I LOVE WINNING

Update on Funny Complaint Letter #4!!!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 06:42:00 +0000

Well, it only took six months of back and forth, but we've finally prevailed in our fight with the Shangri-La Hotel...

To refresh your memory of the nightmare that was our honeymoon stay at the hotel, here's Funny Complaint Letter #4 to the Shangri-La Hotel Cairns.

The hotel ignored my first complaint letter, stalled for several months over my second one because a key manager was on holidays, then tried blaming us, then offered for us to return to their hotel. Not only do we have zero need to travel back to Cairns so soon, but as if we'd really want to after the last experience! The last straw was their "take it or leave it" attitude when I was offering a reasonable alternative to settle the dispute (ie to stay in their Sydney property instead).

Finally, I got back to our travel agency, Phil Hoffmann Travel, who were most helpful in sorting out the whole sordid affair. Full points to them!

The outcome? A $250 refund for our first night's stay and us vowing to never darken the door of the Shangri-Blah ever again!

I Won a Lush Christmas Pack!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 05:16:00 +0000

I was ecstatic when Paula Joye, ex-editor of Madison magazine, launched her long-awaited web site, LifeStyled, a couple of months ago. Even more excitement ensued when I found a competition on it...

My husband, Adam, is a huge fan of Lush bath bombs (I know, kinda foofy for a guy to like, but he's at peace with it). I'm somewhat partial to them myself, especially in gorgeous smells like cotton candy and Redskins. The competition on LifeStyled was to win one of ten gorgeous Christmas packs by answering in 25 words or less "why you deserve a Lush-cious Christmas".

Here's my entry:
I'd love to go ballistic,
It'd be such a rush,
To relax in soapy goodness,
Thanks to Life.Styled. and Lush!

And guess what? I won!

I received pack wrapped Japanese-style in the colourful scarf, with three ballistics and a soap. Beautiful!

If anyone's looking for me, I'm in the bath...

Pay It Forward Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 12:21:00 +0000

Hopefully you've heard of that inspirational movie, Pay It Forward, starring Helen Hunt, Kevin Spacey and Haley Joel Osment. If not, get thee to a DVD store right away. Well, I LOVE WINNING follower, Ashley from After Nine to Five, is currently running a really neat giveaway and not only have I entered, the rules are I must run one myself!

Here's how it works. I'll be giving away five handmade gifts, one to each of the first five people who comment on this post and in turn post their own Pay It Forward giveaway. The rules are that the prizes must be all handmade by you and be sent sometime in 2011.

The gifts I'll be sending out will be (in no particular order):

A pair of earrings.
A cartoon I've drawn about you and your blog.
A greeting card I've created just for you.
A bookmark I've made about your blog.
A poem about you and your blog.

Don't forget to give me a way to contact you and include a link to your own giveaway in your comment. Now get cracking. Your time... starts... NOW!

New Year's Resolutions

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 04:21:00 +0000

What I've Won Lately

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 04:10:00 +0000

There's been no wins in sight lately, probably because I haven't entered much! After this months-long drought, I've won two competitions this week. Both prizes were makeup, which of course I'm swimming in already. No matter -- it's Christmas time, so they'll make excellent presents!

The first prize was a Napoleon Perdis lip lacquer in Lolita Lilac won from a scratchie attached to Shop Til You Drop magazine. I sent in my card and, I must admit, never expected to receive my prize (I'm pretty skeptical about this sort of promotion, having been burnt in the past). But hooray, it arrived this week and in a very pretty colour too. Joy to the world! : )

I also received some luxurious Dior goodies (pictured below). There's a funny story behind this actually. I'm a huge Scrooge when it comes to makeup. Most of it I get for free from a competition or magazine or it cost me about $5. Several months ago a Diorshow mascara lobbed onto one of my magazines and I absolutely adored it. Once it ran out I decided to splash out and actually buy myself one (at $52 a pop. Ouch!). When I went to the store, the hip-pocket blow was softened slightly by (a) a 10% discount that day at Myer and (b) the mascara being in Christmas box set with a makeup remover and eyeliner at no extra cost. Feeling pretty chuffed about this, I was even more ecstatic to learn they were running a raffle. And the rest is history. I won the raffle and received...

A Dior Backstage Makeup kit, including Diorshow mascara, Skinflash radiance booster pen, makeup bag and mirror
Dior Vernis Pink Porcelain nail lacquer
5-colour iridescent eyeshadow in Smoky Crystal
Little Luxuries perfume set, including mini versions of J'adore, Miss Dior Cherie, Hypnotic Poison and Dior Addict 2

Santa and the elves will be delivering some fabulousness this Christmas!

