Monday 30 September 2013

Early risers, take heed!

How early do you get up? Some stations reward the early risers with great prizes! Most notably:

JRFM - Secret Word of the Day. At 5:40 weekday mornings, Clay and Karen will ask someone to call in and give them a word. That person gets a prize for giving the word, usually something small like corn maze tickets or a JRFM prize pack (a JRFM mug, pen, hat, whatever). Then when they say that word between 7 and 9, the first caller through wins a second, usually better prize. This can be tickets to a show or gift certificates. Worth waking up for! But if you miss the word at 5:40, it isn't repeated.

QMFM - Wake Up and Win Words. At about 6:03 a.m., Mike and Tara will tell you what the words are - usually some cute or strange phrase. When they say them before 7 am, the 10th caller through wins something. And it's usually something good! It's week it's Cher tickets! I've often woken up extra early to try to win whatever prize they are giving away that week. Well worth it!

These are the only two super early contests that I'm aware of, but of course there may be others. If you know of any, shoot me an email or Tweet and let me know! Thanks!

Sunday 29 September 2013

JRFM 5 for 5 words

Sorry, I had tried to paste a picture of the words with their times but it didn't work. I will just write them here:

Tues:
Pesos
Mint
Coin
DENIRO
Bread

Wed:
Green
Bling
Dough
Bones
Clams

Thurs:
Loonie
-
Gold
Loot
Bucks

Fri:
Bills
Grand
Guineas
Benjamin
Funds

Sat:
Currency
-
-
Trump
Paper

Sun:
Toonies
Roll
-
Greenbacks
Beans

Good luck, everyone!

30 day rule and sister stations

Earlier today, I thought the 30 day rule applied to sister stations. That is, if you won on a station, you couldn't win anything on that station or its sister station for 30 days. A Twitter follower challenged me on it, sounded like she had some inside info.

Here is what I know:

CFOX and ROCK 101 - both owned by Corus. Couldn't find rules and regs on their website (least user-friendly of all the stations!) Can win on CFOX and Rock 101 in the same week. No prob.

The Peak and JRFM - both owned by Jimmy Pattison Group. Win on Peak, no need to wait to play on JRFM. Cool. But can only win every 60 days from each. Sixty days!!

Sonic, Jack, News 1130, City tv, and Breakfast Television - all owned by Roger's. Win on Sonic Monday, win on Jack Tuesday. Then win on BT Wed, and News 1130 Thursday. Great!

Virgin and Shore - these used to be part of the Astral Group, but now I have no idea who owns them. Nonetheless, they are sister stations. But again, win on Virgin today, win on Shore tomorrow. Sweet!

QMFM, Beat, and Team 1040 - Bell Media owns this trio. Their rules and regs say that you can't win anything for 30 days on ANY Bell Media contest. So if you win Beat the Bank on QMFM, you can't win JT tickets on Beat. Choose wisely!

Saturday 28 September 2013

Saturday slows us down, but...

Saturday slows me down. Considerably. Usually, that is! But today, there are three things going on:

1) Sonic 1K Double Play could happen
2) JRFM 5 for 5 words five times today
3) Rock 101 giving away Bon Jovi tickets

Normally I don't listen to the radio on weekends but today I WILL! I will listen to it in my car and on my Apps while I'm out for most of the day (yep, must brave this blustery weather today!), then listen at home while making dinner. Then it's drinks around the fireplace night once kids are in bed! Woot!!!

So follow me on Twitter for those 5 for 5 words: @contestsvan If you don't have Twitter, then check back here tomorrow and I will list all of the 5 for 5 words that I have.

Have a great, rainy weekend! Let a smile be your umbrella!

;)

Friday 27 September 2013

Do radio stations have call display?

Well, do they? How would I know! LOL! They might have some software or system that logs the calls, records the numbers, shows who the number is registered to. I seem to recall one host reciting my number to me and I was surprised she knew it. And another time, one called me back! I hadn't given her my number. So yes, probably they DO have call display of some sort.

So when I call, it shows my name and number. Is that why they tell me I'm caller 8? They don't want me to play again? Even though if you lose they say "you can always try again!"? That would be...shitty!

