Good or bad year for comping?

Onmyway2

Not as good as last year ...

LaSynergie

I've had a very bad year compared to previous ones. Apart from February which was excellent, I've had only one prize a month. The last prize I had was in the beginning of June, a £10 Iceland voucher! It's nearly 3 months now since I've won anything & I'm despairing of comping. I don't really know what is going wrong, but I do blame some well known people for the constant recruiting to comping, appearing on TV and in magazines saying how lucky they are winning loads and writing books and trying to get everyone else involved just for their own 5 minutes of fame. I think it's really destroyed the comping hobby for the rest of us because too many people are now entering. I just hope that the rest of the year picks up because I rely on comping to pay for stuff for the kids - especially at Christmas.

gentleorange

Wins have been few and far between, but on the other hand I think I've had my biggest ever win this year, so on balance it's all good!

absolutelybrassic

Worst ever for wins despite the same effort as previous years, just a pair of tickets for a car show that I wanted to go to and... a bottle of detergent! I reckon a total value of about £32 for 2015 so far Hope the comping fairy comes my way soon!

Enigmatic_Me

Interesting read. Terrible year for me, my worst ever in 11 years of comping. So far this year I have had two advent wins in January, an Inside Soap win in February and a patio box in May and nothing, absolutely nothing since May. In my 11 years of comping I have usually had at least 2 or 3 wins per month.

I moved house in April and maybe my new address is not so lucky

GW78

The last three months have been quiet for me but it's difficult to know why because there are quite a few variables.

• I've not been using Facebook so comp time on there is being used for comps elsewhere (might take longer/fewer being entered maybe?!).
• Twitter seems harder than ever, wondering if there are more bots?!
• It's the school holidays, does that increase entry numbers?
• The increased awareness of compers might be changing PR's/bloggers perception & selection of winners as well as the number of entries. I've no evidence of this but there are anecdotal tales.
• I also wonder if I am entering less. I don't think I am but as my attitude has changed (fewer wins = lack of motivation) maybe I'm kidding myself!
• I used to get little surprises (samples/vouchers/books/DVDs) in the post but that rarely happens now. I wish I knew why they've stopped & how to make them start again!

I used to see my 2013 & 2014 posties almost everyday. I've barely seen the 2015 one and couriers are strangers to me

tinker15

Thanks again everyone, really interesting reading & theories about the bad year that we are having.
Thankfully I do still see comping as a fun pastime but it can be demoralising not to see any rewards for the time and effort put in. But I do tell myself that good things come to those who wait. Are you listening comping fairy

jdsaint

I don't really know what is going wrong, but I do blame some well known people for the constant recruiting to comping, appearing on TV and in magazines saying how lucky they are winning loads and writing books and trying to get everyone else involved just for their own 5 minutes of fame. I think it's really destroyed the comping hobby for the rest of us because too many people are now entering.

Tbh I think that's a soft target. Yes it will have a factor in raising awareness but then there are other ways comping is promoted.

For example hasn't comping been mentioned in Martin's email which goes out to - what is it now 10million folks? Has it not been mentioned on his TV show/twitter/FB etc... would that not attract newbies? A successful MSE comping section is surely going to attract more compers as MSE has reach very few UK sites have....

.. and then there's Facebook. Compers aren't shy on FB - sharing comps, wins etc... and that gets seen by more folks. Imo if you want to know why comping has become so popular then just look at FB activity. The number of entries for sometimes really small prizes is remarkable. Brands see that and realise that they can dish out £5 vouchers because they know people will still enter and share the posts.

The TV interviews/magazines/books etc may pique some interest - but imo they're a long way from being "responsible" for the increase in compers. FB for me is where you should start.

Jason

LaSynergie

jdsaint wrote: »

Tbh I think that's a soft target. Yes it will have a factor in raising awareness but then there are other ways comping is promoted.

For example hasn't comping been mentioned in Martin's email which goes out to - what is it now 10million folks? Has it not been mentioned on his TV show/twitter/FB etc... would that not attract newbies? A successful MSE comping section is surely going to attract more compers as MSE has reach very few UK sites have....

.. and then there's Facebook. Compers aren't shy on FB - sharing comps, wins etc... and that gets seen by more folks. Imo if you want to know why comping has become so popular then just look at FB activity. The number of entries for sometimes really small prizes is remarkable. Brands see that and realise that they can dish out £5 vouchers because they know people will still enter and share the posts.

The TV interviews/magazines/books etc may pique some interest - but imo they're a long way from being "responsible" for the increase in compers. FB for me is where you should start.

Jason

I disagree. A story run in a big national newspaper like Daily Mail has a massive readership, similar with a popular magazine. Going on national television is more dynamic and would spark a lot more interest than an email where it might be missed. A lot of people don't read all their emails or all the content - I certainly don't. It's not just one person who has gone to the media either - there have been a whole rash of them over the last few years. The media tries to sell it as a "get rich quick scheme" which it definitely isn't and it does cause a lot more people to jump on the band wagon and have a go every time there has been a new story out. Comping entries are forever rising higher and I've gone from a high of up to 19 prizes a month a couple of years ago right down to 1 prize a month and now zero for the last 3 months. It's been dire. For the record I don't do many of the FB competitions as a lot are very small prizes with high entries and they have always been a bit oversubscribed. I only enter the bigger ones on FB or with something I really want. I'm entering all the same comps that I've done for the past few years, but success levels for myself and most people I know have significantly dropped to an all time low.

mumto2boys

I have had an ok year if i'm honest, about equal to the time i've put into it and the amount I have entered.

What I have noticed is there seems a lot less that I want to enter, there seems to be many more location based prizes or random dvd's and books that I have never heard of so don't enter. A few years ago a page of comps on the main board would have a fair few ticks on it, whereas now I can flick through the pages and x out several pages at a time before finding one that will get my attention and a tick.