The Westfield Insider Fashion Blogger Competition

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 14:39:00 +0000

Getting paid $100,000 to shop and blog for a year? Where do I sign up?

Westfield shopping centres recently ran this dream job contest and I jumped at the chance. With such a covetable, glamorous prize, it was obviously going to be a hard-fought competition. Eager entrants posted their favourite shopping tips on the Facebook page, an advertisement was posted on job-seeking web sites and fashionistas flocked to Westfields around the country to audition/interview for the role.

Here's the lowdown from the web site...

The Westfield Insider will...

Share shopping information on the Westfield Insider blog, Facebook page and through email, video and other channels.

Create engaging online content to help others get more from their shopping.

Research new products and trends both in centre and online.

Be a presenter and contributor for online video content.

Encourage online participation and respond to requests from shoppers through social media channels such as Facebook.

Travel interstate for key events, and report their experiences online.

Act as a shopping spokesperson for publicity purposes.

Personal Skills & Attributes:
The winning applicant will:
Have a genuine love of shopping - particularly in finding great value.

Be technology savvy and preferably active in social media, such as Facebook, Twitter or their own blog.

Possess excellent communication and presentation skills.

Have strong and engaging written skills.

Demonstrate a flair for style and the ability to advise others.

Be motivated, self-confident, positive and professional.

Possess a genuine passion for sharing their shopping knowledge with others.

Have full Australian work rights.

And here's my entry, clueing you in on my three best fashion recommendations this season...

Bonds trackies are the must-have buy this season. While your finger is hovering over speed dial for the Fashion Police, hear me out. Comfy? Obviously. Stylish? Yes! Snap up a slimline cuffed pair from Harris Scarfe for $49.95, push up to mid-calf and team with heels and a structured jacket. Then strut confidently as a crowd parts around you, marvelling at your sartorial genius. Ease into the trend in black, grey marle or denim versions, or permanently blind suckers in the street with fluoro pink. And yes, I am trapped in an 80s time warp and I’ll thank you to smile and nod indulgently. ; )

You may have guessed, but no one could accuse me of being a fashion wallflower. I like my colours bright, my heels skyscraper and my jewellery uber-pimped. I’m a sucker for an obnoxiously large cocktail ring, me -- the bigger the better, IMHO. However, if you prefer something a little more demure, fancy a purr-worthy bow-shaped ring from Diva for $4.99? Guaranteed to go with everything in your wardrobe and not cause a fight with your boyf/mum/bank manager when you reveal the price. If you don’t fear the ire of the shopgirl, give her a fiver and tell her to keep the change. Run, don’t walk, to snap up this bargain.

Just what type of boots are made for walkin’ this season? Well, I’ll be Amsterdamned if I’ll be wearing clogs, that’s for sure – they’re just not flattering on me at all. Instead, I’ll be hot-stepping it this summer in Sportsgirl’s Desiree camel-toned wedges for $69.95. An instant style update in the walkable alternative to stilettos, with all the flattering height of their excruciatingly tiny-heeled counterparts. Team with the sorbet-and-candy-coloured threads of the season and lick your lips for some retail refreshments!

Sadly, I wasn't the eventual winner, despite making it through to the interview round. Congratulations to Alyce, who promises to be a excellent bargain hunter and ambassador. Meet her here and discover her latest fashion finds. : )

The Versatile Blogger Award!!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 22:56:00 +0000

Thanks so much to Nothing Too Fancy for this lovely blog award! Her delicious blog caters to your every foodie impulse, with photos, reviews, recipes and more. Yum!

Here's the lowdown on this award...

This is just a fun way to meet other bloggers and get to know one another, by passing these fun bloggy awards to other bloggers that we like! There are some FUN rules in accepting this bloggy award.

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award.
2. Share seven things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 15 other bloggers who you recently discovered and think are fabulous.
4. Contact the bloggers you choose and let them know they won the award.

Seven things about me...

I am obsessed with Big Things (ie tourist attractions like the Big Banana and Big Pineapple) and "collect" them by taking photos. Gotta catch 'em all. ; )
I love taking dancing classes. At the moment I'm learning pole dancing!
My high school's claim to fame was that Malcolm Blight, ex-Adelaide Crows coach, was a student there. Academically, we were not so much.
I really don't like jelly beans. Even more so when I recently tasted some disgusting Jelly Belly brand ones (booger, pencil shavings and barf, anyone?).
I am a nail polish queen -- I own about 30 different bottles! My favourite brand is OPI.
I've had roughly a bazillion jobs, including McDonald's burger flipper, charity collector, tutor, admin assistant, car counter, data entry dude, industrial officer and mediator.
When I grow up, I wanna be a Lego model designer. ; )

I'd like to honour these blogs with the Versatile Blogger award...

