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How to Secure a Victory-- Tips and Advice from HomeAway Blog Contest Winner, Emmy O'Dwyer

Mon, 06/01/2009 - 8:26pm — HomeAway09

Emmy O'Dwyer, the winner of the HomeAway blog contest, offers her tips about how to use your network to get votes for your entry and ultimately secure a victory.  Also, check out her winning summary for ideas as to how you can make your submission stand out from the competition. 

 

When I wrote my blog post for the Why I Deserve a Getaway from HomeAwaycontest, I was determined to win. I figured I'd send a mass email to my friends and win easily.  Once the contest was underway, stiff competition proved that I needed to try some new strategies...and now I'm convinced: Facebook made me a winner.

Here are the Facebook strategies that helped put me over the edge:

 

  • Start recruiting votes from the beginning, and don't waste a minute!
  • Post a note on your profile requesting votes from your "friends."  Don't just repost your contest entry: use the familiar tone you'd use with those you know and love.  In this way, folks are hearing lots of reasons why you deserve to win!
  • Post a sample letter that your friends can alter and post on their own profile pages.  This extends your network to include "friends of friends."
  • Use the status update to keep your network current on the contest, and plea for votes.
  • Have voting drives:  I'm looking for 20 votes in the next 30 minutes.
  • If the site posts total votes as the contest is in progress, check out your closest competition, and publicize the tightness of the race.  This draws your friends into the race of the thing, and motivates them to solicit votes on your behalf.
  • Belong to groups on Facebook?  Post on those pages.  I'm fairly sure that my high school class gave me at least 100 votes.

You can't do it alone.  But with Facebook, you have a whole network to vote for you.

It might sound like a lot of work, but I can guarantee that your HomeAway vacation is well worth the effort.

Good luck!

 

 

As an added bonus, here's a copy of the Emmy's winning summary from the "Why I Deserve a Getaway from HomeAway" contest, held in January 2009. 

"Having never met him, all my family in Honduras knows of our son is that he was born with a disability.  They’ve never been put under his spell and don’t yet know we’re the luckiest people alive to have him.  A vacation will help us share him with our big family and relax together.  My husband works nights to shuttle our son to therapies, schools and doctor visits.  Our repertoire is dizzying! With two other children under five and my work as director of a non-profit childcare center in post-Katrina New Orleans, we’re pooped and broke."

 

Comments:

How do people vote?  by their

Wed, 06/03/2009 - 1:03pm — jandunlop

How do people vote?  by their comments?

Coal Miner's Soul--love it!!

Thu, 06/04/2009 - 9:10am — masonwhlng

Coal Miner's Soul--love it!!

While commenting is

Mon, 06/08/2009 - 3:54pm — HomeAway09

While commenting is encouraged, it does not count as a vote.  Voting will begin at noon (Central Time) on July 2 and will continue through July 16.  During this time, return to this site (www.saveoursummervacation.com) for more information and voting instructions.  In the meantime,  check out the entries and be sure to make note of your favorites so you'll have yours picked out come voting time!

It would be a pleasure to

Thu, 06/11/2009 - 8:52am — judiem13

It would be a pleasure to take my son on a well deserved trip without the frustrations of sending out resumes and getting turned down, especially with the chaotic economy we are enduring right now.

With all the down turns in my

Thu, 06/11/2009 - 8:54am — judiem13

With all the down turns in my life at present, and my sons as well,

it would be wonderful to present him with a unexpected trip to regroup.

We are an everyday family

Sun, 06/14/2009 - 5:37am — markell5

We are an everyday family with the usual battles over school,money, who's turn to turn to take out the garbage. The part that I feel makes us special is we have stuck together through thick and thin for 25 years of marriage, to each other and the Canadian Military. This to most people a momentous victory , but we will be spending it apart - again - due to training exercise for Afganinstan. We are a proud Canadian Military Family who is ready to sacrafice "dadisms" for a 6 month tour. Over the years we have put everything and everyone ahead of ourselves due to the "career"  the time for reflection is now. What I would love most is to be able to spend a family vacation, somewhere away from all the stress and worries and just decompress, once this tour is completed (March is the return month).Over the years my husband has missed, mulitple birthdays, anninversarys, father's days, Christmas's. Mostly he misses the nightly dinners, yes even the the arguements.  Just the daily routines we all take for granted when we spend each and everyday with the kids. A worthy sacrafice for sure, not without tears. Being a Mom we tend not to ask for things for ourselves, there always has to be first time, looks like this is it. Ours boys have grown up fast and are spreading thier wings, the vacation of a lifetime would be the perfect way to re-aquaint ourselves, solidify that bond.

Not fussy on where to go, but being from Canada -- somewhere hot ranks #1.

Proud to be called a Canadian Military Wife, Remember to thank them and thier families.

 

 

MY WIFE HAS KIDNEY CANCER

Fri, 07/17/2009 - 6:12am — papabear49082

MY WIFE HAS KIDNEY CANCER NOW. WE NEED A GRANT OR DONATION FOR MEDICAL EXPENSES. SHE IS ON SUTENT AT 7000 A MONTH. WE COULD USE A VACTION TO FAIRBANK ALASKA TOO KNOW PEOPLE THERE TOO IN THE ARMAY. THANK YOU. RETIED