to be suspicious of Facebook competitions?

[Aworryingtrend]

I enter competitions online when I am bored sometimes. increasingly I have noticed that these 'competitions' take the form of "Simply 'Like' us on Facebook to be entered into the draw to win a holiday/car/whatever"

AIBU to think that no-one actually ever wins these? How would they get your address/details/even know you were over 18 and therefore suitable for entry if all you've done is Like them on facebook?

[Aworryingtrend]

SortingHardHat use www.loquax.com- theres thousands on there.

[fgaaagh]

SortingHardHat the meal i've won is for a local restaurant, we had a work do (well, event thing) there at the end of Feb, and a few people went onto their FB page after to tell them how lovely it was (it geneuinely was, yummy food on their buffet) and when they saw the competition our events woman emailed it around saying we should Like them! so a LOAD of us did from work, and i ended up winning

the perfume again was the woman I sit next to at work, she was on during lunch a few weeks ago and said did i want a free voucher for some promotion thing, i don't know how she found it. but we both got Boots vouchers to go and collect one - i wouldn't have known about it without her. i can't ask her as she only works Mon, Weds and Thurs - sorry!

[IamtheSnorkMaiden]

I don't often enter online competitions (FB or otherwise) cos they're often a marketing thing and you just end up getting spammed, but I did 'like' a tutubum cloth nappy on FB a few weeks ago and I won it! :)

I also won a book through #fridayreads on Twitter.

[SortingHardHat]

how do you find out about these competitions?

[fgaaagh]

oh i've just remembered i also got a free bottle of perfume. but that was for the first 50 to sign up, not a competition as such, so more a time limited thing. they emailed me a voucher and i got a 100ml (fullsize) bottle of it. it was a branded one from a celeb, i ended up giving it to my sister because i don't really use perfume but she loved it. so technically I won it even though i didnt have much use for the prize!

[Winkcat]

I won a competition set by Dr Hauschka and the prize will keep me going more months - very generous. My work colleague won a free week in Spain. It's worth doing, you just have to use your judgement and stick to well known companies.

[SchrodingersMew]

BiddysMamma I seen that! :o

[Aworryingtrend]

IABU, you know what I mean...

[Aworryingtrend]

Wow seems AIBU! Well done to all of you on your prizes!

[smileyfacestar]

How does this work? Do you need a facebook account to enter? I hate facebook and don't have an account so I am put off entering competitions sometimes.

[fgaaagh]

oh yes the meal we've won was for them to celebrate 1000 fans, theyput people into a hat (virtual or not, i dunno) and drew them out or something if i recall correctly - it was a chance thing anyway. maybe they worked on numbers e.g. a random number and that number fan was the one what won (but i'm just guessing now )

[fgaaagh]

well i think you have to use common sense. if it's a large well known brand then they have more to lose by letting people down than giving the prize away. if it looks dodgey, it probably is!

i entered one recently to win an evening meal at a local restaurant - and won!!! we're booked on the 15th, can't wait. it's for 3 courses and a bottle of wine for two, first thing i've won in years

[biddysmama]

"if i get 10000000 fans my wife will name our baby megatron"

[SchrodingersMew]

I just won one of these as well.

Basically the one I won, I had to comment on the page. The liked my comment then gave me their email address and asked me to email them my details.

[mythical]

i won a couple on facebook. depends how "legit" the page looks/is and how many fans it has. if it's the official page of - say - ebay then it's pretty certain it's a proper competition. if the page is called "LIKE THIS AND WIN A CAR" then you can be almost sure it's a con.

[biddysmama]

my friend just won one :) they pm you or ask you to email them your address