I tend to be really, really slow when picking giveaway winners, but this last giveaway/giftaway has taken me an embarrassingly long time.
It’s been on my to-do list for over 2 months now, and I kept pushing it off because it’s time-consuming to sort through entries to weed out duplicates to ensure fairness. Plus, I wanted to spend more on the giftaway, but wasn’t quite sure how.
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Earlier today a reader asked about why I don’t do follow ups to giveaways or even mention winners, and I also answered about why I don’t show winners with their prizes, (because hardly anyone ever sends photos) and things like that. That discussion finally lit a fire under me to sort through entries and pick winners.
Link to the Ended Amazon Wishlist Holiday Giftaway
So… here’s the list of winners, with links to their entry comments. Each has won a $50 Amazon.com gift card, to be delivered via email. Congratulations!
But there’s a catch. I’m not going to send out notification emails just yet.
If your name is on this list, please fill out this form:
ToolGuyd Winner’s Form (Read the update, below, before filling out the form!)
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If you fill out the form, you get an extra $25, for a total gift card prize of $75. It pays to be a regular reader, doesn’t it!
I’ll send notifications out to remaining winners in about a week’s time. If a winner doesn’t fill out the form by then, they’ll still get the original $50 gift card prize.
Oh, and you might have noticed that there are more than 5 randomly selected winners. Because that’s what you get to do when you’re in charge. =)
Hmm… there are quite a few Bobs, Davids, Adams, Tylers, Scotts, and Nathans that entered the giftaway.
I imagine it might be disappointing to see your name on the winners list, only to click through and find out that it was someone else with the same name that won a prize. I guess that’s another reason why giveaway winner announcement posts aren’t very good.
I don’t like disappointing people.
What if I entered a giveaway, and then read a winner’s announcement post, thinking for a moment that I won, only to see and realize that it was another Stuart that won a prize? Yea, I don’t think I’ll be doing any more giveaway announcement posts after this one.
So here’s the deal. If you’re a Bob, David, Adam, Tyler, Scott, or Nathan who entered but did NOT win the giftaway, ToolGuyd will send you a $25 Amazon.com gift card.
ToolGuyd Consolation Prize Form (Read the update, below, before filling out the form!)
The “you must have previously commented on ToolGuyd at least once” entry condition still applies.
And your email address must match the one you used when you left the comment.
And there will be no email notifications about the consolation prize. This post will be your only notification. But, I guess it’s redundant to say this, because if you don’t read ToolGuyd regularly, you wouldn’t even know about any of this. No disappointment, no consolation prize.
All said, that’s 10 winners, and up to 21 consolation prize winners. So that’s up to 31 winners when originally I planned for just 5.
Hopefully this makes up for the delay.
I’m going to go ahead and hit “Publish” now, before I calculate how much this giftaway could cost me/ToolGuyd.
But it’s worth it, you guys are awesome, and I like to give back however and whenever I can.
For those of you that read ToolGuyd regularly but don’t comment, we might be doing a similar giftaway next year, giving you quite a few months to get at least one comment in.
Oh, and if you won a gift card, please send in a photo of the tool(s) or items you end up purchasing with it. The new ToolGuyd forum would be a great place for this!
Sorry, I also haven’t quite finished the follow up to my first Ultimate Tool Gift Guide. Like too many things, it’s still on my to-do list.
Winners have until April 2nd, 2016 to claim their prizes!
Update
It seems that some clarifications are necessary.
1. Did you enter the Amazon Wishlist Gift Card Giftaway?
No? Then you could not have won.
2. Are you one of the 10 people whose entries are linked to in the above list of winners?
No? Then you did not win one of the grand prizes (for lack of a better description).
Yes? Fill this out: ToolGuyd Winner’s Form.
3. Did you not win the grand prize, but entered the giftaway under the name Bob, David, Adam, Tyler, Scott, or Nathan?
Yes? Then you won a consolation gift card prize! Fill this out: ToolGuyd Consolation Prize Form.
4. Is your name Bob, David, Adam, Tyler, Scott, or Nathan, but you entered the giftaway with a different name?
Yes? Then I’m sorry, but you did NOT win a consolation prize.
5. Did you win a consolation prize but filled out the grand prize form by mistake?
I’ll assume it was an honest mistake and make the correction.
Summary
If you are not one of the 10 winners, and you did not enter the giftaway under the name Bob, David, Adam, Tyler, Scott, or Nathan, then I’m sorry but you did not win anything.
Nathan
Hahah after looking at the winner list and checking the posts associated with them i was thinking “There sure are a lot of Nathans on this site.”
Then i read the rest of the post.