Then let's discuss WHY radio stations have contests in the first place:

1) advertising - companies "buy" radio advertising by offering up prizes for listeners. So the radio says "Play Gold Digger, brought to you by so-and-so", or "Your Happy Thoughts brought to you by the North Shore Auto Mall". See what happened there? I couldn't remember who brings us Gold Digger, but I do remember the Happiness ad. Hmmmmm...

2) self promotion - do the companies that own the radio stations actually fork out the cash for prizes to gain listeners? Doubt it. But I can tell you that I do end up listening to those stations that offer good prizes! Really, I do! And I tell all my friends about them. So if they get more listeners, they get more advertisers, and therefore they get more money. Huh.

Okay, let's face it, radio stations are businesses. And businesses need to make money. And they do so by getting more listeners. To entice people to listen to their station and not XYZ, they have contests. Do they care WHO wins? I'm sure they'd like to spread the wealth around and not have the same people winning all the time. But each station gives away HUNDREDS of prizes each month. Hundreds. And how many people do YOU know that actually call in and try to win stuff? I don't know any. At all. I am the ONLY person I know who ever calls radio stations, and I know hundreds of people. Probably thousands.

What was my point? Oh yes, radio stations may or may not have call display, they may or may not care who wins, and they may or may not have associated my phone number with a frequent caller. Have I been flagged? Forever behind the 8 ball? *weep*

Time to get an unlisted number... LOL!

Friday morning blues

I hate Friday mornings. Actually, I love Fridays in principle, but the contest scene slows down for a few minutes at around 8 a.m., when Virgin and Rock 101 do the calling. Enter on line in their respective clubs and they might just call YOU! Cool idea, but a snore for me. They aren't ever likely to call me, and I don't get to exercise my dialing fingers! Ah well, I still get to try for Beat the Bank. Thank you QMFM for starting my Friday off right! Now, if I could just get through...

Another positive of Fridays is that Virgin says a code word at 7 am. You text it back to them with your name and neighbourhood, then they do a draw for $250. I could use $250! But here's the down side: if you win, you can't win anything again for 30 days. That's right - no Gold Digger!!! So if I had to choose, I would want to play Gold Digger. Damn you Virgin for making me choose!!! LOL!

Plus, there's always the $1000 Minute on Virgin, where they ask a contestant 10 questions in one minute. For each correct answer they get $10, and if they get all 10 right they get $1000! I tried it once and made 50 or 60 bucks - it's hard! Oh, it's easy to yell the answers at the radio and scoff when the contestant gets it wrong, but try doing it LIVE! Brain freeze!!! I would much rather listen to this than play it. Again, if you win even $10, you can't win anything else for 30 days! No thanks! They play this every weekday, but it's rare that someone wins the grand. Still, fun. And interesting.

Similarly, Kiah and Tara Jean on Jack play No Time To Google at about 8:25. Same idea, but the prize is usually tickets to a concert or show. This one is played against an opponent, with the best 2 out of 3 winning the game. I've played this too, and it was hard too! I lost. LOL! But it's fun to play along. The prizes aren't amazing, but next week the prize will be Cher tickets! THAT is amazing!!!


Thursday 26 September 2013

Sonic 1K Double Play thoughts

What I like about this contest is that they do it all day, every day. Even weekends.

So far they have given away $17,000 over 17 days. If you read the rules and regulations on their site, it says they are giving away AT LEAST 22 prizes. Then if you read further, it says there is a total of $22,000 to be won. Soooooo... $1,000 per Double Play = 22 Double Plays. But the contests runs till October 14th, according to the R&Rs. So if 17 of 22 Double Plays have already been played, it stands to reason that there are only 5 left ($22,000-$17,000=$5,000, and $5,000 = 5 days of $1,000).

In the next 19 days they will only play Double Plays 5 times? Hmmmmm. Maybe. But I'll still be tuning in every day to make sure! Because one of these times I WILL get through, and I WILL be caller 10! Yep, that's my plan.... I have bills to pay and $1,000 will help. A ton.

Another thing I like about this contest is that they spread it out among the DJ's, so you get to know all of them better because you tune in more often. That said, they aren't likely to give the same DJ two Double Plays in a row. So if The Kid Carson Show plays one on Monday, I know I don't have to listen quite so closely again until at least Wednesday, maybe even Thursday. I still tune in when I can, but often just on line. If they are Tweeting interesting stuff, I tune in live.

