Entering competitions is a great way to nab free prizes for very little effort. Think you don’t stand a chance of winning? Actually your chances are often better than you imagine, as some competitions get surprisingly few entries. Plus, if you regularly enter competitions, the law of averages means you will pick up free prizes and goodies over time.  Here is just a small sample of some of the current competitions you can enter:

• Warning, warning, warning!
• Latest online competitions – try them now!
• Getting started
• Online competitions
• Magazine competitions
• Slogan competitions
• Writing competitions
• Photography competitions

Warning, warning, warning!

If you enter an online competition you’ll be asked to include your email address. This generally means that your inbox will soon be flooded with spam – lots and lots of it. To avoid this problem all you have to do is set up a separate email account. This can be your ‘competition account,’ where everything competition related gets sent. That way your personal email account gets left alone, and you still get the chance to win big prizes. Don’t let the spam win!

Do also note that for some of these competitions you have to give your phone number. Not all these companies give you the choice of opting out of receiving marketing texts etc., so make sure you check the terms and conditions if you hate receiving them.

Current picks

• Win £1000 just by registering with the UK’s number one sweetener Canderel. And once you’ve registered you’ll become an automatic member of the Canderel Rewards Programme where you’ll find lots more goodies up for grabs. Register now.
• Every month, Optical Express will give one lucky patient free laser eye surgery. To enter, simply fill out the enquiry form and check the box for “Win free treatment.” The winner is drawn at random at the end of each month.
• Win a holiday to Thailand by clicking here: closes 15th May 2011.
• Head to the Get Me a Quiz website. Not only are there loads of free quizzes you can pit your wits against – there are free prizes up for grabs if your general knowledge is good enough!
• Pizza Express are offering a £5000 prize to create the nation’s next favourite pizza. Not bad for some meat and cheese on bread! Invent your favourite topping and enter the competition here.

Getting started

There is an endless number of competitions you could enter and the prizes are just as varied. Here are some helpful tips to get you started:

Think big

Do you know that you are more likely to win the large prizes like a car than you are a free box of chocolates? Fewer people enter competitions with big prizes thinking the odds are stacked against them, which means actually your odds of winning can often be higher. You’re also more likely to win competitions that require greater effort like the ones where you need to send in postcards or fill out surveys.

Sales scams

Watch out for competitions that offer you a free holiday just so recruiters can lure you into a meeting and try to convince you to buy a timeshare with their company. These people can be incredibly persuasive so if you do take them up on their free holiday, make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into.

Learn from the experts

For more comping tips read From Beginner to Winner – The Comping Essentials. The book is considered an essential introduction to entering competitions and was written by Kathy & Steve Walker, who have won over £40,000 worth of prizes to date. It offers tips on different types of competitions: how to enter, where to find competitions, how to organise your entries, competitions to avoid and other pearls of wisdom. It really is a great resource to start you off.

For more regular tips, subscribe to one of the monthly ‘comping’ magazines. Comping is so popular that there are loads of magazines dedicated to its coverage. Search for titles such as BIG, Colossus, Puzzle Collection and Prizes & Puzzles Special Magazine at magazinestand.co.uk. These mags are packed full of competitions to enter.

Here are some different types of competitions to consider entering:

• Online competitions
• Magazine competitions
• Slogan competitions
• Writing competitions
• Photography competitions
• How to get guaranteed freebies

Online competitions

The easiest competitions to enter are ones that are online. Since these are geared towards generating traffic all they really want is your email address – which is easy to provide. By all means enter these if they look reasonable (many are not so be careful when you are looking around).

But you MUST set up a separate email account to enter them. Otherwise you will find your inbox clogged up with nasty spam.

Concentrate on reputable brands or companies. Competitions like the chance to win a year’s FREE shopping at ASDA is a good one to get started with. The steps are all pretty much the same: you usually need to register with the site, fill out the survey and then you’re entered into the competition. Again, though, according to one reader – see Jane’s comments below – these people send you loads of spam emails if you enter so set up a separate email account with Hotmail or Yahoo for this one if you want to enter.