Thanks for the consolation prize. Your reasoning mirrors mine. 🙂
Nathan
I have to say I’m shocked as well – mostly to even see my name on the list.
ALso I think in all my time in school there was only ever once there was another Nathan. Figured it was a rather uncommon name.
I can’t seem to use the form at the moment – I get an error from google docs about non-encrypted connection or some such. Will try again later.
Thank you again.
Nathan
And no I’m not the first poster. and this is not a bot. In case people are curious.
Stuart
You’re welcome! The other Nathan too. =)
The Google Forms work here, but I’ll test a little more. In case of technical issue, and we have to email, you’ll still get the bumped-up gift card amount.
Nathan
I’ll try from another venue – I suspect it might be a work network issue. so I’ll use my phone in a bit. you know that other multi-tool most of us keep around but don’t use well.
Jon
Stuart, this may be a stretch … my name is JoNathan – which might be considered Nathan by some people! As a loyal reader, tool nut and unabashed cheapskate (I prefer “frugal”), can I get a consolation prize too?
Worth a shot!! Whether I win or not, I’ll still be a fan, and thanks for the Toolguyd site.
Nathan
Awesome, thanks for the consolation prize, Stuart! Nathans unite!
*Yet another Nathan
David
Wow, what a nice surprise. I saw my name on the list as well and was disappointed the winner was another David. It is a good thing I read thru the whole post.
Thank you Stuart for hosting this Amazon giveaway!
David
And I was surprised it was me! I’m glad being a David worked out well for everyone involved.
David
As another David, glad that one of us was a winner and the rest of us got recognized for having the same name. Very clever way to reward loyal readers.
Thanks again to Stuart for hosting this promotion and for all his great work on ToolGuyd .
Hilton
Congrats to all who won. Hope you buy something really cool.
Pete
Constelation prizes?! What? Lol i wouldnt claim it if i wasnt a picked winner. Disappointment is a part of life just like excitement and joy of winning, if i didnt win i didnt win! But then again my name isnt pete lol.
Congrats to those who one!
Nathan
Constellation prizes would be if there was some kind of perceived pattern imposed on the randomness of the replies and the post at each vertex was given a prize.
Stuart
Well, there are consolation prizes for the same reason I picked 10 winners instead of 5.
Because… why not?
I had set aside a budget for ToolGuyd promotional swag, but it ended up being unspent, so I funneled it into the giveaway.
Instead of selecting a couple more winners, I thought that it might be cute to send smaller gift card prizes to readers with the same entry names as those that won.
I called it a consolation prize for lack of a better description.
Calling it a “because Stuart is generous, greatly appreciates ToolGuyd readers, feels bad about the delay, and wants to give back more impromptu surprise secondary giftaway” is a little immodest.
John Blair (Not a Nathan)
Now here I go wishing there was a like button. I think a really long descriptive titles is by far the best form of conceit. (Just to be clear I mean the second meaning in the dictionary, “a fanciful expression in writing or speech; an elaborate metaphor.”)
mike aka Fazzman
No mikes on the list,grats to yall that won.
Tom
I can’t be too disappointed because I have won contests a couple of times already. You are very generous!
Thanks for the site!
Jason
Wow, I have to admit that this was only time that a contest has taken the “almost winners” feelings into account.
Thanks for all the great posts and reviews!
Patrick
The takeaway I got here is that for some reason toolguyd has an extra appeal to those named Nathan. Congrats guys.
James R.
Ha. If only there was a James in the winner’s list.
Congrats everyone!
R Dogg
#changenametoNathan
Joshua Latham
Congrats to all the winner! Keep up the great site Stuart.
Tyler
Wow! Stuart, your generosity is astounding. I always consider myself fortunate to have a good one stop place to learn about the tool lines I have and learn about new tools or tools I didn’t know about. To receive a nice gift like this is wonderful. The gift card will be put to good use. Again, congrats on 7 years of being a valuable resource.
Chad
I’ve been called a lot of names but I still go by Chad !!
Congrats to all the winners and the extra bonus for just looking at the post and filling out the extra form.
Now thats a good contest!
John Blair (Not a Nathan)
I can attest having won another contest that Stuart does indeed send prizes and it is a bit like Christmas day if and when you win one.
Tyler
Wow. Generous! (Saw the post) I was excited, (saw my name) really excited, (different Tyler post) then a bit of a let down, (read rest of post) then excited, then that moment when you realized the saved posting settings in your phone you used to comment has a typo. dl*****@hotNail.com
Lol, 🙂 Regardless, I appreciate the time and effort you put into this site. It’s wonderful! I’ve used it numerous times, (bookmarked) being a new and first time home owner. Thanks!
JMG
Thanks for posting the list Stuart. Excellent method for thanking your loyal readers too.
