Pros of Decorating Envelopes
- Some sweepstakes still draw winners by looking into a mail bag of entries. Brightly colored envelopes will stand out, and me more likely to be drawn.
- Even when the draw is blind, the person picking the winner might be more likely to pick an envelope with an unusual surface texture.
- Decorating envelopes is fun, and helps keep me more enthused about entering. The brightly colored envelopes are cheerful and are more interesting than writing out tons of white envelopes.
- Decorating my entries is also a good way to get my family involved. My kids love to design envelopes with me!
Cons of Decorating Envelopes
- Even in cases where the people who are picking the prize reach look into the mail bag, they might shy away from brightly colored envelopes, to avoid bias.
- Most national sweepstakes do not physically draw winners. Instead, they assign each entry a number, and pick a random number.
- Decorating envelopes is a waste of time. In the amount of time it takes to create a colored envelope, you could enter more sweepstakes and improve your chances.
- Stickers, markers, and other crafting tools cost money. That money would be better put toward buying more envelopes and more stamps.
Resolution
Decorating envelopes is probably a waste of time and money for international sweeps. But for smaller sweepstakes that are more likely to be hand-drawn, that extra effort could boost your chances to win. If you enjoy doing it, if seeing your envelope designs perks you up and makes you feel good about entering, you should do it. Otherwise, feel free to stick to plain white envelopes. In any case, always be sure to read the sweepstakes rules to ensure that plain envelopes are not a requirement.
