The Three Types Of Sweepstakes That Are Easiest To win

When I was growing up, I often hear, "Nobody ever wins those things" in regards to sweepstakes and contests.  I jokingly tell people these days I am "Nobody".  I am a consumer first, and I enter sweepstakes and contests second.  I tailor part of my shopping around promotions.  To me it only makes sense.  It started when I learned about coupons and refunding.  People often would say back then, "Buy generic, it saves money."  By combining coupons and refunds, I would often get products for pennies and I would think, "I don't have the money to spend on generics.  I have to buy name brands!"  It's funny, but it's true.

The same goes for sweepstakes.  I love ramen.  I don't eat it as often as I would like, because while it's inexpensive, it's not one of the more healthy meals.  I was recently in Weis, and I saw a cup of ramen with information about a sweepstakes on it.  I purchased that package because I was going to buy some ramen, and I wanted to learn more about this giveaway.

So what sweepstakes are easiest to win?  There are three that stand out to me:

Doing Family Research on eBay

It might sound like it's crazy to go to eBay and expect to find anything that helps you with your genealogy research, but it happened to me.  I'm going to show you the tips and tricks that I use to keep an eye on items that get posted on eBay, receive alerts to new items that might have gotten out of our family, and how I was able to purchase my great-great-Grandfather's Civil War medal after it was posted for sale by a non-family member on eBay.

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I have been amateur genealogist since I was a child.  I was fascinated with one branch of my mother's side of the family, but as I aged and things like DNA testing became available, I realized I was more than just one branch of our family tree.  I started to want to learn everything about all eight of my great-grandparents and the generations their lives.

The Best Books about Contests and Sweepstakes

FTC disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links.

I love to read, and for the past twenty years I have enjoyed entering contests and sweepstakes.  Here is a list of some of my favorite books about contests and sweepstakes and why I have enjoyed them.


Some of these aren't exactly about contests and sweepstakes but also cover luck, positive thinking, and books written by winners themselves.

Book review: Life in Spite of Me Living After a Suicide Attempt

FTC disclaimer:  I received a copy of the book from the publisher for review purposes.  All opinions are my own.  This post may contain affiliate links.

In the book Life, In Spite of Me: Extraordinary Hope After a Fatal Choice, Kristen Anderson was depressed. Not really any one thing contributed to this depression, but she'd been fighting with her parents, three friends had died as well as her grandmother, she had been raped, and the previous night she'd been out until ten in the morning with friends. She was grounded until further notice. She sneaked out to be with friends, left a note saying she was going to take a walk, and later was in a park. She decided to sit on a train car and think. As she heard a train approach, she decided she would end her life. She planned for the train to hit her and she assumed death would come instantly. Instead, she survived, but her legs were cut from her body.

How to Win Sweepstakes and Prizes!

I started entering sweepstakes as a hobby in 1998.  My very first prize was a trip for two to Arizona and $2,000 cash.  I was hooked, and since that time I have won a whole host of other things.  One of the questions I get asked most is "How do you do it?"  Today you are in luck, because I'm going to share my secrets with you!

By definition a sweepstakes is a giveaway where no purchase is required (in the USA) and the winner is picked randomly.  (A contest requires skill.  Watch for an upcoming blog post on that!)

Have an e-mail address different from your personal one.  You will get overwhelmed with "gray mail" after a while (e-mail receive from mailing lists).  It will be easier if you separate this from the beginning by having different accounts.  Also, I recommend keeping the words "Win" "Sweepstakes" "Contest", etc out of your e-mail address.