This contest is how I got more acquainted with Kenny (though he doesn't know it!) He is a great DJ! Not over the top, not phony. Bri is cute and Vanessa is charming. The Kid Carson Show always makes me feel young, like I'm back in high school, smoking up with the cool kids in the back woods at lunch then giggling at the stoner table in the lunchroom. Aaah, those were the days...

JRFM 5 for 5 contests thoughts

The thing I like about this contest is that they give you the EXACT time they will say the word, and they rarely say it before or after that. They say 11, listen at 10:59. By 11:02, you've missed it. Like today, when I tuned in at 11:06 because I got distracted. Too late!

What I also like about it is that you only need to have ONE entry and you're still in the draw! I can't even imagine how many entries there are every Monday, probably 100,000 (if each person puts in 25 and there are 4,000 people playing, which is a conservative guess!) So let's say that there are 500,000 entries. You have a 1 in 500,000 chance of winning if you only entered once. Better odds than the lottery, I'd think!

The only thing I don't like about this contest is that you have to wait too long for the reward (or lack of reward, as most will be losers). It would be better (and more worth playing) if they did a draw every day. Wouldn't you rather tune in knowing you could win $1000 THAT DAY? Less entries, better chance of winning. Spread the love. Or the dough. Whatever.

New contests

Thanks to Twitter, Facebook and newsletters, we now have MORE contests to enter! I will list as many as I can on here, complete with links. But to really keep up to date, follow me on Twitter - sometimes I don't have time to sit down and write, but I can usually tweet while on the fly! My handle is @ContestsVan and I retweet all the contests I see. I've won some really cool stuff via Twitter! Join in!!!

Other contests:

Home Depot Twitter contest: (@HomeDepotCanada: You could win a $2500 Home Depot gift card! Tweet a photo of your best DIY project to @HomeDepotCanada #HDfallidays http://t.co/hFvUauBkdn)

Fiji Airways Facebook contest: Enter to win an eco-holiday to Fiji with @GoVoluntouring @FijiAirways and @IslandSpiritEco:  http://bit.ly/16BjFa9

Vancouver Observer and Ocean Village Resort in Tofino getaway contest:: http://ht.ly/pfrBm

More to follow...

Wednesday 25 September 2013

Wednesday Sept 25th efforts

It's not even 9 a.m. Yet and already I am spent! So far this morning:

7:00 - JRFM 5 for 5 word (green)
7:10 - Beat JT tix. Couldn't get through.
7:30ish - Sonic JT tix. Didn't hear the cue to call, was in the kitchen.
8:00 - Gold Digger on Virgin. Got through but they hung up. Must've been an accident because it was too early for them to take calls. Couldn't get through again.
8:10 - QMFM Beat the Bank. Couldn't get through.
8:35 - Sonic 1K Double Play. Couldn't get through. Had hubby calling too. 3 phones = nada.

Coming up:

9:20 - JT tix on Virgin
11 - 5 for 5 word, Gold Digger, IQ Test
11:10 Beat JT tix

I will be missing out on these today as I will be out for the morning. Bummer. But I will try this afternoon! I will at least try to catch the 5 for 5 word at 11 using my JRFM App. No point in trying to call in for Gold Digger because of the streaming delay...

Tuesday 24 September 2013

Radio hosts...

... are not all created equal. Some are more friendly, more confident, more real. Others are phony, judgemental, and arrogant. I try SO hard not to judge other people, I know everyone has their own struggles.

The contents of this blog are only my opinions. Mine. And opinions are like assholes - everybody's got one but nobody wants to hear it! So read on with caution. You may agree with me, you may not. But know that these are only opinions, not gospel. They are MY truths, but not necessarily how others see them. I rarely if ever discuss on line personalities except with my husband, and even that is rare. When I talk about radio (and tv) hosts, I sing their praises! To everyone and anyone who will listen! I plug all the contests, events, shows. All of them! My friends are sick of hearing me talk about radio and TV! LOL!

