This is just a draft. Suggestions welcome!

A. Finding Freebies
B. Posting/Updating Freebies
C. Requesting Freebies
D. Receiving Freebies

A. Finding Freebies

Sites with URLs that start with the following are legitimate:

• sampollnet.coty.com/...
• startsampling.com/...
• To be added...

Sites that offer freebies no one ever receives or with a catch:

• To be added...

Using Search Engine
SEARCH in your favorite search engine/directory using "free ____" -- include the quotes, but substitute what you are looking for for the underline. (ie: "free golf balls", "free staples", etc.). Remember to use variations of spelling (ie: "free t-shirts" AND THEN ALSO "free tee shirts", "free tees", "free tshirts", etc.) (Thanks skypod)

B. Posting/Updating Freebies

Before You Post

• Search the forum to see if the freebie has been posted.
• Make sure the search keyword is at least 4-character long or B$ search will ignore it.
• Bump existing threads whenever possible. Why?
  
  • To keep the forum organized.
    
  • So we know if the freebies have been around for a long time but no one ever receives them.
    
  • For limited time/quantity freebies, we know how long they have been around and whether they are likely to remain available.
• Be kind...If you find a freebie on a mom & pop type of site, go ahead and send for it if you choose to, but don't post it...they're probably getting hammered as it is. (Thanks kar522)

Post Title

• Be specific. There are many freebies everyday. A specific title helps others to determine if they have already requested the freebie in the past. It also helps to minimize repost.
• If there is a restriction(s) for a Freebie (i.e. Teachers only, Businesses only), please include it in the post title. (Thanks apricot)

Post Content

• Test your link to make sure it works. (Thanks kar522)
• When posting Freebies, try to include some descriptive text in your post in addition to a link, telepone number, etc. This will help other members decide whether they want to click the link to look further. It is also helpful to have this information when links no longer work. (Thanks apricot)

After You Post

• If someone posts that one of your deals is dead, or has changed, edit the title to show it. Also, one "deal is dead" type of post per thread is usually enough... (Thanks kar522)

Repost

• If you notice a repost, be nice. We all make mistakes.
  
  • Use "Moderation Options": "Delete this topic" (bottom left) to delete the thread if you are the thread starter.
    
  • Or use the button and kindly ask the moderators to merge the threads.

C. Requesting Freebies

Name

• Avoid giving your real name unless absolutely necessary.
• Try something like:
  
  • Fake name (e.g. AMS Doe instead of John Doe)
    
  • Keywords that tell you where they come from (e.g. Olay J. Doe for freebies from Olay)
    
  • Typos (e.g. Johm Doe),
    
  • Initials (e.g. J. Doe)
    
  • First name=Current, Last name=Residents
    
  • Combination of the above. Just be creative!

Address

• Many "Freebiers" have a PO Box just for freebies. However, PO Box does not accept UPS/FedEx delivery (most freebies are sent by USPS anyway).
• Add variations to your address to help you identify the freebies from other legitimate/junk mails. E.g.
  
  • Add an Apt # if there is no apartment in your house.
    
  • Use "Apt 101a" instead of "Apt 101" (assuming there is no Apt 101a in your building).
    
  • Add a "Dept #".
    
  • Use "1st Dr" or "1st Ave" instead of "1st St" (assuming there is no 1st Dr or 1st Ave nearby).
• Some freebies do not allow "PO Box" or "Box" in the address line even though they are sent by USPS. In that case:
  
  • Find out the street address of your post office at http://www.usps.gov: "Locate a Post Office"
    
  • Replace "PO Box #1234..." with "Street Address #1234..."

Phone

• Avoid giving your real phone number unless absolutely necessary.
• Use something like (real area code) 555-5555. (Thanks sarinne)
  • Why doesn't the phone company use the "555" prefix?
• Get a free Internet voice mail like http://www.evoice.com if you want to allow phone contact.

Email

• Some freebies require a valid email by sending you a message with a confirmation link.
• Get a separate email account from Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail, etc. just for freebies.
• Even better, use a disposable email like http://www.spamgourmet.com

Date of Birth

• Avoid giving at least the real month and day. Give the real year if you want to help the sponsors getting an idea about the demographics of the recipients.
• If you decide to fake the year, make sure it meets the age requirement (over 13, 18, 21, 65, etc).

Credit Card

• Never give your credit card information whether you will be charged or not. Legitimate freebies almost never ask for credit card information.

Software

• Many "Freebiers" use software like http://www.roboform.com to fill in forms automatically.
• The current free version of Roboform limits how many identities you can use. A better option is to download the last version with unlimited IDs, Roboform 4.6.8 (Thanks crimson)
  
  • http://www.freedownloadscenter.com/Best/roboform-4_6_8.html
    
  • http://www.freewarepro.com/info.php?categoryid=66&fileid=11

D. Receiving Freebies

Bump the Original Thread

• Don't forget to bump the original thread and tell us you receive it! Why?
  
  • Let us be happy for you too!
    
  • So we know which freebies are legitimate.
    
  • Some of us missed it when it was first posted.

Reserved...

Test your link to make sure it works.

Be kind...If you find a freebie on a mom & pop type of site, go ahead and send for it if you choose to, but don't post it...they're probably getting hammered as it is.

If someone posts that one of your deals is dead, or has changed, edit the title to show it. Also, one "deal is dead" type of post per thread is usually enough...

When posting Freebies, try to include some descriptive text in your post in addition to a link, telepone number, etc. This will help other members decide whether they want to click the link to look further. It is also helpful to have this information when links no longer work.

If there is a restriction(s) for a Freebie (i.e. Teachers only, Businesses only), please include it in the post title.

This link does not work for me.

Usually there is more after the URL, what I mean is URL that start with http://sampollnet.coty.com/XXXXX is legit.