• Competitions in newspapers and magazines

Magazine-run competitions are very similar to online competitions. For the most part all you have to do is visit their website and answer a simple question, or fill out a postcard and mail it in to enter. Again, you’ll need to register your details as the whole point of the competition for them is to generate traffic and boost subscriptions.

It’s a good idea to grab free postcards whenever you can to enter competitions where you have to send in your answer. These sort of entry-form competitions take a bit more effort – and therefore have far fewer entrants. So if you do come across them, get your answers in as you have a greater chance of winning. Don’t be put off by the big ticket items – remember, fewer people enter these competitions believing the odds of winning are slimmer. Check out these current competitions on offer:

• The Mirror has loads of great competitions, including: holidays to Africa and Spain, a year’s supply of Ben and Jerry’s ice-cream, tickets to London Fashion Weekend, an Apple Macbook Pro and loads more.
• The Sun’s website is currently promoting a number of competitions including the chance to win an iPad, a holiday for two to Manhattan and a HD TV and Blu-Ray player. And if you happen to have a particularly large pet lazing around the house, snap a photo of them for the chance to win a jumbo Samsung 40″ LCD TV and Home Cinema System. Once you’ve taken the photo sign up to My Sun and then join their Pet of the Week group. It will only take a few minutes and once you’ve registered you can enter this competition.
• Marie Claire magazine has a number of competitions running at the moment, including the chance to win a ‘Classic British Weekend Away’ worth £850.
• The Guardian always seem to have impressive competitions running on their website. At the moment we think the two night break in an Aberdeen boutique hotel looks amazing, so enter it now!

Slogan competitions

Think you’ve got a bit of creative genius in you? Slogan competitions are terrific for the keen comper who’s ready and willing to put in a little more effort than simply typing in an email address or sending back a postcard. Companies love to use slogan competitions as a way to market their products at low costs and encourage consumers to think positively about what they’re selling.

With most slogan competitions, the sponsor company will begin by having you answer a few simple questions to determine whether or not you are fit for the task. You may be asked to complete some part of a phrase in an “apt and original” manner. Once again, because so few people make an effort to enter, slogan competitions are a dream for the avid comper.

How YOU can create knock-your-socks-off slogans:

• CompersNews monthly newsletter publishes thousands of prize-winning slogans. Have a look at those that have won in the past to help you get an idea of the kinds of slogans that companies look for.
• Winning-Slogans provides tons of examples of past winning slogans and a Beginner’s Guide for winning slogan competitions.
• Winning slogans typically have rhyme, rhythm or a pun. Go out and grab yourself a rhyming dictionary and dictionary of English idioms at Amazon, which takes all the hassle out of creating history’s next greatest slogan!
• Remember that the point of the slogan is to advertise the product in a positive light.  Your slogan should always make the product look good.
• Word limits are key!  Slogans that surpass the given word limit will not be considered.  Always stick to the competition rules.
• If possible enter more than once. But be careful – don’t send in several horrible slogans. Instead come up with two really good ideas that are different in their approach – for example one that is clever and witty and one that is more direct and serious. Be careful to check the terms and conditions of each competition as some specify that you can only make one entry.
• Remember – the more obscure or difficult the competition, the fewer the entrants so the better the chance you have at winning.
• Join websites like Loquax and CompersNews for free details on upcoming competitions. Magazine Stand also has details of lots of prize-heavy publications.

Writing competitions

If you have a way with words and fancy a chance to earn some cash visit First Writer website for a list of competitions. These cater to all sorts of writing styles and genres. Some of them do have entry fees although most are under £5. But there are several that do not charge and the site displays a clear list of them. Prizes include week-long holidays, £1,000 prize and magazine publications.

Also, winning writing competitions can be added to your portfolio when approaching editors or publishers. Any achievement that you can brag about can’t hurt!

Another great site is the Writer’s Forum Competition. This is a great site that will link you to competitions. The magazine awards £800 in prizes for each issue and offers a forum for every type of writer and style imaginable.

For a list of upcoming competitions, their closing dates and prizes visit Prize magic. It isn’t a pretty site but it has a comprehensive list of links to current competitions.