So if you read my blog and you don't agree with something, shoot me an email: contestsvancouver@gmail.com. I am open to discussing pretty much anything. I can talk about pretty much anything - fertility, aging, hemorrhoidectomies (ugh! Don't ask why I know so much!)

:)

News 1130 and Breakfast Television

NEWS 1130 (News1130.com)

While I don't listen to News 1130 on the radio, I do follow them on line. I love to follow their Twitter feed because I get all the breaking news immediately, plus they tweet links to news, sports, weather, etc. Super informative!

They are not giving away huge prizes, but every day I collect points to spend on draw entries for things like concert tickets, local attractions, etc. Join their Insider Club (free) and collect points daily. Spend your points to enter draws. Simple. Fun. Simply fun!

Each day I check HERE to see if I missed any bonus codes, etc. some days I forget or don't have time, but you can often enter the codes a day or two later and still get the points. Each day I try to buy one entry into Russ Lacate's Weather Guarantee! Check it out and enter!

Speaking of Russ Lacate...

BREAKFAST TELEVISION (BT Vancouver)

...he's the weather guru at Breakfast Television! Love, love, love watching Breakfast Television when I can! I pvr it daily, and if I have spare time, I zip to the good stuff. I follow them closely on Twitter so I know exactly what contests they are doing, who they are interviewing, what stories they are featuring, what Thor thought of the movies, and most importantly, what TIME each is happening!

The whole crew is so laid back yet hip. It feels like we are all just sitting down around the kitchen table, a bunch of newsy hipsters. Ha ha! They are everything that Global News tries to be (sorry, Global! Bringing in that couch did not make it more homey.) We went to their open house last year and they were delightful! So warm and welcoming! Sigh... They feel like my best friend... I can always count on them.

Again, I digress! BT regularly gives away great prizes, and it's always easy to enter. They also give away smaller prizes daily, and I always stop to see who they are from (advertising fascinates me!) Follow BT on Twitter to keep up with all that they offer (oh, so much!) @bt_vancouver




September contests: Beat and Peak

BEAT (Thebeat.com)

I don't have much to say about The Beat. Their morning show tries too hard. But I really like host Chris Palliser, so will tune in to him occasionally. They seem to have put all their eggs in one basket this month: $15,000 Thursdays. They change one person's life once per week (can you imagine winning $15,000?!) but even $1,000 can change someone's life. Spread the love?

Anyway, at 8:10 they put out the cue to call, and caller 94 wins. It takes about 15 minutes to get to caller 94. I don't even start calling till 8:15 (because I'm usually trying to get through on QMFM for Beat the Bank! Ha ha!) I only half listen to the show between songs, only long enough to hear what caller they're on. I'm sure they are really nice people, but it just sounds like they are trying too hard to be funny. My least favourite morning show.

Also this week, they are giving away Justin Timberlake tickets at 11:10. Caller 25. Good luck!

PEAK (The Peak)

I have much respect for Peak. Much respect. They play a wonderful mix of eclectic music, folksy and funky and cool. My husband listens to them a lot, and always tells me about stuff he hears. I like Cory and Laurie in the mornings, they are just...cool. And I am not. So it makes me feel cooler to listen to them. I'm not cool very often though, because I have to listen to other stations while they are on!

This month The Peak is giving away Discover BC trips -  mini vacations close to home. Last week it was a trip to an Okanagan winery, this week it's a trip to Vernon. Neither interests me very much, I'm holding out for the trip to the Island (assuming there will be one!!)

All you have to do is listen for them to give you a word, then you enter it in your account (free to be a member, easy to enter the draw). At 5:15 every day, they draw the name of a potential winner. That person has 10 minutes to call back. If they don't, they draw another name. Fun! I like that they have a trip EVERY DAY. A cool contest for a cool station...

See their website for more info. They also have a bunch of other cool things you can win, like movie passes and concert tickets. Go enter!!

September Contests: Jack and QMFM

JACK (JackFM.com)

I have a great fondness for Jack. For some reason, they just feel like home. These warm and fuzzies are facilitated by their wonderfully goofy morning crew: Kaih and TaraJean (and producer Kieran) If you haven't seen their morning videos, you simply MUST! There are no words to describe them and their hilarity... I followed them over from Virgin where they used to have the afternoon show - they were a riot there too! These two (now 3) are a hoot and I would love to sit down for a games night with them (or go play paintball or just get drunk!)