1. Just Married With Coupons

2. To Spend Or Save

3. Steals, Deals & Life

4. Deal-licious Debby

5. Surviving a Teacher's Salary

6. Shining 2 Save

7. Colies Kitchen

8. Mommy Katie

9. Coupon Mamacita
10. Adventures of a Couponista
11. Be One Fine Day
12. WV Stitcher
13. Fabulous Finds by Nimbler Grove
14. Kostiuk Crew
15. You Brew My Tea

So many wonderful giveaway blogs out there -- it was difficult to choose. Congratulations everyone! : )

Celebrating 100 Followers!!!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 22:23:00 +0000

Thanks to I LOVE WINNING'S merry band of followers for joining this blog. There are now 100 of us!

Actually, when I woke up this morning, it was 101. An especially warm welcome to our most recent additions, Coupon Mamacita, shining2save and Couponista (I'm pretty sure one of you was the 100th follower). : )

I will be glowing all day with the achievement!

Next stop, global domination?

Roadtest #16: Photo Competitions

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 07:34:00 +0000

Are you more snappy than Crackle and Pop's famous buddy? Then you could be snapping up some fantastic prizes.

There's an unmistakable magic to taking photos -- the colours, suspending a moment in time, the exotic locations, gorgeous models, capturing an instant the naked eye would miss... I have always enjoyed browsing other people's pictures and taking my own. I've even dabbled in photography competitions before, but this time I'm scoping out the scene to gauge if it could turn into a more regular gig.

Where to Find Them

Hit the major photography magazines at your local news agency for inspiration, or head online to scour their web sites for contests. My Google search turned up Digital Photo magazine's web site, and right now they have 11 entries under their "Contests" tab. Not all currently open for entries, but still, JACKPOT!

I try my hand at their "Art of Photography" competition. There are four themes:

Action Storytelling
Conservation in Focus
Environmental Portraits
Light is the Subject

I chose the fourth, register on the site and send in two entries from our honeymoon a couple of weeks ago. The one below I called "Inspiration"

What do you reckon? I've clearly got the makings of a famous paparazzo, no?

Also try travel, caravan and camping magazines, newspapers (you may have to ring them to ask if they hold an annual comp), camera stores, photo sharing sites like Flickr, and Facebook. There was also a contest run by the conservation department of my state's government recently, with entries taken in national parks.

Browsing the Digital Photo galleries, the pictures are stunning -- there is a stratospheric standard. Choose photos from your collection that make your friends gasp, or go home!

Do You Need an Expensive Camera?

In a word, nope. There are plenty of amateur competitions out there, and as long as you aren't using a pinhole, disposable or mobile phone camera, you should be fine. Actually, scratch that last -- mobile cameras are getting pretty good these days! Our camera cost about 200 Australian bucks just recently.

Do I Need to Know Technical Whosywhatsits?

A working knowledge of uploading pictures to your computer and its photo program for displaying and editing your masterpieces wouldn't go astray. Ditto for knowing a .jpeg from a .gif file format. Apart from that, not so much. I wouldn't know a view finder from my ass/elbow.

Let's Talk Prizes!

Expect assorted photo geek gadgetry and glorious, glorious cash!

Should you do it? I say: definitely worth a shot!

Funny Complaint Letter #4

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:56:00 +0000

Our honeymoon accommodation left a little to be desired...

Dear Shangri-Blah Hotel,

We write to advise that when Mick Jagger sang that he couldn't get no satisfaction, he must have been describing your hotel.

Booking the Shangri-La Cairns for Monday 23 - Sunday 29 August 2010, we had high expectations, given its luxury reputation, price tag and the fact we indicated we were honeymooners when booking.

The impression left by your hotel was so far below our expectations, it was crowned World Limbo Champion 2010.

Picture this: we arrive at 1pm for check-in, decidedly un-fresh from our red-eye flight from Adelaide. We are told our room is not ready and to return at 2pm (fair enough, that's the official check-in time). We return at 2pm to be told your computer system has crashed and housekeeping is behind schedule. We wait TWO AND A HALF HOURS and watch the 50 or so other customers milling around served ahead of us until we are among the last couple of room refugees left. Let me tell you, this sucked harder than a high-class call girl.

We approach reception, who claim to know nothing of our honeymoon bonus, but finally our room is ready. On trudging to the ends of the earth, we discover no, housekeeping needs another 20 minutes with our room. The fellow toting our luggage, Max, rings downstairs and when he asks to speak with Aurelie on the desk, is met with confusion about who she is (what the hell?). On returning to the front desk, we ask to speak with the manager. Javier materialises and leads us into the Horizon Club lounge, seeming to think this is a special treat, rather than something we are already entitled to with our room rate. He promises we will be compensated in some way and that our room will be ready in 10 minutes. Twenty minutes later, it is, after we have asked to speak with Javier again and are assured this will happen.

