# Got a new a hobby......



## simon the viking (12 Nov 2014)

Professional Comping........

Not just messing about entering 1 competition every month or so but entering over a hundred in the last few days...

I've been hanging around moneysavingexperts forum but found some posters a bit rude and trollie on there and as I've not got cash problems never bothered signing up but their competition thread is fab with people posting links to free internet competitions.....

I've reactivated an old email address that I don't mind getting spam to and gone for it..... I have only be entering competitions for prizes me or immediate family can use.......

the current list of competitions entered consists of at least 3 bikes, a turbo trainer, 6 televisions, 6 tablet computers, 5 weekend breaks, 2 fridge freezers, 2 washers, 4 coffee machines 4 watches, shopping vouchers, toy packages, various hampers and other odd items ... the list is massive ..

At first I was entering ones that ended next year but went back nearly a hundred pages on the thread finding ones finishing in the next week.....

will let you know if I win owt


----------



## simon the viking (12 Nov 2014)

They have a 'I won' thread and loads of MSE forum members have bagged top prizes.... So I assume most prizes go to people who comp professionally.... People have posted that they are still shaking after finding out they have won a £1000 tele or 2 weeks in Sydney....


----------



## Beebo (12 Nov 2014)

I had a friend whose mum did this back in the 1980's when entering competiotions was much harder than it is today. You had to post off entry forms, collect food labels and come up with a clever "tie-breaker" slogan.
She won loads of stuff, but gave up once competions became a money making schemes and too easy to enter.


----------



## Leedsbusdriver (12 Nov 2014)

My mum used to enter every Take a Break competition every week for years.She never won owt though.


----------



## jagman.2003 (12 Nov 2014)

Good luck, I'm not much of a lucky person myself when it comes to competitions.
Would be nice to hear someone wins these things!

Also misread first line as 'Professional Camping'.....took some thinking about.


----------



## Turbo Rider (12 Nov 2014)

If you enter everything you see (and I do mean everything), you're bound to win something. I know a couple of people who've done this & they both did quite well. From memory, the biggest hauls were a Garden shed full of the latest gardening equipment (which was handy, given that she lived in a flat...cue ebay!), a mountain bike and a trip to Disneyland Paris. Good luck out there!


----------



## simon the viking (12 Nov 2014)

Turbo Rider said:


> If you enter everything you see (and I do mean everything), you're bound to win something. I know a couple of people who've done this & they both did quite well. From memory, the biggest hauls were a Garden shed full of the latest gardening equipment (which was handy, given that she lived in a flat...cue ebay!), a mountain bike and a trip to Disneyland Paris. Good luck out there!


Ive literally entered a hundred...... sort of carpet bombing.... I know I will get spam from it but hey-ho......


----------



## Panter (12 Nov 2014)

Good luck! (also thought it was pro-camping, hence my intrigue!)


----------



## Archie_tect (12 Nov 2014)

Good luck!

An elderly aunt used to do this when she first retired- mainly the 'tie-break ones. We got a holiday at Parc Asterix from her when the children were small... it was one of the best holidays we've had!

Please let us know what you win, and if you need any help with obscure things!


----------



## simon the viking (12 Nov 2014)

jagman.2003 said:


> Good luck, I'm not much of a lucky person myself when it comes to competitions.
> Would be nice to hear someone wins these things!
> 
> Also misread first line as 'Professional Camping'.....took some thinking about.



Talking about camping I think I entered one for a £300 2 man expedition tent..... Ideal for that LEJOG I keep threatening to do.....


----------



## Archie_tect (12 Nov 2014)

Mrs A_T once won a teasmade, that went straight in the school raffle and reappeared several years running.


----------



## fossyant (12 Nov 2014)

A friend does it. Mind you she isnt in full time employment. She regularly wins stuff. Its what I call stuff, nothing you really need, but DVDs etc.