This month, Jack is having another key party. You can win the chance to try a key on a truck, and if your key starts it, you keep the truck for two years! Sweet! So 5 times per day (7:40, 9:40, 11:40, 2:40 and 4:40) you can get in on it by being the right caller. See their website for more details, but don't be in a hurry - their website always freezes my computer! Super slow. That's why I don't collect Jackaholics points - takes me forever to enter them into my Jackaholics account!

QMFM (QMFM.com)

Beat the Bank! Woot woot! This is similar to Gold Digger, but they give you time to make a choice: keep what you have or open another vault. They play twice per day (8:09 am and 4:09 pm). It's hard to get through, but I keep trying! I like listening and pretending to play. The prizes are good - you can almost always get $1000 before the alarm goes off. I NEED $1000!!! LOL!

I also like listening to Mike and Tara in the morning when they have interviews with people I like. I follow them on Twitter to see what's coming up, then tune in when something sparks my interest. They are super nice, and have good banter, though it seems sometimes like they are speaking softly on purpose. Must be hard to do that sometimes when you are enthusiastic about something!

September contests: Sonic and Rock 101

SONIC (Sonic Nation) is a hidden gem for me. I didn't listen to the Beat when Kid Carson was there, and only started listening to Sonic when he started there. Kid Carson and his crew are down to earth and seem like the kind of people I'd like to have a beer with. They are fun and current without being racy - I can listen to them when the kids are around. They are respectful and open minded, which I admire. But I digress...

This month Sonic has a 1K Double Play contest: on Mondays they tell you who is the artist of the week, then when they play two songs back to back by that artist, you have to be caller 10 when the second song starts. Caller 10 wins $1000. I NEED $1000!!! LOL! This is a great contest that keeps me following Sonic all day long (and consequently familiarizing me with songs I may not hear otherwise). Even if the songs have been played for that day, I still might tune in just because.

This week's artist is Bruno Mars. I loooooooove Bruno Mars! But they don't play him very often. For example, when Justin Timberlake was the artist of the week, they seemed to play his song very hour. But 3 hours can pass before they play Bruno! If I've been away from the radio, I check their website's Playlist to see if they've played the Double Play and I can scroll a whole page without seeing one Bruno Mars song.

Anyway, I love that this contest is fast cash. Sonic doesn't need a gimmick to keep me coming back. When they had $10,000 Thursdays and Beat countered with $15,000 Thursdays, it really made Beat look childish. And Kid can now stop saying "thanks for making the Sonic Switch" because anyone who was going to switch has already done so. I suspect Kid fans would follow him anywhere (yes, that includes me!)

ROCK 101 (Rock101.com)

Oh, Rock 101. What can I say? Not much, I'm afraid. Their current contest is an IQ Test. There are 5 questions, and with each correct answer the jackpot goes up, with the final prize being $1000. The questions get progressively harder, with the first ones common knowledge. Sometimes I find myself yelling answers at the radio! Ha ha! They play weekdays at around 8 am, 11 am, 2 pm, and 5 pm. Not usually on the hour, but more like quarter after the hour, or after a 5 minute run of commercials.

It's fairly easy to get through, but don't bother trying at the 11 or 2 spots unless you're male - host Robin Larose doesn't like to play with girls! I only say this because there was one time when I called in, and after getting a busy signal numerous times I finally got through. He told me I was caller 9. So I hang up and redial. Busy, busy, busy. Then I get through again, and he says "you're close! Keep trying!" And hangs up. Huh?? How could I be caller 9 and then NOT be caller 10?! So I started keeping track - he ONLY lets males play. Even though I get through almost every day, he always tells me I'm caller 6. Well, at least he's covering his ass - he can tell 5 callers in a row that they're caller 6, while he looks for a male player. Hello? Contest Police? Harrumph...

So I will try to play at the 5 pm hour, when it's harder to get through (their demographic is home from work by then) but at least I don't feel snubbed due to my gender.

If you disagree or can prove me wrong, I welcome your input. I don't want to dislike a DJ, and Robin sounds nice otherwise. Maybe he's just been hurt and shies away from women. Or else Corus has told him to only let guys play (???). Whatever.