Javier and the promised compensation never arrive. Our honeymoon champagne and cheese bonus rock up the next day at a very inconvenient time for us (we were, ahem, indisposed).

Amidst all this bumbling, the ONE shining light in customer service was Max on the baggage/concierge desk. He was entirely understanding and helpful, giving us excellent restaurant recommendations when requested.

Given the fact our first night at your hotel was entirely ruined, we request that, at the least, you refund our room rate for that night. However, if you would like to convert us from thoroughly dissatisfied customers to the kind of disciples that sing your praises at every opportunity, you could always surprise us by showing exemplary customer service now and go above and beyond. Now is your chance to redeem the name of Shangri-La in our eyes and those of our friends. We hope to hear your response in 7 days detailing how you will resolve this matter.

Cairns is a truly lovely destination and it is unfortunate our trip was marred by the poor service we experienced.

Yours sincerely,

Angry at the Shangri

aka Rebecca Doyle and Adam Douglas

UPDATE: WANT TO KNOW THE ENDING TO THIS TALE OF WOE? CHECK IT OUT HERE!

Roadtest #16: Twitter Competitions

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 02:04:00 +0000

Flicking through Cosmopolitan magazine recently, I found a wonderful article devoted to Twitter competitions. Apparently bird is indeed the word...

This article (page 233, Australian September 2010 issue) shows a smattering of previous offers available on tweet street, including:

@ZUShoes: Freebies of movie tickets, shoes and DVDs and sales forecasts.
@CottonOn: On Valentine's Day, Cotton On ran a Twitter comp where winners scored free T-shirts.
@VirginBlue: Last year, Virgin Blue advertised 1,000 fares on Twitter for a tiny 9 cents each!
@PenguinBooksAus: Earn free books from literary trivia questions.
@RoadshowFilms: Win DVDs and movie tickets talking about your fave films.

I'm particularly taken with the discount airfares!! So, how do you access these glorious goodies? The first step is to sign yourself up to Twitter. Go to www.twitter.com to get started. Once you're all set up, you'll need to start following businesses that would hold Twitter promotions.

My account (beckdoyle) is now following: Virgin Blue, Witchery, Bonds, Roadshow Films, Sportsgirl, Mimco, Lenard's, Boost Juice, and Dymocks. In addition to the brands mentioned in Cosmo, I found these by checking out Brands To Follow, which lists a whole host of famous Aussie companies.

Because these companies post competition tweets somewhat sporadically, you may need to trawl for current comp tweets using the Twitter search box. I did this by using keywords like "win" and "competition", but found narrowing it down to the type of prize (eg "win DVD" or "win tickets") produces the best results. You will definitely need to sort the wheat from the chaff, but can find some excellent comps offering small but desirable prizes. To enter, retweet the post, go to a web site or tweet a response to the business's/blog's/web site's Twitter page.

How to make the most from Twitter? Tweet, compete, repeat!

Roadtest #15: Blog Giveaways

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 10:55:00 +0000

Who says you can't teach an old blog new tricks...

By running a blog giveaway in April, I learnt:

Giveaways are brilliant for advertising a blog and growing your readership, if run properly.
Squillions of tiny blogs are holding giveaways right now, hoping to attract your attention.
If blogs are too small or have lacklustre promotion, often only a handful of entrants bother participating.

Points 2 and 3 are great news if you're wanting to win blog giveaways. You just need to find these pint-sized blogs and start entering.

Trouble is, you have a good chance of winning because they're poorly promoted, but unlikely to find them for the same reason. Happily, there's so many blogs in this boat, you're likely to stumble across them while hopping from site to site. Here's some links to start you off: Etsy Giveaways, Blog Giveaways, and International Giveaways.

So, how do you enter? Common entry methods include: leaving a comment, following the blog, writing about the competition on Twitter or your blog, and becoming a Facebook fan. Be warned -- make sure the contest is open to international entrants or people from your country. It would terribly disappointing to win and then be disqualified because shipping would be too expensive.

To give you an idea of the types of prizes, today I entered to win:

$25 to use in an online bead store (yep, I'm a jewellery-making freak)
Handmade sterling silver ring valued at $80
Fiorelli handbag
Three American Apparel nail polishes
Gift pack of bath bombs and cupcakes, jewellery and nail polishes

I know, these prizes are very girly, but there's a much wider variety available: books, CDs, free website design, gift cards, DVDs... The list goes on.

So go on, support the little guys of the blogosphere. You'll be all a-blog at what's out there!