----------



## simon the viking (8 Dec 2014)

UPDATE..... (or thread resurrection)
About a month in and had 2 wins.... nothing massive but a nice pen that retails at £25 on Amazon and the latest Christmas TOP GEAR DVD..... still waiting for the massive tele or bike though!!!! 

I am spending at least 2 to 3 hours a day comping though Mrs V is beginning to get a little P****d off with me as she cant use the laptop from 8pm till 11.00 pm every night......


----------



## simon the viking (15 Dec 2014)

A BIG WIN!!!!!
won an Acer tablet worth £150.... Mrs V told Little-un and he seems to think its going to be his!!! er nooooooo!!!! (and the same answer to mrs V as well) but we have bought him one of the new 6 inch Kindle fires for Christmas otherwise I reckon I would have had to fight him for it


----------



## DCLane (15 Dec 2014)

Back in 2008 I won 2 ITV competitions totalling over £20k, a cruise and other stuff.

Since then I've not won much, but then I don't have time to enter them at the moment.

A certain person on here was inspired to start again and won £2000 (apparently) ... but I've not heard a "thanks" from him, or an offer to buy coffee and cake


----------



## SpokeyDokey (15 Dec 2014)

simon the viking said:


> Professional Comping........
> 
> Not just messing about entering 1 competition every month or so but entering over a hundred in the last few days...
> 
> ...



One of my wife's friends has done this for maybe 20 years or so and she has won heaps of stuff - holidays, furniture, electrical goods and a scooter! It is rare for a month or so to go by without her winning something even if it is a small prize like a box of chocolates or something.

The most valuable prize she won was a pair of first class plane tickets to Australia which she gave to her son for his honeymoon.

She is totally obsessed with it though.


----------



## Aperitif (16 Dec 2014)

jagman.2003 said:


> Good luck, I'm not much of a lucky person myself when it comes to competitions.
> Would be nice to hear someone wins these things!
> 
> Also misread first line as 'Professional Camping'.....took some thinking about.



Shows the OP is entering with serious intent. Not just a fly-by-night but a good guy.


----------



## Saluki (16 Dec 2014)

I keep suggesting professional comping to Hubster. He is stuck on dialysis for 4 1/2 hours, 3 times a week and I thought that he might have more fun doing comps than blowing up mutants on FB games. He's not done it so far. I'd do a lot of comps myself but I'm running 2 businesses at the moment and I really really don't have the time. I'll suggest it again, I reckon.


----------



## simon the viking (16 Dec 2014)

Saluki said:


> I keep suggesting professional comping to Hubster. He is stuck on dialysis for 4 1/2 hours, 3 times a week and I thought that he might have more fun doing comps than blowing up mutants on FB games. He's not done it so far. I'd do a lot of comps myself but I'm running 2 businesses at the moment and I really really don't have the time. I'll suggest it again, I reckon.


The way to do it is find a comp forum who list all comps they find I use Moneysavingexpert but there are others.... 

Before I enter I ask myself do I need/want this? if not.... does a close friend or relative want this? if the answer is yes to either I enter.... I think its morally wrong to enter for a valuable but specailist item that I have no use for but would just sell.... I'm sure other people don't worry though!


----------



## ColinJ (3 Oct 2019)

DCLane said:


> Back in 2008 I won 2 ITV competitions totalling over £20k, a cruise and other stuff.
> 
> Since then I've not won much, but then I don't have time to enter them at the moment.
> 
> A certain person on here was inspired to start again and won £2000 (apparently) ... but I've not heard a "thanks" from him, or an offer to buy coffee and cake


 

Much belated thanks, David! I also won a cycling helmet.

And... I got a phonecall from Kiss FM yesterday to tell me that I have just won £1,000 - yay - If you come on another one of my forum rides I will _definitely _reward you with coffee and cake!


----------



## Dave7 (3 Oct 2019)

I bought a lottery ticket once. I didnt win so never bought another one.