Ah, got it. You should probably clarify that then and maybe unlink it, it's just so easy to click on a link and not even think about it.

FYI: http://www.evoice.net is NOT free, only offers a 30 day free trial and requires a CC to signup.

There are two versions:

# eVoice Free: eVoice Free includes but is not limited to a personal remote eVoice Number (the "eVoice Number") that provides for the delivery of voice messages to email. eVoice Free is hereinafter referred to as "Free" or "Free Service". eVoice Free is for personal, non-commercial use only.

# eVoice Plus: eVoice Plus includes all of the eVoice Free features, plus remote message retrieval via telephone (Telephone User Interface or "TUI"), text message notification via mobile phone (where available), and a local or toll-free eVoice Number (where available). eVoice Plus is hereinafter referred to as "Plus" or "Plus Service".

IIRC, the current free version of Roboform limits how many identities you can use. A better option is to download the last version with unlimited IDs, Roboform 4.6.8

You can download it here:
http://www.freedownloadscenter.com/Best/roboform-4_6_8.html
http://www.freewarepro.com/info.php?categoryid=66&fileid=11

It doesn't work well with FF or Mozilla, but does with IE. You will get popups asking if you want to upgrade to the newest version, just "say no" if you want to keep the unlimited 4.6.8

For phone number, you can also use something like (real area code) 555-5555

works all the time.

People who really own that number will hate you.

How about 555-1212...isn't that still information??? Whoops...I mean "Directory Assistance."

555 numbers are reserved for the movies. It's a nonexistent number.

555-5555 is the number that the tv show clarissa explains it all uses. see articles below.

http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20020826.html

list of 555 numbers from tv shows/movies: h ttp://home.earthlink.net/~mthyen/

It's good to know!

kar, according to the list of 555 numbers, 555-1212 is the number for the Brady Bunch residence and it's also directory assistance in some places.

http://www.answers.com/topic/555-telephone-number

another bit o' trivia: on the 1970's TV show "Happy Days" (Fonzie, et al) the phone number exchange used was "KLondike 5" then the last four digits. Back in the show's era (1950's to 1960's) 2 letters of a certain word and a number were used to denote the first 3 digits; in this case both "k" and "L" are 5 on the dial/keypad, same effect as "555." Anyone know why this was, and why it fell out of usage.



.

With so many more phones being used, the amount of exchange words that made sense were getting in short supply. With numbers, it didn't matter...I can still remember while growing up in Chicago, that my parent's first phone # began UPtown 8, and then when we moved to the 'burbs it was FOrest 6....later 366...Out here in the IA boonies....our small town never had exchange names...you just dialed (or told the operator) 4 numbers....we could still do that up until about 18 years ago...

SEARCH in your favorite search engine/directory using "free ____" -- include the quotes, but substitute what you are looking for for the underline. (ie: "free golf balls", "free staples", etc.). Remember to use variations of spelling (ie: "free t-shirts" AND THEN ALSO "free tee shirts", "free tees", "free tshirts", etc.)

Remember, no freebies are guaranteed, and you are always taking a chance (unless it's a major company's <like Coke... > giveaway) that the site could just be phishing for info... When I post a freebie I try to find out how legit it is (and if it looks phishy, I say so), but these guys are getting so clever...

Yahoo is your friend...

Just bumping for any new members...

And another warning about phishy sites...ever since I signed up for a couple of those "Free Products"...mostly cleaning stuff...even though I did not have to give an email addy, I have been bombarded with spam...co-indicidence???

Nothing fatal...Probably the worst would be some Spam, junk snail mail, or annoying phone calls from sales people...I use my real last name and some derivation of my first name...my age depends on my mood...and what phone # I put in depends on the type of freebie...

If a freebie or contest has an end date listed in the title or description, there's really no need to bump a thread by posting *DEAD*

Do you use a fake name and # just for freebies or for contests also? Then what happens if you win?

I have no idea how many people will see this post in here, but I'll give this a shot first to see the popularity of it.

First of all, I like to enter freebies and sweeps as much as possible (if they're worth it of course). Since I have good programming skills (through reading the help file), and I hate repetition because it's such a waste of time, I designed a simple program to fill in my credentials on these freebies/sweeps. I have a separate sub-code for each daily sweep so that I can enter even the most annoying sweepstakes--that do not have a returning players link--in seconds (with a simple button called "auto".

I enter about 80 different daily sweeps on any given day. Time to complete? 20 - 25 minutes!

If anyone is interested in this program I use, I will continue taking the time to make it universal by replacing my info with customizable fields that you can fill in. I have already started working on this. *Note* This is not RoboForm, nor have I given RoboForm a try, so I don't know how it compares. Here is a preview...



Basically, when you click on the button beside the text you want inserted, it activates your browser (of your choice) and types in the info very quickly, then tabs to the next field so you can click the next button for the next field.

I would like to contribute my time on this to the BargainShare community who have worked so hard to keep up with the freebie/sweeps section of the forum and have allowed me the opportunity to win many prizes. Of course, this will work when signing up for new memberships on new websites when entering your name, shipping addy, etc. Please post if you show interest in this. Mods, let me know if this should be a separate post in a more active forum.

I might use it.

Sure, sounds great!

Wonderful... I have finally finished the program - there are 2 options to using this: .EXE or .AHK

Executable file? No problem. Just let me know a place I can share EXE files!

AutoHotkey file? The benefits are that you can edit the source code with AutoHotkey. If you have AutoHotkey installed, opening the AHK file will default to running it as an EXE. This is how I run it since I update it about 3 times a week (in notepad) to add new sweepstakes auto-fill-ins. Again, I'll need to know of a site to upload this type of file. Unfortunately, I do not have a domain to upload this to.

And thank you for showing interest in this!