I know enough about websites, website construction and computers in general to tell who has invested a lot of time and money to have a contest and others who don't seem to care. I've seen very few of the websites that compare name and address information, mostly they just check for the email address and slap the "cookie" on your harddrive.