----------



## Rusty Nails (3 Oct 2019)

simon the viking said:


> The way to do it is find a comp forum who list all comps they find I use Moneysavingexpert but there are others....
> 
> Before I enter I ask myself do I need/want this? if not.... does a close friend or relative want this? if the answer is yes to either I enter.... I think its morally wrong to enter for a valuable but specailist item that I have no use for but would just sell.... I'm sure other people don't worry though!



Now the thread has come back from the dead it would be interesting to see how you got on and whether you are still comping five years on.


----------



## simon the viking (3 Oct 2019)

Rusty Nails said:


> Now the thread has come back from the dead it would be interesting to see how you got on and whether you are still comping five years on.


As OP.....To be honest no.. It was taking up far too much of my time and after a few months I got bored... No big win of a holiday, bike, giant TV. The Acer tablet and smart pen I won are both still in use regularly though. 

The problem I found was that whilst I didn't mind the spam it generated, it was hard work looking through the hundreds of emails a day to see if I had won anything.

I write to magazines a lot now and have won a few star letter prizes. in the past year I've had 2 sets of Lezyne lights (1 set got sold on here ) and a very nice Manfrotto camera back pack.

I might drop back into the forum I used as I still want a bigger tv!


----------



## ColinJ (3 Oct 2019)

simon the viking said:


> The problem I found was that whilst I didn't mind the spam it generated, it was hard work looking through the hundreds of emails a day to see if I had won anything.


That problem has greatly diminished since the EU brought in GDPR. Instead of being sneakily registered for spam unless you opted out (as in the past), these days you have to opt IN before they can send it. Organisers of some competitions insist that you must opt in to take part, but at least you know that you are doing so - no more '_You will not be opted in if you opt out of opting in to not receiving emails_' kind of trickery. (I can't be bothered to work out if that makes sense, but I used to encounter that kind of stuff.)


----------



## Kempstonian (14 Oct 2019)

I never do competitions, but I was reading an Angling magazine some time ago and I completed the crossword. On a whim, I decided 'nothing to lose' and posted it off - and I won a fishing rod!

Haven't done a competiton since...


----------



## DCBassman (23 Oct 2019)

Back in 2010, you could enter pack codes from Alpen onto their website for a compo. Thought we might win some fancy cereal bowls.
Won an all-expenses week in Zermatt!


----------



## Rockster57 (15 Nov 2020)

For a few years I've had a modest amount of Premium Bonds. So far I've won Jack! 

One day.......


----------



## ColinJ (15 Nov 2020)

I'm still beavering away, though I have only won £25 on the PBs in the last year. I'm hoping to get one decent win to help see me through to my state pension in just over a year's time.


----------



## Globalti (15 Nov 2020)

Since I've nothing else to do I'll tell you a story I heard back in the mid 70s when I was hitch hiking a lot and I got a lift from somebody who worked for the Co-op in Manchester.

The Co-op and Colgate Palmolive decided to join forces in a big promotion and run a competition called Dig for Silver. The idea was that the competition was run on toothpaste packets and the four winners would be invited to New Century House where there would be a huge pile of shilling coins and some sacks and the four winners would be allowed to keep whatever they could shovel into sacks in ten minutes. Trials were run with the heavy coins and a certain amount was budgeted but of course they needed big piles for the cameras. 

The four winners turned out to be elderly so no risk of too much cost. But the organisers forgot that the rules stated that if you were ill you could bring a representative to dig for you. All four winners turned up with an arm in a sling and a burly representative and the stopwatch was started. Co-op and Colgate execs watched in horror as the huge pile of cash disappeared into the sacks at a cost of thousands, a lot of money in the 60s. The film footage was destroyed and the competition never mentioned again. The way the bloke told me the story I had no reason not to believe it was true.


----------



## Broughtonblue (9 Jan 2021)

Del Boy won a competition on the back of a pack of mega flakes, unfortunately Rodney wasnt impressed with the holiday, he hated being in the groovy gang 😂


----------