September contests: JRFM and Virgin

Below is a list of the contests I'm currently playing. I haven't quite figured out the format yet, so let me know what you think. Should I list them according to radio stations or by prize? Let's try this and see how it goes...

JRFM jrfm.com

5 For 5 contest: they give you 5 words each day (at 7 am, 11 am, 2 pm, 5 pm, and 7 pm). Enter the words in your Online Insider account (free to be a member). Each word is one entry. On Mondays they will pick a winner by random draw from all entries, and they win $5000. I NEED $5000!!!

So far today, the 7 am word is: PESOS, 11 am is MINT, and 2 pm is COIN, 5 pm is DENIRO and 7 pm is BREAD. After today, I will just tweet the answers that I hear (@contestsVan). If you Google it, it will probably show you my tweet even if you don't have twitter. Try it and let me know!

At the end of each day I will try to update the blog with that day's words, or as many as I hear. If you caught one that I didn't, please post it in the comments (if you feel like sharing). It looks like you can enter any of the words at anytime, as long as they are in by Monday morning. But because of the layout, it looks like they have to be entered at the correct time, but it's hard to tell which line is for which time. Good luck to us all!

VIRGIN  Virginradio.ca

Gold Digger! This has to be my favourite contest of all time! It's fun to play, and almost as much fun to listen to. It's fast and fun, and sometimes just funny. They play every weekday at 8 am, 11 am, 2 pm, and 5 pm.

8 am: After the cue to call, hosts Nat and Drew usually wait until the next song is nearly over or completely over before they start taking callers. Near the end of the song they can open the phone lines, but if you get through then, you are likely to be caller 1 through 8. After the song they say "we haven't taken caller 9 yet" so you still have a chance. But sometimes they don't even start answering the calls until after that first song. The nice thing is that they answer the phones themselves, not Producer Scooter. So that's kind of cool. I met Nat and Drew once and didn't really appreciate them (I was in a daze from sleep deprivation due to parenthood). They would be fun to hang out with, I think. And Erin (news lady) is just lovely!

11 am: I have never gotten through at this time. Impossible. I can't even guess how quickly she answers the calls.

2 pm: Matty B. I <3 Matty B! He has the most infectious laugh, just hearing it puts a smile on my face! He answers calls quite quickly, so you have to start dialing as soon as the cue to call starts. He is lovely to listen to, his enthusiasm is contagious. He is my sassy ray of sunshine!

5 pm. See 2 pm. <3

Good grief! I need a new blog post to finish the rest!


Making ends meet

Well, here it is. I've finally started that blog my friend Sarah has been bugging me about. Now that I have a few spare hours each week, I will log here all of the contests I enter. If you follow my blog, I will keep you up to date on all of the current contests in Vancouver.

A little background: last year I lost my job. It is expensive to live in Vancouver (!!!) and we barely make ends meet each month. To help out, I started playing radio contests. My contribution is entertainment - concert tickets, vacations, etc.

At first, it was just one radio station. A few years later, I started listening to another station because I needed a change. I realized that not only did I like their music, they had really great contests! After a few wins, I decided to expand my horizons, cast a wider net. I started listening to another station. And then another. And then another. Now I alternate between 7 stations daily, and 10 stations total.

I know, I know, it sounds like I'm a contest whore. But I really LOVE most of these stations! Each one offers something different, scratches a certain itch. When I'm in the mood to dance, I put onVirgin or Beat or Sonic. When I feel nostalgic, I put on Jack or Rock 101. When I feel emotional, I tune in to JRFM. When I'm feeling rebellious, it's Peak time. And when I need something lighter, I go with QMFM. I follow them all on Twitter and Facebook, and interact with each regularly.

Each room in my house has a radio, and I have all the apps on my phone in case I'm out when contests are on. My car radio has each station preset in no particular order, with CBC for those times when traffic is driving me mad and I need a calming force. Thank you CBC! And my kids love the classical music too, which is a bonus.

Wow, this is pretty loooooong for a first blog post! Once I get the hang of this, I will make the posts better and shorter. Now I'm off to explore Blogspot to see how I can give you all the info without prattling on and on....