Mr. Sweepy's Forums

I know that sweepstakes are a win-win situation for sponsors.  They can have a tv ad that costs millions or a sweepstakes that costs them barely anything in comparison even if there is big money or a car or something.  They get people like me to love them, buy their products, tell my friends about the neat thing I won or even if I didn't win, I've bought items I've seen in the sweepstakes ad.  All good, right?  Then they put on the pop-ups that even when blocked will appear and slow my computer down.  Irritation #1.  I will NEVER buy a Netflix subscription, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them!  Then we have irritation #2.  I have looked at their ad, gone to their website, but opted out of any further emails because I don't have time to look at them and they fill my email box.  So, they send me an email that I entered, ok, that's irritating but I get rid of it, I'm not loving the company any better for sending it though. I've actually had some that send my information including my password in an email! (Excuse me, ever heard of identity theft???) Eventually I take the time to unsubscribe and THEY SEND ME ANOTHER EMAIL.  I don't get it.

I am the type that turns down the sound during commercials on tv or speed through them so sweepstakes are a great way to get me as a customer and I am a consumer for sure.  I know I have spent extra time looking for products that I've seen advertised..... it works guys, it really does.  So don't screw it up by being a nit-picking, over zealous bore.  Use the time to make the sweeps as attractive as possible and make it appealing for us to go look at your web site.  I just wrote two different companies last month that I had seen items in their ads that I wanted to find out more about and they weren't on their catalog pages.  I checked last week and one company had put the item in so someone wasn't paying attention to begin with.  Then give us a break to enter your sweeps.  Don't have the same questions every day, I don't mind answering a few questions on the first entry but then keep it simple please. Most of all, be honest and don't try to cheat us out of our prizes, we sweepers are the best advertising you have. 

I feel your pain, el3btrs... I have a list of affronts concerning sweeps sponsors and their agencies, and the geniuses who design these sweeps entry sites. I doubt that our kvetching reaches the ears of anybody who could make a difference, so I console myself by thinking that our hobby is free and our participation in any particular contest is voluntary. Also, I choose to boycott certain PITA sweeps and in some instances the products they are advertising. It will be interesting to hear from others, but in the meantime GSTY!

Netflix has become so pervasive it is a scourge on the Internet. It pops under on the majority of sites, not only sweeps and leaves a less than positive opinion in my mind about the site. And don't get me started on Pulse360...

CM

I'm with you Chuck - won't support PETA ever!  I guess I'm worried about the latest trend toward facebook and twitter more than anything and hope it doesn't become popular.  You have to agree to open your friends and family to enter.  I have people on my site who I haven't seen for years but went to high school with for instance and I cannot expose people to my hobby without their permission.

I think the sponsors DO read these messages looking for feedback.  I am more than willing to honor a nice sweep and if they would only realize that if I think someone would be interested, I send it on.  I don't need to be asked.  I sent my daughter about a half dozen sweeps in the past few days.  I also tell my friends and family when something new and interesting is available.  I have become a much more informed consumer thanks to sweeps.  Now if I could just win some :-(

I never enter any sweeps that require you go through Facebook or Twitter. Very invasive.

 The trend for Facebook and Twitter also concerns me.  I want no part of either one and hope sponsors will still provide online sweeps for us. I have ad blocker on and it doesn't seem to interfere with my sweeping and I don't get many Pop-ups.  Personally I love Netflix.  Great company and we belong, however If I had to put up with all of their pop-up ads, I wouldn't be very happy with them.  I think they are turning off a lot of potential customers.  One thing I don't understand, is why sponsors go to the trouble of providing a sweepstakes, and yet 90% of them never mention it on their TV ads.  My DH and I sit here watching TV and all the ads are coming on and I keep saying "I'm in their sweep" over and over and yet no mention in their TV ad that they are running a sweep.  Then they wonder why we people who enter sweepstakes all the time win.  It is because of sites like this that provide them for us or we wouldn't even know there were many out there.  Thanks Mr. Sweepy!

 el3btrs, I seem to have finally blocked the NetFlix popups.  Here's what you do in Firefox.

When the NetFlix pop-up appears, Copy the URL before you X it away.  (I find it helps to shut down ST and everything else so that only the pop-up is on your screen before you click on the offending URL to Save it.)

While in Firefox, click on Tools, Options,  and then Privacy.  You will see something that says something like Accept Cookies, which we sweepers need to do.  To the right of that, though, is a place that says EXCEPTIONS.  Oh, happy day.  You click on that and Paste the NetFlix URL there and submit it.  Then click OK to finish and exit from that menu.  No need to restart Firefox.

The URL should show up in a list in a white box that will show everything you have expressly banned.  I have added ScreenSaver's pop-up there, too. The reason our pop-up blockers can't stop these is that they are in Flash format.

You are amazingly wonderful.  Bye Bye Netflix

 lol.  You will still get a stray one, one in a while.  I guess they change up the address a little.  I just go through the drill and relist it.  At least it's not multiple pop-ups every day now!