I've been waiting for summer to arrive for many reasons, not the least of which is that I needed more spare time in order to start a blog. Unfortunately, now that I have some time, I'm away from all my smart friends and family members who could help me figure out how to do this. I will do this the same way I learned to "sweep". There was a lot of trial and error involved with that, so bear with me while I fumble my way through this.
As an experienced sweepstaker, I am often asked many questions about this hobby. One of the questions often posed is "How did you get started?" I began a little more than 8 years ago when some unusual circumstances provided me with lots of extra time on my hands. My mom had won a sweepstakes at a Hallmark store in her town, which taught me that yes, real people do win things. While visiting her one time after that, I registered for something at another mall store and won a small prize. Lightning had struck twice in one family! When I began to notice various sweepstakes advertised online, I began entering a few here and there, never really expecting to win, but I was surprised to notice that I actually did start receiving surprise packages in the mail. Granted, they were usually things like hats, T-shirts, tote bags, nail polish, etc., but occasionally they would be DVDs and gift cards.
So far, so good, right? I had said there was a lot of trial and error. It began to be difficult to remember which sweepstakes I had entered already. My searches for new sweepstakes to enter had taken me to several different sweepstakes sites, but I finally settled on the one that was truly the best. I signed up for a free account at Online-Sweepstakes.com as a way to find all the sweeps I wanted to enter as well as to keep track of the ones I had already entered. I soon learned that this site was also invaluable for the tips and other helps it provided. At the time, all of the resources at the site were free for all members to use, but as its popularity grew, it eventually became necessary to charge a nominal membership fee for members who wished to use the premium features. The current fee is $30 for an entire year, which to me is totally worth it. Therefore, my tip of the day is this: Join Online-Sweepstakes as a free member to get started, but when you decide that you want to do more than a little sweeping, go for the premium membership. You will have access to more sweepstakes and the time-saving "Shazam" feature...and the more you can enter, the more you can win! Happy Sweeping!
