misosouper, a shopping blog

As I mentioned before, I just finished up a series of three guest posts on the biz side of things, over at Indie Fixx.  A couple of readers have since e-mailed me since with some follow-up questions, and I thought that to give them proper due, I’d turn them into a (somewhat irregular) Friday feature.  On to today’s question!

Lovely Liz writes:  “How do you promote a giveaway?”

I feel relatively equipped to answer this, considering that misosouper’s been doing one giveaway a week for 6 months now.  I like to promote my giveaways through several channels.  After the initial giveaway post goes up, I try to plug it on my site throughout the week, on days when traffic peaks (on misosouper, it’s Wednesdays and Fridays).  Like this:  lookie here!  Sign up for this week’s giveaway!

I always e-mail a link to the person who is offering the goods to giveaway, so she can circulate it through her own channels, post it on her blog, tweet it up, etc.

Speaking of Twitter:  tweet about it!  But not too much, because that’s just annoying.

Finally, I submit the giveaway post to a few giveaway promo sites, like Prizey, free!grechen, Blog Giveaways,  Luck Happens, and Prizeatron.  It takes a bit of time, but this always results in directed traffic that often sticks around and becomes a regular audience on the site.

Voila!  That’s what I do…how do you promote your giveaways?

*For more suggestions on how to start/promote/blog your indie biz, check out these other great resources at Design*Sponge, Modish Biz Tips, and Indie Biz Chicks

photo credit to iheartlinen, who made (and gave away) all this gorgeous stuff

1.  In celebration of Earth Day, Ideeli is giving away an Amazon Kindle–in 5 hours.  Start your engines, and sign up for Ideeli (and the contest) here:  http://www.ideeli.com/invite/misosouper

2.  In other giveaway news, check out vivabox’s Mother’s Day contest; I’m a judge, along with some other fantastic bloggers, like Jolie Nadine, Aly Walansky of SheKnows (among other places), and Andrea Proulx of Mommas Review.  Write an essay for your mama, and you could win a vivabox full of goodies for Mother’s Day AND your mom’s birthday.

3.  Have you entered misosouper’s awesome giveaway from Miss Indie yet?  Do it!

4.  I’ve been writing a series of guest posts for Indie Fixx, and some readers have been e-mailing me/commenting with follow-up questions about working, promoting, and surviving in the biz.  On Friday, I’ll dedicate a post to some proper answers, so if you have anything pressing you want to ask (really…anything!  I can’t guarantee that I’ll answer all the questions, but ask away), e-mail me at anna {at} misosouper.com, or leave a comment on this post.

5.  And finally, before you leave, be sure to update your RSS feed to the new address.  Feedburner is about to burn out, so you certainly don’t want to be misosouper-less.

photo by radio rover, who shares both my aesthetic and sense of humor

Yeah, you want to be one; but with papers fluttering all over your office, you don’t even have room to crack your whip.  That’s sad.  I’m here to help you get your shit together in the new year.

This week, misosouper and Knock Knock are gifting one lucky winner with an entire set of their task clips–48 in all.  These bright, shiny Utility, Timing, Importance, and Poopy butterfly doohickeys will, in Knock Knock’s words, let you “appear more productive than you actually are” and “look good without getting much done.”  (I swear, it’s as if Knock Knock’s creative department burrowed deep into my brain, sucked out the marrow, and plagiarized the mantras of my life.  Oprah I’m not. {Even though I love you Oprah, and if you called me, I’d be on the next plane to your show.  We could give away Knock Knock clips like you gave away cars:  one for you, and for you…})

To win, leave a comment on this post, explaining which Knock Knock gift you’d most like to give, to whom you’d give it, and why.  (No space/word/character limits this time.  It’s a free for all!)  And these better be funny, people, considering you’re writing about a company that sells products like the “Things You Do That Piss Me Off” notepad, the “Sex Report Card” magnet, the “How To Traumatize Your Children” manual, and the Choose Your Religion Wheel O’ Wisdom.

