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Interesting insights from a 25 WOL Judge |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 02:19 PM
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Interesting insights from a 25 WOL Judge
Good afternoon,
I was just browsing my second favourite website, when I came across this comment (edited version);
"As someone who's judged 25 wol comps anything witty or clever has the best chance. Here's how I used to judge them, mostly used for customer
competitions.
1.Put all the entries into excel.
2.Add some columns to text check for valid entries (word count, character count etc, valid emails and phone numbers, current customer etc).
3.If you have a truck load of entries, add a random number generator and discard entries to get to a manageable amount. (yes it sucks, but no one is
going to read 5,000 entries of 25 words of less)
4.Farm them out to others in marketing. everyone gets 100 or so to review
5.Collate answers for a quick vote.
6.Order and try to contact winners. you get maybe 2 calls 30min apart before moving on to the next entry. And I wouldn't leave a message, number would
be private. To avoid having the "uhhh you were a winner, but sorry, not anymore"
Entries that were discarded: crying poor, threats etc and "if I win i'll tell everyone" (which is usually about 30% of entries).
Entries likely to win: Clever ones, that addressed the comp question and knew the product/service, good use of the English language such as a poem."
Always wondered about 25 wol judging and now I know.
The thought of my pain-stakingly crafted 25 wol not making it through the "random number generator" is of concern but what can you do?
Overall though, it seems like a pretty good process. |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 02:34 PM
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That doesn't surprise me that some people's entries although very clever and possible a winner don't even make it in to the judging. Very dsappointing
when we spend so long on our WOLS. So the winning answer may not even be the best one! Maybe just the best one out of a bad lot! At least I can use
that as an excuse for not winning now |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 02:48 PM
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Explains a lot. Good to see he eliminates the ones over word count first up. Not sure about moving onto the next entry if you don't answer your phone?
People work. Sometimes I think one of my WOL answers is simply brilliant, and it doesn't win. (In the auto reject pile? :sniffle Others I thought were OK, average, or not given much thought have won. It's about
confidence and creativity, and I love. love, love the challenge of them....unless they turn out to be drawn, not judged. My time, if not effort
should be worth something to them. Then again, they'd have less entries than just a normal draw with no WOL, because some people avoid WOL comps like
the plague. |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 03:07 PM
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There are probably as many ways of judging competitions as there are judges!
We all know that many companies use 25 wol comps because they don't require permits and they have no interest in fairly judging them!
You can bet that if a comp is unlimited or daily entry they won't read every entry...it is just not possible. Some would just be a random draw and
some would choose a winner from a sample of entries.
However I do believe SOME judge fairly (even then it is subjective: what appeals to one judge may not appeal to another). And I do believe some make
every effort to contact winners..that has certainly been my experience. But I will never know if I won something and didn't get it because i didn't
answer the phone within 30 minutes! (That's a bit tough!)
Interesting to ask how you would judge a 25 wol?
I would eliminate anything over the word limit, anything with spelling mistakes, any sob stories, anything not compatible with the brand image,
anything that doesn't answer the question. I reckon that would narrow it down to a manageable number. Then I would look for something unique...it
doesn't matter how wonderful an answer is if there are many other similar ideas.
But I guess I'm never going to be asked to judge a 25 wol! |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 03:20 PM
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If I were a judge I would of course firstly eliminate the over 25wols and then DEFINATELY next on my list would be sob stories. I have had a rough
life and like just about everyone else that has lived a few years has more sob stories than hot dinners but I refuse to write a wol that even hints to
that effect. I think nothing would be so demeaning than to write a sob story and win with it. I shudder and squirm everytime I read one thinking how
pathetic they are. I will keep with my upbeat and sometimes quirky answers and they would be the answers I would choose, but then I would never be
asked to judge either. |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 04:01 PM
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Mind you, that's only one judge's point of view.
Re judging 25WOL, there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY that they would read every single one, who has got the time? |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 07:51 PM
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The phone call part is very disappointing. When I'm at work I can't answer my phone so from 830am - 5pm I'm out! But I do check for texts or missed
calls throughout the day. I hope this isn't a common occurrence! |
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posted 15-5-2015 @ 08:44 PM
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Quote: | Originally posted by Dabsey
If I were a judge I would of course firstly eliminate the over 25wols and then DEFINATELY next on my list would be sob stories. I have had a rough
life and like just about everyone else that has lived a few years has more sob stories than hot dinners but I refuse to write a wol that even hints to
that effect. I think nothing would be so demeaning than to write a sob story and win with it. I shudder and squirm everytime I read one thinking how
pathetic they are. I will keep with my upbeat and sometimes quirky answers and they would be the answers I would choose, but then I would never be
asked to judge either. |
Though it is surprising how often they win especially on FB comps where answers are visible and you have lots of people replying " hope you win " or
" you should win " etc |
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posted 16-5-2015 @ 12:12 PM
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Of course one of the problems with sob stories, even on Facebook, is how can you possibly know if they are true? (Belle Gibson, for example). |
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posted 16-5-2015 @ 01:42 PM
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Cannot stand the sob stories...no one likes a 'poor me' attitude! |
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posted 18-5-2015 @ 03:51 PM
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I'm freaking out now- I got a private number call, no message left, about 45 minutes ago and missed it by 2 seconds! I hope they call back lol. Good
to know how they work! Thanks for posting |
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posted 6-6-2015 @ 12:47 PM
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No-one's going to read 5,000 WOL entries? Why not? This is about 12,000 words, right? 5 minute fiction stories are about what, 1,000 words? So 60 mins
to read 12,000 words. Isn't the effort put in by competitors worth an hour of their time?
