Making money with ‘comping’, win a weekend trip to Paris

Off the back of yesterday’s post about earning passive income (which in itself was a kick up the bum, and I feel a little more inclined to get some of my stuff done) I’ve been thinking about other ways to earn “on the side” and one that I know is successful for a few of my friends is “comping” — that is, entering competitions regularly as a deliberate way of earning cash and prizes.

The huge rise in social media use has seen comping explode as a viable method of earning a side income over the past couple of years, as entering is often as easy as clicking ‘Share’ or ‘RTing’ to your followers. The potential for winning in some of these competitions can be huge, with prizes ranging from clothes and food hampers to cash prizes and even holidays, which is not bad for a quick ‘share’.

Take for instance leisure and hospitality site Leisurejobs: currently running a competition for a weekend trip to Paris and a Michelin star meal (flights and hotel included) and entry is as simple as retweeting a pre-populated tweet with the hashtag #perfectparis2015, or sharing the hastagged post via facebook or linkedin. You don’t have to put any effort into this one!

I’ve never won anything myself (mostly because I’m too lazy to enter) but one of my aforementioned comping friends had these top tips to share:

1. Enter Facebook competitions run by small to medium-sized businesses as they’re easier to win (there’s less competition from other entrants because the business usually has less fans)
2. If you’re a blogger, and use an affiliate marketing network (e.g. Affiliate Window) to monetise your blog, keep a look out for competitions run by the network or the individual brands. People rarely enter them so there’s good odds.
3. Go the extra mile – don’t just write 200 words and put a picture in. Spend a little extra really putting in some effort into your entry and you’ll stand out. Check other entrants out too (e.g. in comments section or by viewing the hashtag) and try and out do the other participants!

In addition to that, it’s worth considering:

• Joining a forum for compers to get access to new competitions before they hit social media
• Set up a dedicated email address for your entries, so that you’re not spammed to death between competitions
• Always check the competition close date so you’re not wasting effort on something that’s done and dusted

Worst case scenario, you don’t win. But they say nothing ventured, nothing gained. I might even enter the Paris one myself…