5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest

by: Erz Sunday, November 11th, 2007

So you’re interested in entering into a blog contest. BUT HOW DO YOU WIN? Firstly, I must state that I am no expert in this, nor do I do technical analysis or probabilities on the subject. These are just 5 simple tips which everyone should be made aware of (and if you think that they seem like common sense, think again. We often fail to see what is right in front of our noses!):

  1. Go in with no expectations – As in any contest or competition, there is no guarantee of winning (unless it is rigged, which is another topic altogether!). Hence, you should not go into a contest with the “must-win” attitude. In fact, by adjusting your expectations, when you win, you get a pleasant surprise. When you lose, you don’t feel too demoralized either. With this attitude, you are likely to persevere in entering more contests, thus enhancing your chances of winning (simply because if you give up, you will have no chance at all).
  2. Go for the dark horses – BIG contests may not necessary be better as they draw many entrants. You can choose to enter in contests with not so good a prize and less entrants but with something still worth the effort you need to put in. Many comments contests fit this criterion, even though they may not offer very lucrative prizes. But of course, it should be a prize which you wouldn’t mind having.
  3. Go for quality – Contests which are judged on quality rather than random drawings tend to draw fewer entrants as more effort is required. If you think that the prizes are what you want, the judging looks fair and the effort needed is not overly laborious, you can enter such contests. Put in more effort if you want to win. It is still not a sure win but more effort will mean a better chance at winning.
  4. Go for quantity – Does this contradict my previous point? No! What I mean by quantity is the number of contests you enter. This is simple math. While there is still NO guarantee that you will win a contest whether you enter in one or fifty, simple probability will tell you that if you enter in fifty, you have a higher chance at a prize.
  5. Go for reputation – This is not an absolute condition. I’m all for new contests and there are many bloggers who offer fantastic first contests so don’t get me wrong. What I mean is that there are some bloggers with a reputation of not delivering on their promises or who hold dubious contests and fail to follow up with the prizes. These are ones which you may want to give a miss, no matter how good the prizes seem to be.

So go enter a blog contest today. How about checking out the Lists Group Writing Project by Litemind for a start?

23 Responses to “5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest”

Tish Said:

Great list! Good luck in the contest!

Comment made on November 12th, 2007 at 2:54 am
Erz Said:

Thanks Tish!

Comment made on November 22nd, 2007 at 10:46 am
Lists Group Writing Project Entries Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on November 27th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Simonne Said:

Actually this is how I landed here: I checked out the Lists Group Writing Project. Unfortunately, it was too late for me to join, so now I’m having all the fun without doing any work.

Comment made on November 28th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Serial Blogger | LiteMind Revealed 67 Lists of Interesting Lists Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on November 28th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Vote for Your Top Favorites | Blogging with Cents Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on November 28th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
Neena (NeenMachine) Said:

It is so true. If you enter a contest with very few other participants your odds of winning are much higher.

Comment made on November 29th, 2007 at 12:13 am
4 reasons why we like lists Said:

[...] 5 ways to win a blog contest by erz [...]

Comment made on November 29th, 2007 at 12:23 am
Lawrence Cheok | A Long Long Road Said:

Hi Erz,

Nice points. I hope these points serve you well in the content too ;-)

Comment made on December 1st, 2007 at 3:43 am
Some Reading for a Snowy Day (Live The Power) Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on December 1st, 2007 at 9:31 pm
Assorted reading in Litemind’s group writing project | How to be an Original Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on December 2nd, 2007 at 9:00 am
67 Lists of Life Tips Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on December 2nd, 2007 at 9:33 am
Erz Said:

Thanks everyone for the comments. Hope these tips will help you win something soon!

Comment made on December 2nd, 2007 at 9:58 am
What To Look For In List Posts | Interesting Observations Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz 5 Reasons Why I Bought a Domain by WishBoNe 5 Ways to Become the Perfect Idiot by Lori 15 Tips to Prevent Repetitive Strain Injury and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome by CSS 100 Motivators for Informal Learning by Marcel Ackermann 10 Ways to Survive the Writers’ Strike by Cynthia Boris 100List - 100 Things I can do to make more money. by Dj Wright Your Top 10 Inspirational Quotes by Sparky My Top-10 Personal Development Blogs by Marco The Quitter’s Checklist by Em Dy Thirteen Reasons Why WordPress is Superior To Blogger by JHS Get out of debt Quick: 7 Tips by Tejvan Six Simple Steps to Remembering and Living the Abundant Life You are Meant to Live by Anita Pathik Law To Do To Make Tomorrow Better by Bob Top 7 Paid Review Writing Mistakes You Can Avoid by Prince John 9 Ways To Achieve Success in Life by Adebola Oni 40 ways to make your mind your playground by Fier 5 Crash Course Tips in Viral Marketing by John Murch 100 Sites I Seek Inspiration From by Iain Hamp 5 Things That I Believe To Be Lies by Krizza List of Classes by Priscilla Palmer Top 23 Motivation Tips, Tricks and Tactics from the Blogosphere by Mike Ambrose Twelve Days of Classic Country Christmas by Scott 5 ways to crack or reset a forgotten Windows XP administrator password by Aseem Kishore 10 Things To Consider Before Acting As Your Own Contractor by Shawn Van Dyke A Tester’s Dream - 5 steps to revive a Rejected Bug! by Debasis Pradhan My Five Wish-list Classes I Would Enroll In by Al 10 Ways To Improve Your Personality by Z Hereford The Top Ten Internet Business Ideas by John 3 Ways to Bring Back the Joy to the Holidays by Karen Lynch Best 101 Lists by Pearl 13 encouraging questions by Isabella Mori 100 Things To Write A List Of 100 About by Kotsengkuba Lovecraft & Cthulhu Christmas List by Cullen Bunn List Of Why Blogs Are A Female Gender by Domtan 100 Things to do Before I Die by Joseph Gibbs 150 Funniest Resume Mistakes, Bloopers and Blunders Ever by Jacob Share 10 Productive Ways for Moms to “Relax” by Neena 10 Tips on How to Watch a Horror Movie When You are a Scaredy Cat by Migraine Chick 100 Ways to Personally Conquer Chaos at Work by Judy Martin 50 Ways to Start a Conversation by Dee How to prepare for Christmas by Ajay 7 Seven tips for students to success by Xoel Cardigan 6 Steps to Take Writing Ideas From WordPress Themes by Karen Zara What you think is what you see: 4 Ways to stop negativity by Holli Jo [...]