And you better not Paper Voodoo doll me to win this thing, either.  Chances are I’m cursing my disheveled desk, staring longingly at my patent whip, and weeping over the fact that I’ll never be on Oprah, paper voodooing you right back.

the fine print:

Comments will be closed and entries will not be accepted after 11:59 pm EST on Saturday, January 24, 2009.  The winner will be selected on Sunday, January 25, 2009, and notified by e-mail.  Results of the giveaway will be announced on Monday, January 26, 2009.  Multiple entries will not be accepted, and previous giveaway winners are not eligible.  Misosouper, a shopping blog reserves the right to disqualify entries that are incomplete, inaccurate, or considered spam.

I have a friend for whom dumpage just happened.  (Really, people, aren’t we getting a little too old for this?)  Everything was going along swimmingly for her and the beau, and then:  the next thing I know, we’re at ladies night, drowning ourselves in Cosmopolitans and pretending that it’s 2001.

Egads.  My advice, drunken though it might have been, was to fill out every single page of the activity book Dumped!, and mail it to him.  With his address scrawled in blood.  (Kidding about the last part.  But seriously, he is an asshole, and that would not be undeserved.)

With activities like word scrambles (how many phrases can you make out of “screw you?”) and connect-the-dots, it’s like really, really Mad Libs.

If you’d like the occasion to play vindictive and bitter all the way through to catharsis,  then you’re in luck:  this week, misosouper will give 3 lucky readers copies of Dumped! To enter, you need to post a breakup haiku in the comments,  writing either from the giving or receiving end of the split.  (ETA:  entries that are not haiku will be disqualified.)  Best three win the prize.

And if you’re interested in seeing who won the M641 giveaway, that information can be found in the original post’s comments.  (All future contest winners will be notified by e-mail, as usual, and announced in giveaway post’s comments as well.)

the fine print:

Comments will be closed and entries will not be accepted after 11:59 pm EST on Saturday, January 17, 2009.  The winner will be selected on Sunday, January 18, 2009, and notified by e-mail.  Results of the giveaway will be announced on Monday, January 19, 2009.  Multiple entries will not be accepted, and previous giveaway winners are not eligible.  Misosouper, a shopping blog reserves the right to disqualify entries that are incomplete, inaccurate, or considered spam.

I first stumbled across the clothing brand Madras 641 on Twitter (seriously…is there anything those 140 characters can’t do?), and I was hooked.  Cofounded by friends Subu and Ina, their designs incorporate signature touches in each lovingly crafted garment, such as foil print, paisley flourishes, or an intricately detailed hem.  Their Fall/Winter ‘08 collection features a signature tunic rendered in–hello, gorgeous!–bronze studs, that would be perfect for layering over a long-sleeved tee and leggings, or wearing with heels after the kiddos are in bed.  (OK, so that’s what I would do.  If you don’t have kids, or can stiletto after toddlers, feel free to totter in the tunic at all times.)

What I love most about their line, besides its amazingly affordable prices, is the clothes’ fantastical details:   fabric tucked inside the pleats of a jumper, sequined paillettes bedecking a shoulder, and a subtle horizontal slit across the back of an oxfordy shirt.

I want all of it.  And I bet you will to0, which is why misosouper and Madras 641 are giving away two shirts to two lucky winners.  Choose from those featured above:  the Paisley Muse, a drop-waist tunic with a drawstring at the bottom; and the Rough Around the Edges, a button-down, bat sleeve top, both of which would look great layered over a three-quarter length top.  Leave a note in the comments indicating which shirt is your favorite, and we’ll randomly draw one winner for each garment.

And if you don’t win, Madras 641 is offering misosouper readers a 30% discount on both shirts; simply e-mail ina@madras641.com, mention the misosouper giveaway, and let her which top you’d like.  (They accept PayPal, as if you weren’t enticed enough.)

the fine print:

Comments will be closed and entries will not be accepted after 11:59 pm EST on Sunday, January 11, 2009.  The winner will be selected on Monday, January 12, 2009, and notified by e-mail.  Results of the giveaway will be announced on Monday, January 12, 2009.  Multiple entries will not be accepted, and previous giveaway winners are not eligible.  Misosouper, a shopping blog reserves the right to disqualify entries that are incomplete, or considered spam.