Ask the Judges

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 21:53:00 +0000

In an upcoming segment on I LOVE WINNING, I will be interviewing competition judges for their advice on how to win more often and bigger prizes and costly mistakes to avoid.

I'm looking for your assistance. Think back to those great Competitions That Got Away, where you couldn't understand how you didn't win. Sure, there were other contestants, but your entry was brilliant. Or was it? What did the judge really think? Here's your chance to find out!

What would you like to ask the judges?

Roadtest #14: Surveys

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 22:28:00 +0000

There's a fine line between survey and scam. Who's going to test it? Well, I am.

Plenty of survey sites are floating around the Internet: All Woman Talk, Lightspeed, Opinions Paid, Pure Profile, Valued Opinions, That's What I Think and Your Voice, to name a few, with new ones cropping up constantly. The deal is, you earn points or receive competition entries for completing market research surveys, expressing your household grocery, banking, transport, health etc preferences for the sweet, sweet goodies at the end. Essentially, you sing for your supper.

To begin, I suggest consulting a free competition forum such as the Australian Competitions Club to sort the reputable from the rubbish. And that's exactly what I did. I selected All Woman Talk for my trial, which awards quarterly prizes such as Red Balloon Days vouchers, movie passes and cash for opinions on magazines (isn't it perfect for me?). It was easy to sign up, but unfortunately they have no open studies at this time. Poop.

Back to the drawing board. Another famous survey site is Email Cash, now known as RewardsCentral. Earning my first 100 points by joining and updating my profile felt like running a marathon. I sneaked a peek at how many points to earn the teensiest cash reward -- 3,300 for a $30 voucher. Hmmm. Apparently I will be sent regular emails with new surveys, so if you made it a habit and did the click-throughs and other daily points earners, a reward might not be so far away. You can also redeem points to shop online or donate them to charity. You can choose between the Red Cross, Guide Dogs, Amnesty International and the Fred Hollows Foundation to donate $10 by using 1,200 points.

All up, I'm not sure these survey sites are for me, but for those who don't trust their luck, it's a great way to work towards your reward and know when you've "won" your prize. But be warned, I've heard rumours some sites are reluctant to pay up once you redeem your prize.

So do surveys get my tick of approval? Yes, no, maybe...

Funny Complaint Letter #3

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 09:30:00 +0000

Priceline ticked me off today, so I filed a complaint. Let's hope they send a huge basket of "I'm sorry". Preferably Revlon.

Dear Mrs Priceline,

For nigh on 15 years, I have partaken in Priceline's moderately-priced makeup and hair accessories. Today, prescription in hand, I tried your pharmacy section. I had been unsure whether you even *had* a functioning pharmacy and now I see the answer is, technically, no. The service I received was not at all functional. Actually, it was far more f*ucked-tional.

You see, I was enjoying my God-given right to wear whatever I damned well pleased on my day off. For me, this consists of not taking several hours to straighten my hair and frocking up in my finest trackie dacks. I did, however, stop short of donning ugg boots. Labouring under the apparently mistaken apprehension that your pharmacy staff would occasionally see unkempt people with all manner of medical afflictions, I thought they would likely not give a crap. Not so. The pharmacy ass-istant suddenly gets all mouthy with the questions, assuming (a) I'm on welfare and (b) my desire for her to dispense two servings of my chosen medical product at once is an attempt to stock up for my drug dealing activities. I am informed that vaginally-inserted plastic contraceptive rings have an excellent street price, especially secondhand, and feel I am missing out on a lucrative career. Years at law school wasted.

Having moved out of Hoity-toityville two years ago, I've since relished driving to my local down-to-earth mall and *not* being judged on the number of Louis Vuitton accessories adorning my person. Until now. Lift your game or you will pay the price(line) in losing a formerly loyal customer.

Yours (somewhat) sincerely,

Pissed Off with Priceline

Roadtest #13: Shopping Malls

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 13:58:00 +0000

Madonna was onto something -- I am definitely a material girl...

Working in the city, I tend to frequent the same eateries and haunt the same shoe stores every weekday. Lately, I've made a conscious effort to take the arcade less travelled to investigate the prize-winning potential of that most sacred of places, the shopping mall.

Frankly, I was digging for an exciting stamp-your-card food court promotion (receive a stamp for every meal you order and enter once you've collected five -- that sort of thing), but I was out of luck.

However, competitions and offers I did find included:

1. Pet store: 300 Marmaduke prize packs in a colouring competition (slightly outside my age range, methinks).

2. Shopping centre: Win a global fashion tour by spending over $50 in a specialty shop.

3. Priceline pharmacy: Free movie ticket when you purchase any Swisse product.

4. Myer department store: Win a Twilight prize pack by purchasing any Twilight Eclipse product and then enter in 25 words or less online.

