The concept of Amateur Contests with Big Money Prizes is simple enough. You set up an item or service and let your contestants fight it out to see whose is the best. Some people are good at the idea of writing, while others might prefer sewing or baking. Still others might like to be more physical and set up a contest where you have your contestants on each floor of your building running around and trying to knock down the biggest and best objects that they can find. Sometimes these contests can get out of hand and require a security guard to watch the premises.
The first thing you need to do is decide how much money you are willing to spend on your Amateur Contest with Big Money Prizes. Once you know how much you can spend, then it becomes easier to determine what type of prize is appropriate. For example, you might choose a one-time prize, like a new couch or table, or a series of small items for every five dollars raised. Or you might choose something more long-term like a trip to an exotic destination or an overnight stay in a spa. Again, you will want to establish a limit to how much money you are willing to spend, so that you do not spend beyond that amount, causing a loss.
Once you have settled on your prize, then it is time to set up your contest. The best thing about eBay is that you can set up all kinds of contests, from auctions to buy one item for every single guest, to buy one dish per person. You can even set up categories, such as “gourmet foods,” “gourmet recipes” and so on. In fact, if you create a website dedicated to selling your homemade goods, you can even charge a membership fee that will allow you to set up contests and sell items for your customers.
Even if you are just looking for extra spending money, consider setting up a few prize restrictions. For example, if you are having a raffle drawing and you have a maximum amount of money that you are willing to spend on the prize, then you will limit the number of dollars that anyone can spend. If you do not specify a maximum price, you will probably end up with a lot of people bidding on the same item, and you will probably get frustrated. Likewise, if there is a specific shipping date set, then you should set it. This will prevent people from buying things on eBay before the stated date, which can result in your receiving more mails than you can mail out.
Once you have everything set up, you need to start posting. If you are using eBay, this is really easy. Just set up a “Buy Now” feature, which will instantly add a Buy It Now price to any eBay listings that display a pending sale. You should also set up your own auctions, which will list the prize that you are selling along with the price you want to charge. Be sure to specify the minimum price you will be charging, and make sure that you include the price for any applicable fees. You will want to keep your buyers interested in your item, so making sure they know what the final price will be is very important.
If you are holding the amateur contests on your own website, then the process is a bit different. There are two different approaches you can take. First, you can list the prize as the top most article on your site. Second, you can add a small blurb underneath the prize offering that states something like “To earn your prize, simply write an informative article explaining your topic and providing great quality examples related to your topic.”