And this is before ineligible, and 30% "I will tell everyone" entries are discarded! Then it's just a case of comparing each with the last and keeping
the better one until you're left with a handful to judge.
I don't think I'm being harsh. I'm not a writer but I have to read masses of email and business corro in a day, far more than 12,000 words, and spend
much more time giving a considered reponse, and I know marketing departments do the same. He states he is able to share the load with colleagues,
anyway. I really don't see the problem.
I'm hoping this 'judge' isn't representative of the majority - but if so, waddya gonna do?
Sorry about the rant. Have to find something better to do with my Saturday mornings!
(Approx. 150 words. Wonder if I'll get disqualified for going over? )
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posted 6-6-2015 @ 01:29 PM
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Quote: | Originally posted by roama
No-one's going to read 5,000 WOL entries? Why not? This is about 12,000 words, right? 5 minute fiction stories are about what, 1,000 words? So 60 mins
to read 12,000 words. Isn't the effort put in by competitors worth an hour of their time?
And this is before ineligible, and 30% "I will tell everyone" entries are discarded! Then it's just a case of comparing each with the last and keeping
the better one until you're left with a handful to judge.
I don't think I'm being harsh. I'm not a writer but I have to read masses of email and business corro in a day, far more than 12,000 words, and spend
much more time giving a considered reponse, and I know marketing departments do the same. He states he is able to share the load with colleagues,
anyway. I really don't see the problem.
I'm hoping this 'judge' isn't representative of the majority - but if so, waddya gonna do?
Sorry about the rant. Have to find something better to do with my Saturday mornings!
(Approx. 150 words. Wonder if I'll get disqualified for going over? )
| Please change your career, we need someone just like you to be judging our entries |
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posted 6-6-2015 @ 09:56 PM
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Your maths is almost there. 5,000 25wol entries is actually 125,000 words not 12,000 words. The average reading rate is 300 words/minute, which means
it'll take almost 7 hours of solid reading to read 5,000 entries.
But seriously, this is a lazy judge (and I'm sure there are plenty of them out there). If they can't abide by their own rules and actually judge all
entries then they shouldn't make it a wol comp, just draw it and save everyone a lot of time.
Quote: | Originally posted by roama
No-one's going to read 5,000 WOL entries? Why not? This is about 12,000 words, right? 5 minute fiction stories are about what, 1,000 words? So 60 mins
to read 12,000 words. Isn't the effort put in by competitors worth an hour of their time?
And this is before ineligible, and 30% "I will tell everyone" entries are discarded! Then it's just a case of comparing each with the last and keeping
the better one until you're left with a handful to judge.
I don't think I'm being harsh. I'm not a writer but I have to read masses of email and business corro in a day, far more than 12,000 words, and spend
much more time giving a considered reponse, and I know marketing departments do the same. He states he is able to share the load with colleagues,
anyway. I really don't see the problem.
I'm hoping this 'judge' isn't representative of the majority - but if so, waddya gonna do?
Sorry about the rant. Have to find something better to do with my Saturday mornings!
(Approx. 150 words. Wonder if I'll get disqualified for going over? )
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posted 6-6-2015 @ 10:23 PM
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He should try marking year 12 English trial essays!!!
Prize wins 2014: $37680
Prize wins 2011: $13000
previous years about $25000
The harder you work the luckier you get
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posted 7-6-2015 @ 11:26 AM
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Ha, ha ha ha ha! Do you know, Smiley, as soon as I posted I wondered about the
figures - but then that's why I do correspondence, not accounting!
Point remains the same, though. After the 'winnowing' and sharing with other department colleagues - we would hope our efforts are worth a few hour's
work....
I don't enter many anyway. Too much like a busman's holiday at the end of the day!
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posted 7-6-2015 @ 12:13 PM
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Quote: | Originally posted by gr82do
He should try marking year 12 English trial essays!!! |
exactly! Much more work/reading involved there and has to be taken seriously as
someone's future career is at stake!