5. Borders bookstore: Purchase any Lonely Planet book with a promotional sticker to instant win your way around the world.

I haven't thrown my hat in the ring for any of these prizes yet, but I'm craving a free holiday, so I think 2 and 5 bear further investigation. This list disappoints me, though. I swear on occasion I've barely been able to walk five paces in a mall without a competition hitting me square between the eyes. It must not be open season on competitions this time of year. Perhaps Christmas time is when they all come out to play.

The verdict? Some malls woo me, some malls lure me. I think they're okay. But if they don't give me proper prizes, I just walk away-ay.

Roadtest #12: Puzzles

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 03:04:00 +0000

I bought Take 5 magazine and the That's Life! Puzzler on the Go mini-book to relax this long weekend with some puzzle perfection...

Between them, these magazines offer over $120,000 in cash and prizes for the discerning competition connoisseur. Apart from the pleasantly large prize pool, I was impressed with the quality of the prizes themselves. Take 5 is offering: a Toyota Yaris car, four cooking sets, nine DVD packs, three irons, ten spice racks, two Nintendo Wii gaming packs, two video cameras, three board game sets, seven toy packs, 38 family bowling passes, $5,000, 28 alarm clocks, 150 cookbook sets, ten cutlery sets, two mantle clocks, 295 scarf and beanie sets, various cash prizes of $50-$1,000 and a partridge in a pear tree. Okay, I might be lying about that last one! There are other prizes on offer too, including a Vanuatu family holiday, which are not on the coupon and you need to ring in to win. Although spanning the spectrum from ho-hum to holy cow, overall I'm sure you'll agree this is an impressive bounty indeed.

I was dazzled by the prizes, but I was also delighted at how enjoyable the puzzles were, just for their own sake. You may know I'm a Scrabble junkie and nine-letter-word puzzle fan. I'm not much for crosswords and sudoku, however, and I'd feared they'd be wall-to-wall in these books. I was rapt then to discover the games range from the classic crossword to battleships, logic puzzles, anagrams, crack the code and trivia. What they lacked in difficulty, they made up for with variety and freedom from frustration. Great for the tedious train/bus ride to work, doctor's surgery waiting room or lazy afternoon in the backyard hammock.

So how do you actually win? Puzzles are listed on one big entry coupon next to corresponding prizes. For each puzzle, solve it to reveal a mystery word, which you write on the coupon. Ideally, you write the answer to every prize puzzle before posting away your entry, but you can enter as many or as few contests as you like. I'm entering every single one and posting my coupons off today. Keep your fingers crossed for me! I will definitely be partaking in these again, probably with Puzzler on the Go. Being purely puzzles, you are able to select from such a lovely buffet of brainteasers.

So now, it's your turn. If you're not eager to try this type of competition, I am truly puzzled!

Roadtest #11: Quiz Nights

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 07:08:00 +0000

Picture courtesy of: http://www.instantquizzes.co.uk/

Whether it's the weekly pub quiz down at your local watering hole or a yearly event for a suburban netball team, quiz nights are ideal fundraising and fun-raising opportunities to win...

First up, I admit -- I pretty much suck at trivia. I have degrees in mathematical and computer sciences, English and law. I can solve a Rubik's cube, am a whiz at Scrabble, solve 9-letter word puzzles with ease, and can recite the entire theme song of The Nanny off by heart. Despite being this incredible repository of useless knowledge, my brain just does not hold quiz-friendly facts.

You see, I couldn't care less who's the president of Venezuela, what's the third-largest lake in the world, or which year the Berlin Wall fell. I see no reason to have these facts on speed dial in my brain. If I need them for some ungodly reason, I'll research them. That's what Google is for, folks.

I'm not intellectually challenged or intellectually lazy -- I prefer to think of it as intellectually picky. If I'm not intrigued by a morsel of knowledge then no sale -- my brain refuses to retain it.

With that in mind, Adam and I headed to a city pub last night for his ultimate frisbee club's annual quiz night. I added very little to the table other than aesthetic beauty *saucy wink*, but in our midst was Mark the Maths Genius, Alexis the History Buff, a philosophy student, Adam the computer dude and Formula 1 expert and various computer dude mates, plus Robyn, the only other chick and a fellow law graduate. We felt confident we could hold our own.

There were eight rounds, each on a different topic, peppered by various mini-games. For a gold coin donation, you could enter:

Heads and Tails: Stand up, and place both hands on your bum, both on your head, or one on each to guess whether two coins will land heads or tails. Sit down once you get it wrong. Last person standing is the winner.
Process of Elimination: Stay standing while a series of instructions are read out. You are eliminated and must sit down once you fit the description, eg "Sit down if you have green eyes", "Sit down if you own a GPS" etc.
Coin Toss: The winner is the person to land their coin the closest to the target.

