With the launch of the Tiki Wisdom Challenge this week, I thought I’d give an insider’s peek at how good your odds sometimes are at winning stuff from various contests.

When I worked for KSL, i was regularly in charge of collecting entries for prizes at ReAl SL games, The Utah Symphony, Utah Auto Shows, and various other events along the Wasatch Front.

Due to people’s fear of SPAM and junk mail, they’re generally averse to entering any kind of contest that requires your age, email address, etc. There were times we would be giving away free cruises as on-air promotions, and only a couple hundred (if that) people would “dare” to enter the contest. That means the person that ended up winning that prize wasn’t really that lucky- they just had great odds. Somewhere around 1 in 150, most of the time.

The best part, though, is what we did with all the entries that didn’t make it. After we picked the winner out of the box, we kept that entry so that we could notify the winner of their prize. The rest of them went into the garbage can. Yup. All those names and email addresses went straight into the garbage can. Nobody sat down to a computer and entered the information, which means none of the people that entered the contest were ever bothered again! A horrible marketing practice-but it goes to show that the point of the promotion was promotion, not to gather a bunch of email addresses for spamming.

Working for an ad agency provides some back-up for for what I’ve just said. This same scenario happens all the time with local contests. Only a couple hundred people take the time to enter the contest, and as a result, the odds of winning are usually very, very good. Since most of our contests are online, we’re not as bad with the email addresses as KSL- and they occasionally get used. If given permission, we might send out announcements about new games or contests- but never spam. In two years, I’ve never seen an email address taken from one contest and given to another client. In fact, I’ve never seen an email address taken and used for anything other than what the user had signed up for.

With the passing of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, agencies (ours, at least) are paranoid about compliance. The bill permits e-mail marketers to send unsolicited commercial e-mail as long as it contains all of the following:

– an opt-out mechanism;
– a valid subject line and header (routing) information;
– the legitimate physical address of the mailer; and
– a label if the content is adult.

The penalty for breaking the rules? Each violation is subject to fines of up to $11,000.

Now, we don’t send unsolicited emails from our databases, but even more important- that opt-out link really works. For good reason people have been told to stay away from responding to, or clicking on any link in an unsolicited email. In our case, though- and likely the case of any reputable company- if you click that link, you’ll be automatically be taken off the list. By law, if a user opts out, a sender has ten days to cease sending email.

So- that’s the deal. Many of these local contests have great odds- and little potential to flood your inbox with spam. And if you do start getting emails you’d rather not, you’re just one click away from stopping it. That’s all.

So, want to win a trip to Hawaii? Want something to do at work instead of work? Play the Tiki Wisdom Challenge- it’s a pretty fun game that gives you clues about your friend, and you have to guess who your friend is. If you’re a horrible guesser, you can throw some spears at coconuts and still win an entry into the contest. And you can enter as many times as you want.

If you like the sound of the waves, or the thunder, or the swoosh of the spear through the air…I chose those. They’re basically my only claim to fame on the game…but I can’t complain, I got paid to do it. The rhyming in that last sentence was unintentional, I promise.

To play, visit www.tikiwisdom.com And good luck.

First: I recommend muting your speakers before playing this video

I had nearly lost faith in “viral” videos, websites, etc.

Everything I saw felt forced, fake, and over baked. I was all viral’d out. But then, this video, courtesy of Brent B.

Gotta love the Drudge Report. And their slanty headlines.

Why do I ask for paper instead of plastic? I’d like to save the trees, but they’re a renewable resource- petroleum isn’t. On top of that, it takes a newspaper 3-4 months to decompose. A small plastic butter container? Around 30 years.

Anyway…here are some rough comps for a campaign for the Natural Resources Defense Council. The idea is to show that conservation affects all of us. I don’t know how to save the whales, or what impact they’ll have on me if they’re gone- but I know if I help conserve forests, I’ll have more space to camp.

The weekly download (for educational use only):
Jimmy Eat World | Globes and Maps

Things have been…busy lately. I’ve got more on the way, but here’s something to hold you over, or as they say “pour boucher le trou.”

The weekly download (for educational use only):
The Stills | Retour a Vega.

Pardon my French.

Why choose bcrockett for your next online project? Let’s list a few good reasons:

Affordable

Fast

Good-looking (not me, your new website)

When it’s time for you to improve your image, to keep up with technology and the world your business competes in- it’s time to hire bcrockett. Call 801-824-5544 or email brett [at] bcrockett [dot] com to discuss how we can blow the socks off your competition.

Dave says posting a “Merry Christmas” image doesn’t count as blogging. So I made a Happy New Year one. And- I had a dream a few days ago that I blogged…I figure between the two of those, something’s gotta count as an update. Happy New Year.

Self promotion illustrating the capabilities of Frog Press: Litho, Flexo, Digital. The arrows on the flexo poster are die-cut.