At the end of the day just like the teacher, that is what the judge is getting paid to do, so do it! Especially if it is a company that doesn't run
many competitions, surely they can spend the time once or twice a year reading the entries they asked for.
If not, make it fair for all and draw it.
As for not answering the phone! leave a message! What's the hurry, why does the prize have to be awarded within 30 mins. I hope his method of
judging isn't used very often.
I agree with the sob stories and more than 25wol, so many of those of Facebook plus people saying why haven't I won, or I don't believe you actually
give out prizes. (because they've entered 5 comps or so and not won)
2005 total:$1,130-
2006 $5,500 app.
2007 $2,000 approx.
2008 $1200
2009 $930
2010 $4,200
2011 $1,473
2012 $675
2013 $462
2014 $2,150
2015 $120
2016 $1150
2017 $210
2018 $210 at least I'm consistent!
2019 $115 still waiting for the big one!
2020 $550
2021 $3,000
All I want ... is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy! And 2022 is the year to do it!
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posted 7-6-2015 @ 12:32 PM
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A lot of them are not judged at all. Take a recent Facebook comp for a Downtown Abbey DVD - who is your favourite character and why. The winning
answer, and I quote:
lady mary head strong
Four words, no punctuation, not even capital letters. Some times I don't know why I bother!!! |
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posted 7-6-2015 @ 12:37 PM
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Quote: | Originally posted by langod
A lot of them are not judged at all. Take a recent Facebook comp for a Downtown Abbey DVD - who is your favourite character and why. The winning
answer, and I quote:
lady mary head strong
Four words, no punctuation, not even capital letters. Some times I don't know why I bother!!! |
I may enter more now! Seems I have a chance after all
2005 total:$1,130-
2006 $5,500 app.
2007 $2,000 approx.
2008 $1200
2009 $930
2010 $4,200
2011 $1,473
2012 $675
2013 $462
2014 $2,150
2015 $120
2016 $1150
2017 $210
2018 $210 at least I'm consistent!
2019 $115 still waiting for the big one!
2020 $550
2021 $3,000
All I want ... is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy! And 2022 is the year to do it!
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posted 7-6-2015 @ 06:49 PM
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Quote: | Originally posted by langod
A lot of them are not judged at all. Take a recent Facebook comp for a Downtown Abbey DVD - who is your favourite character and why. The winning
answer, and I quote:
lady mary head strong
Four words, no punctuation, not even capital letters. Some times I don't know why I bother!!! |
really I guess that's what happens in random draws |
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posted 25-6-2015 @ 10:14 PM
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I also spoke to someone who often judged competitions and they said "If you're ever going to enter one of our competitions, don't use limericks or
poems. We completely ignore them".
I think it depends on the competition. I won a watch and my WOL was "I haven't bought a new one in years. Would be nice to have a nice one"
Another I won a fathers day pack because I said my husband was amazing supportive through our fertility struggles. I won an Avent steriliser pack with
"I won't use anything else". Hardly creative or fun answers but obviously worked with those competitions. |
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posted 25-6-2015 @ 11:30 PM
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Quote: | Originally posted by MrsLovett
I also spoke to someone who often judged competitions and they said "If you're ever going to enter one of our competitions, don't use limericks or
poems. We completely ignore them".
I think it depends on the competition. I won a watch and my WOL was "I haven't bought a new one in years. Would be nice to have a nice one"
Another I won a fathers day pack because I said my husband was amazing supportive through our fertility struggles. I won an Avent steriliser pack with
"I won't use anything else". Hardly creative or fun answers but obviously worked with those competitions. |
It does depend on the judge. I have won with limericks and poems, along with normal, true, and blunt answers. Not won anything (by any entry
mechanism) for a long looooong time, so not sure what formula would work anymore. Suppose it is just what answer pops in your head that you are happy
with and works for you on the day. I chip away all the same. |
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posted 1-10-2016 @ 01:42 PM
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Thanks for sharing, it's an interesting read. Yes it's only 1 judges insight but probably similar to many others. Good to know they eliminate entries
over the word limit. I spend so long editing my entries to fit the word limit! Oh and the sob stories...!!! I do think ones that are visible on FB
competitions get a better chance as the company looks good for picking someone that's 'hard done by'. |
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posted 1-10-2016 @ 03:07 PM
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I've been a judge for art competitions and what I learned was that it is VERY subjective. Same with WOL I'd say.
Prize wins 2014: $37680
Prize wins 2011: $13000
previous years about $25000
The harder you work the luckier you get
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posted 2-1-2017 @ 10:40 AM
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Dear the Judges read my Wol's I am a real person with real email and give me time to answer my phone please I always think its a teller marketer
ringing me.Good tips |
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