"Sweeping" is the hobby of entering sweepstakes. It's a thrill to see the UPS truck show up with a big box or getting an email informing you of the new car you've won. But big prizes don't happen often and a lot of folks give up after a short period of time. If you're new to sweeping remember that while it can be fun and rewarding, it can also be frustrating and depressing, especially when you haven't won anything in awhile.

"Winners never Quit and Quitters never Win!"   Not sure who said that, but it's true. Patience and persistence pay off. You may enter a sweepstakes every day for weeks and not win anything. That's the way it is so accept it. But the law of averages applies and the more sweepstakes you enter the better your chances are of winning something. And if you're wondering if folks really do win "big stuff" the answer is yes. I personally have won desktop computer systems, a one-week test drive of a new Lexus Hybrid and tons of smaller stuff like gift cards, clothing and more. I set aside an hour or two every morning to enter all my bookmarked sweepstakes. Of course you need to decide for yourself how serious you are about winning and the amount of time you wish to spend trying.
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IWG's are Instant Win Games. These are usually games of chance, like scratching off a lottery ticket or entering a code to see if you've won something. Where sweepstakes are longer running and involve a drawing, IWG's are the instant gratification end of the playing field. Many folks prefer to play IWG's instead of entering sweepstakes and waiting and hoping to win. The prizes tend to be smaller, but there are more of them and your chances of winning something can be greater.
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Contests are games of skill or accomplishment. They may involve submitting pictures, video, essays and trying to win by getting the most votes or by a panel of judges. These tend to be larger prize rewards because of the work involved. If you have a large group of friends who can vote for your baby pictures, go for it! Don't have many friends but love to write? Enter an essay or short story contest.
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Most importantly always RTFR - that means Read The Freakin' Rules - and we mean CAREFULLY. Make sure you're eligible. Sometimes sweeps and contests are restricted to certain states or age groups. Some are one-time only entries while others may be daily or even unlimited. By reading the Official Rules of any contest you're actually increasing your chances of winning because you're not wasting your time entering a game you're already disqualified to win. Also read the Privacy Policies as this tells you what a comany will do with the information you enter. Most times companies will tell you that by entering their sweepstakes or contests you are agreeing to "opt-in" to their mailing lists. You can read more about this and getting an email address dedicated to sweeping right here (and yes, Aunt Flow also does this but remember you can UnSubscribe at any time)>
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