Many sponsors allow participants to enter both online and mail sweepstakes. When you join through the postal service, you often have a much greater chance of winning. That poses the question: if the rules authorize it, would it make sense to send in hundreds of mail-in entries?
Pros and cons of mail-in entry
If you want to win on a frequent basis, you can submit as many entries as the rules allow. If you just consider the odds, sending in a significant number of mail-in entries as well as online entries makes sense. The more entries you submit, the less you can rely on luck to be selected as the winner.
However, before you flood your post office with entries, keep in mind that, unlike online entries, mail-in entries cost money to submit. So, you may not win, but you may spend money sending multiple mail-in entries.
Avoiding disqualification
Be sure the sweepstakes rules allow you to join both online and by mail before you do so. Some might have limitations, such as "one entry per person per day, regardless of which entry process you use." If you use both entry methods you risk being disqualified. Before sending in mail-in submissions, make sure you read the rules thoroughly.
Mail-in entries - Right for you?
Budgeting a certain amount of money per month to use for mail-in sweepstakes entries might be a good idea. The key is to make sure you don't go over your monthly budget. The mail-in sweepstakes with the best odds are those that do not need an online entry, although these are becoming harder to get nowadays. Remember that a portion of the mail-in sweepstakes budget may be allocated to massive sweepstakes with an unrestricted mail-in entry form. This strategy has worked for most sweepers. It's best to stick with the free entry approaches when the odds are incredibly long.