Our table failed to win any of these, but a word to the wise... If you want to increase your chances, hold off until the last game of each. People's enthusiasm waned and less people entered later on. I tried Process of Elimination, but was thwarted by "Sit down if you're wearing contact lenses". Darn cruddy eyesight diddles me again! I wasn't overly keen on that $50 shopping mall voucher anyway.

The prizes were all around that prize range and were quite nice. Adam bought three tickets to the raffle as well and didn't win a prize. One dude from our table won a bottle of wine and there were heaps of worthwhile prizes, with winners getting to choose their prize on a first in, best dressed basis. It was a bit suss when five of the first six prize-winners were all from the same table, but perhaps they bought more tickets? Who knows.

But back to the quiz itself. I made a handful of worthwhile contributions (Venus is the planet closest in size to Earth, Newton's third law is not F=ma, etc). However, I was nigh on completely useless for what should have been my best subjects, "Movies" and "Musical Themes from TV and Movies". I thought the Buffy music was The X-Files for the first few seconds (what???) and failed to recognise the Melrose Place tune when I only watched every episode of that show during the 90s.

There was one last way I could help our cause and I believe it fueled our spectacular comeback in the last rounds. Every so often we needed to hand up a sheet of answers to puzzles such as naming companies based on their logos or matching collective nouns to different animals (pride of lions, school of fish, etc). Using a cocktail of bullshit, guesstimates and baloney logic (crocodiles sort of sunbake, so let's put "a bask of crocodiles"), Robyn and I managed to get a surprising amount right. And our table came second out of about 8-10 tables. We even lost by one tiny point! Not that it mattered, as we won a gigantic basket of goodies that we shared out amongst our table members, including buying another round of beers with our $50 bar voucher. Adam and I scored two chick-flick books, a nougat bar, chocolate-coated peanuts (woohoo!!!) and the basket itself (handy for a picnic or perhaps a new bed for our kitties).

So gather up your best nerd buddies, bone up on your collective nouns and past presidents and catch a quiz night near you. Often there's a prize even for the last place-getters, but win or lose, you're bound to raise a little fun(d) along the way.

The Morning Show Update

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 30 May 2010 11:30:00 +0000

Well, I didn't fart, hurl or hiccup during my TV appearance, so I'm calling that a win. If you haven't seen it, check it out: Morning Show appearance.

In fact, it was kinda exhilarating when I wasn't hyperventilating. I showed up at the Radelaide studio opposite the brewery mega-early and then spent a whole heap o' waiting-around time with the cameraman, Rick. Occasionally someone from the Sydney studio checked I still had a pulse by small-talking to me down the earpiece and I could hear the hosts as the time got closer. I was particularly weirded out by a stretch of silence being broken by someone's joke about nipples during an ad break (I think it was Larry Emdur, but don't quote me!).

The actual segment flew by. Once I got going, I actually crapped on too long and was a bit thrown by being asked questions veering away from those planned the day before. I felt massive relief afterwards and raced to my friend's place nearby to catch myself live on the tube (we have a 30-minute delay here). I also called my work so they could check it out too.

It sure was a rush, but I'd have a coronary if I was on TV too often. I have a new-found respect and empathy for the CommSec guy, Tom Piotrowski, who I dubbed "Nervous Guy" years ago for his anxious on-air persona. Sorry Tom, I now see why!

Roadtest #10: Supermarket Competitions

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Mon, 17 May 2010 12:17:00 +0000

Once upon a time there was a girl named Beck. She trudged the supermarket aisles, dutifully carrying out her evil grocery chores. Then one day, she saw more competitions then she could ever imagine...

In this magical land (Coles) there were fabulous products and prizes and freebies (oh my!):

Snickers bar (1 in 6 wins a free bar instantly)
Perfect Italiano cheese (purchase 2 products and win $1,000 instantly or the chance to win an exclusive Masterchef experience)
Pantene (Free adult movie ticket with every treatment purchased)
Milo bar (instantly win $50 cash)
Pepsi Max (win a $50,000 UK Top Gear trip)
Dora the Explorer cheese (3 family holidays + Dora prizes daily)

Some were on pads of entry forms hanging like fruits from the vinelike shelves, ripe for the picking. Others were printed on the products themselves or on stickers attached.

Reading the packs carefully, she followed the instructions for her desired prizes. She purchased a Snickers bar, but unfortunately when she ripped open the wrapper, mischievous elves had left a message saying "Try Again". She enjoyed the chocolate anyway. Next she entered the Perfect Italiano competition. She could enter numbers from the barcodes online, by SMS or telephone. Beck kept her receipt in case she will be asked for it as proof of purchase. She neatly filed it away in her receipts folder.