If your kids are creative then keep your eye on the Young Writer Magazine. It’s published three times a year, at the beginning of each school term and features writing competitions. You have to subscribe which costs £10 for the year. Tips for winning writing competitions:

• People love stories that are about everyday life situations and experiences that they can relate to. They need to care about your characters, so make them real.
• There are loads of helpful resources to inspire you. Writebuzz has lots of good advice. It also lets you share your ideas with other members and lists lots of competitions to get you started. You do need to become a member, but it’s free.
• Begin with a bang! Editors routinely say they read the first paragraph of a piece, and if they aren’t interested in finding out what will happen next they stop there. Try to bring an element of suspense early on in your story.
• If the contest doesn’t have a specific length requirement, send a story or article that is medium length (1,500 to 3,000 words). This way you won’t overwhelm judges who don’t have the time to read 10,000-word manuscripts.
• When someone reads your writing they should be able to say, ‘This article or story is about …’ and finish the description in one sentence. Get rid of the things that don’t relate to the main theme of your story or article.
• Follow the rules of the contest. This seems simple, but lots of people break them and their entries are the first to be thrown out. Pay attention and fill out the entry forms correctly so that you are entered into the correct writing category.
• Proofread and make sure that your grammar and spelling are correct – get other people to read over your work.

Photography competitions

Not many people will compete in photography competitions if they don’t think they are good at it. However you don’t actually need to take Pulitzer prize-winning photos to win. Instead, fun, outrageous and quirky photos can be very popular. These competitions are great because not many will go to all that trouble, reducing the competition and giving you a better chance of winning. Some tips on how to win:

• Start carrying your camera with you wherever you go.
• If the competition is to promote a product make sure it is clearly visible in the photograph.
• Appeal to the judges’ emotions either with humour or sentiment.
• While you don’t need to take professional quality photos, you do need to make sure your picture is not blurred, dark or poorly composed.

Photographic magazines like The British Journal of Photography are a great place to look for competitions, however these tend to have more professional photographers entering.

Proof Positive posts loads of monthly and ongoing photography contests, each of which centres on a particular theme.  Prizes include cash, free products, magazine subscriptions and the chance for your photo to be featured in a publication.

Photographers.co.uk also has a long list of upcoming competitions. It’s great because it divides up the competitions by genre, prizes, and dates. Many are competitions for professional photographers, but there are still some for amateurs to try out. Check out last years winners to get an idea of what judges are looking for. Other websites like Ephotozine also run competitions which are well worth checking out.

Get guaranteed freebies!

Strictly speaking, getting freebies isn’t the same as entering a competition – usually you get a free product or trial from a company in the hope that you’ll visit them again. Having said that, you can save plenty of money on freebies – and signing up for a free trial doesn’t take up much time.

The catch? To get the freebies, you have to sign up for some free trials of other products. These tend to be things like a free trial of Lovefilm (the DVD home delivery service) – so you might even be glad to take advantage of these free trials. You also have to refer one person to the deal (though that person doesn’t have to take part in the offer if they don’t want to).

For the best freebies straight to your inbox sign up now to the FREE Moneymagpie newsletter or keep an eye on our article Free stuff: top freebies, discounts and vouchers.

How much could I make from competitions?

You could win anything from a £5 voucher for cat-food to £1,000, a new car, a luxury holiday in the sun or a year’s supply of toilet rolls.

Remember you can sell your prizes on eBay if you don’t need them. Seasoned ‘compers’ do well because they recognise the golden rule that low uptake of competitions means more chance of winning. Plus they get loads of practise entering hundreds themselves.

Start comping:

• The Prize Finder – links to competitions and giveaways.
• UK Competitions - details of competitions updated daily.
• Get Me A Ticket – allows members to enter all kinds of free competitions for the chance to win great prizes, such as a Nintendo Wii, cars, DVDs, holidays, cash and more. Please note: you must be at least 18 years of age to participate.
• Just Comps has literally thousands of competitions you can enter.

Do you know of other great competitions, or have you won fabulous prizes in competitions? Tell us about it by commenting below, or on the money making forum!