Comment made on December 2nd, 2007 at 3:00 pm
What To Look For In List Posts | Interesting Observations Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz 5 Reasons Why I Bought a Domain by WishBoNe 5 Ways to Become the Perfect Idiot by Lori 15 Tips to Prevent Repetitive Strain Injury and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome by CSS 100 Motivators for Informal Learning by Marcel Ackermann 10 Ways to Survive the Writers’ Strike by Cynthia Boris 100List - 100 Things I can do to make more money. by Dj Wright Your Top 10 Inspirational Quotes by Sparky My Top-10 Personal Development Blogs by Marco The Quitter’s Checklist by Em Dy Thirteen Reasons Why WordPress is Superior To Blogger by JHS Get out of debt Quick: 7 Tips by Tejvan Six Simple Steps to Remembering and Living the Abundant Life You are Meant to Live by Anita Pathik Law To Do To Make Tomorrow Better by Bob Top 7 Paid Review Writing Mistakes You Can Avoid by Prince John 9 Ways To Achieve Success in Life by Adebola Oni 40 ways to make your mind your playground by Fier 5 Crash Course Tips in Viral Marketing by John Murch 100 Sites I Seek Inspiration From by Iain Hamp 5 Things That I Believe To Be Lies by Krizza List of Classes by Priscilla Palmer Top 23 Motivation Tips, Tricks and Tactics from the Blogosphere by Mike Ambrose Twelve Days of Classic Country Christmas by Scott 5 ways to crack or reset a forgotten Windows XP administrator password by Aseem Kishore 10 Things To Consider Before Acting As Your Own Contractor by Shawn Van Dyke A Tester’s Dream - 5 steps to revive a Rejected Bug! by Debasis Pradhan My Five Wish-list Classes I Would Enroll In by Al 10 Ways To Improve Your Personality by Z Hereford The Top Ten Internet Business Ideas by John 3 Ways to Bring Back the Joy to the Holidays by Karen Lynch Best 101 Lists by Pearl 13 encouraging questions by Isabella Mori 100 Things To Write A List Of 100 About by Kotsengkuba Lovecraft & Cthulhu Christmas List by Cullen Bunn List Of Why Blogs Are A Female Gender by Domtan 100 Things to do Before I Die by Joseph Gibbs 150 Funniest Resume Mistakes, Bloopers and Blunders Ever by Jacob Share 10 Productive Ways for Moms to “Relax” by Neena 10 Tips on How to Watch a Horror Movie When You are a Scaredy Cat by Migraine Chick 100 Ways to Personally Conquer Chaos at Work by Judy Martin 50 Ways to Start a Conversation by Dee How to prepare for Christmas by Ajay 7 Seven tips for students to success by Xoel Cardigan 6 Steps to Take Writing Ideas From WordPress Themes by Karen Zara What you think is what you see: 4 Ways to stop negativity by Holli Jo [...]

Comment made on December 2nd, 2007 at 3:00 pm
Litemind’s Lists Group Writing Project | 7P Productions Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on December 2nd, 2007 at 4:33 pm
Monika @ The Writers Manifesto Said:

Hi Erz,

Cool points, I’m just in the process of visiting everyone to vote. Good luck.

Comment made on December 3rd, 2007 at 3:22 am
Erz Said:

Thanks Monika. I love your article. All the best for the contest!

Comment made on December 3rd, 2007 at 3:42 am
Abaminds » How To Get Ideas From 66 Lists - part 1 Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz - You could debate the tip about expectations (do you think it is a “too humble” way to see things?). Or the next tip, about big contests not necessarily being better than smaller ones. If you’ve ever hold a contest, the whole post might give you some food for thought, as it’s been written from an entrant’s point of view. [...]

Comment made on December 14th, 2007 at 1:45 am
Priscilla Palmer.com » My Votes For Luciano’s Group Writing Project Said:

[...] 5 Ways To Win A Blog Contest by Erz [...]

Comment made on December 23rd, 2007 at 3:22 am
Make Money Online : Blog Contest | Henbima - Internet Insight Said:

[...] Erzology, wrote 5 tips on how to win a blog contest here. [...]

Comment made on March 6th, 2008 at 6:50 am
 

Leave a Comment