She decided to save the other promotions for her next adventure in this fantastic place. In the meantime she will wait in her cottage to hear if she has won a Masterchef experience. If not, she has decided to buy more cheese to build her next cottage and keep the oven hot in case ratbag kids try to eat it.

The next time you're cruising the supermarket aisles wish very, very hard and competitions will appear everywhere. Enter them and things could end happily ever after in the land of fair retail.

I LOVE WINNING on Channel 7's Morning Show!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Tue, 11 May 2010 11:34:00 +0000

Television's The Morning Show contacted me after reading my Femail.com.au article on winning and asked me to appear on the show. So, it's showtime.

I will be appearing tomorrow (Wednesday, 12 May 2010 -- about 9:50am, Adelaide time) to discuss the wonderful world of comping -- how I began the hobby, prizes I've won, and tips on winning. I can't wait to chat with Larry Emdur and Kylie Gillies, 'cos, you know, I'm just wild about Harry (Larry) and Harry's just wild about meeeeee (Larry). (Does anyone else remember that advert?)

Now, just praying I won't embarrass myself Bridget Jones-style. Luckily there are no fireman's poles to slide down. And apparently I'll wear an earpiece, but won't be able to see myself or the hosts on a screen. I think this is for the best, as I can kid myself into thinking no one can see me. Nerves aside, I am ecstatic about this opportunity. I haven't been on TV before, so I'll try to relax and have fun.

Will let you know how I go!

And the winner is...

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 02 May 2010 09:04:00 +0000

The winner of the Coles Myer gift card is...

SANDYBOTTOMS!

Congratulations, Sandy, and thanks to everyone who entered. : )

I hope you enjoyed checking out I LOVE WINNING. Look for further competitions in the future and in the meantime, I'll keep those hints on winning competitions coming.

Stay tuned for the next exciting roadtest...

Win a Coles Myer Gift Card!!

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 09:48:00 +0000

Enter I LOVE WINNING's first competition!

Last week, I ran a What Would You Like to Win? poll, asking readers whether they'd like to win a Candace Bushnell book, Coles Myer gift card, 6-month subscription to In Style magazine or Chanel nail polish. With a whopping 80% of the vote, the Coles Myer gift card was the clear favourite.

For a chance to win the $40 gift card, either:

become a follower of I LOVE WINNING by clicking on the

button to the right

OR

comment on any post on the "I LOVE WINNING" site. Please leave your email address so I can notify you if you win.

Easier than Paris Hilton!

Entries close on Sunday, 25 April 2010 and the winner will be determined by random draw. Remember to pop by next week and check if you're the winner!

What Would You Like to Win?

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 09:52:00 +0000

I LOVE WINNING will be running its first giveaway!!! Trouble is, with so many lovely prizes out there, I need your help to choose. The nominees are...

The new book by Sex and the City author, Candace Bushnell -- The Carrie Diaries

$40 Coles Myer Gift Card

6-month subscription to fashion bible, In Style magazine

Pink Chanel nail polish

Your votes please!

Roadtest #9: Phone and SMS Competitions

noreply@blogger.com (BECKS) — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 05:12:00 +0000

Don't be like ET and phone home. Call competition promoters and winning prizes will no longer be alien to you...

Confession time: A Doctor Who DVD is the only prize I've ever won by phone or SMS. At a minimum of 55 cents per call for 190 numbers, I'm not fond of the entry fee. My mobile service provider doesn't include these calls in my cap and entering regularly would be an expensive exercise. Having said that, I enjoy dabbling in these competitions on occasion. They're quick and easy to enter and have some highly desirable prizes (holidays, cars and $1,000 gift cards, anyone?). And my lack of runs on the board could be attributed to the small number of entries I make. Not in it, so don't win it.

So where do you find these competitions? Stickers on DVDs, meals in fast food restaurants, and magazines and television are all excellent sources. Beware of TV adverts asking suspiciously simple questions though ("Where is the Eiffel Tower? For France, text A. For Australia, text B"). These premium subscription services disguised as competitions are actually signing you up for regular pornography/retarded quiz questions/tacky wallpapers at an outrageous fee like $5 per message. Check terms and conditions and give late-night TV commercials a wide berth.

A quick tour of the Australian Comping Club "Phone In & SMS Competitions" list provides several likely suspects -- including some from Getaway, The Today Show and Mornings with Kerri-Anne on TV and Grazia and Woman's Day magazines. I phone for a chance at a Toyota Hybrid car for my fiance -- he's been wanting one for a while.

If you can't take a trip on a flying bicycle, a Toyota from a phone-in competition would be the next best thing. With a steely eye on the costs you're racking up, you could be ringing up a nice little win.