Does anyone enter competitions as a hobby?

[Dreamsfallapartattheseams]

If you do, how much effort/time do you put into it and have you won anything?

Many years ago I used to belong to a group called Competitors Companion and would regularly go in for competitions, of all kinds. The only thing I ever won was a trip on the British Pullman from London to Bath which I sold to my parents as I wanted the money rather than go on a stuffy train (I was only 21!).

I only enter very easy to enter competitions. I’ve won theatre tickets, CDs, a holiday in Israel and a cruise for two in Antarctica. With the last one I thought the email telling me I had won was a scam and they had to convince me that it was a free trip.

Check out https://www.loquax.co.uk for an amazing and free comping community with lots of comps posted by users on their forums.

I haven’t had time to comp properly for several years though - before kids would spend 1-2 hours a day and win stuff every couple of months, but lots of the prizes I used to win wouldn’t be any good for me now, eg many holiday prizes are term time breaks for 2 people. Will still make 20 mins a day every December to do few advent comps for old times sake!

Wow, I would be very happy with that. Do you follow a particular competition site or just apply to random ones here and there?

Thank you, I will have a look tomorrow. I lost my job a few weeks ago, whilst I have some time on my hands I will enter a few and keep my fingers crossed.

Years ago I worked with someone who did this but went in for eg buy this pan and enter. He won various holidays etc. His biggest win was a cookery holiday to Italy where he and his fellow cooks were in another competition to win....a Ferrari. He did!! Kept it a year then sold it. Paid for a huge chunk off his mortgage. 1990 approx

I subscribe to Compers News, you get a monthly magazine as well as access to the website www.compersnews.com

Wow, that's fantastic. If only I had that kind of luck.

Thanks, I will check that out.

You need a high profile public facing social media presence to win any competitions. A friend and I ran an experiment, one of us has a large following the other doesn't do social media at all. We entered the same competitions for holidays, high end goods and services, and hampers. The one on social media won about 40% of competitions entered, the one not on social media won nothing. They're a fix.

Surely that's only if you are entering competitions on SM platforms?
I'm thinking more supermarket and magazine competitions.

He actively sought out competitions that involved a purchase as the odds were greater in favour of winning

I'm always a bit nervous about entering these competitions - they always ask for your phone number. It's simple to create a new email address just for the purpose but is it risky giving phone number out?