Scott
I think it’s an ingenious way to run a give-a-way! (especially if I’m one of the winners!). I really enjoy this forum and always look forward to the reader comments on your posts. Very, very useful and informative!
Thank you Stuart!
Jim Felt
Stuart.
As a winner emeritus I’m truly pleased to see your continued thoughtfulness and marketing savvy.
Keep up the great site and the fun promos.
We’re all indebted to your efforts and maybe someday we’ll be able to reciprocate. Oh. It’s called loyalty?
No problem!
Cr8ondt
Super cool!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Submitted wrong email…. Sent a 2nd one that is correct….. Thanks a bunch!!!!!
Adam
Woot! I finally won something!
Thanks for running such a great site, Stuart.
Adam
You should double check Stuart, and make sure you have the right Adam. Must have been a mixup with all the thought of my birthday coming up today. ;D.
congrats (other) Adam
Stuart
Did you miss the second half of the post?
Sheri B.
Well, this just made my day! 🙂 Such a nice surprise! I’ve already bought the Jet Air Filtration System I mentioned in my original comment, but I’ll use the gift card for the Dewalt Lightweight Circular Saw on my wish list. Thank you so much!!!
David
This really is a very cool way to do a giveaway. Thanks for doing it and for all the work that makes Toolguyd a daily visit for me and many of my friends!
Scott K
I won! This is the first contest/giveaway/gift away I’ve ever won and it couldn’t have been a better one. Thanks for your generosity, Stu. I will use a last initial for future posts- apologies to any other Scotts…
Dan
Congrats to all winners and losers……
NCD
Yet another Nathan………. had no idea there “Nathan” was as common as it appears.
Thank you.
Nathan
I think that after weeding thru all of the other Nathan’s, I am one of the winners. Awesome, I never win anything.
PS. It looks like I am having a conversation with myself. Does that mean I am going crazy LOL
Grady
Very disappointing. You didn’t pick Grady. I respect your discission to not post winners names, maybe a past winner’s list on toolguyd.com. I enjoy reading your daily post and looking for your reviews on products I wish to purchase.
Thank you, good job !
Stuart
Sorry.
The thing is – who would read a past winners’ list? I never saw much benefit to it.
Maybe if I have a regular “prize of the month,” then that’ll be worthy of such a list.
But with this giveaway costing up to almost $1300, I’m not quite ready to start thinking about the next giveaway!
Sponsored giveaways, where a brand supplies products for giveaway, are always possible, but require a lot of behind the scenes discussions that I don’t have time for right now. Maybe next month or for Father’s Day, but that still would be special giveaways and not a regular monthly thing.
Tomato14
Tomato14 has lost again 🙁
Nathan
Hang on, little tomato!
David
well my name is David and I already got a Kreg Forman. but I need the other bits for it so I would still love a card.
Bradley Hanstad
Curse my less common name! Haha, Congrats to all the winners!
I could have used the card to put towards the massive BoM for our Battlebots we are building! Just means I need another few sponsors.
Bob Nathan Scott
I expect a $75 gift card. $25 for each name. This is my real name. ?
Brian
Sounds like some are trying to take advantage of your giveaway, that’s a real shame. Congrats to the winners! Go F yourself to the guys trying to take advantage of Stuart’s generosity.
BobB
Wow.This is excellent!
Adam
Stuart, you are the best!
What are the chances you could do a giveaway that allowed one lucky person to attend one of these cool tool shows with you? obviously we would have to provide travel, so perhaps limited, but I’d love to go to a Milwaukee show (only a boat trip across the lake) or similar.
never hurts to have a picture taker around ;-D
Stuart
Thanks!
Realistically? Slim to none. I don’t think that’s something any brand would go for.
Who would provide airfare? Accommodations? How many potential winners can leave their jobs and families behind for a few days?
How would this provide more promotional value than current giveaways?
Seems like a great idea in theory, but one that would be impossible to get a media event hoster to agree to.
BobB
Stuart,
Thanks again for the generous giveaway and consolation prizes.
I’m anxiously awaiting my prize for being a “Bob”.
Bob
Thanks for the great giveaway and the extra consolation prizes
Nathan
When should those on the list watch for the prizes? I don’t want mine to get lost in the spam…
Stuart
Round 1 goes out Tuesday night. Round 2 later in the month.
I’ll send an email blast to winners right after the gift cards are ordered.
Nagiom
Any further updates? My Amazon cart is full and burning a hole in my pocket. Thanks. 🙂
Stuart
$75 gift cards have been sent out, followed by an email!
I’m continuing to work on the consolation prize winners, those gift cards should go out this evening, I’ll update when they do.
Stuart
(Consolation prizes will be finished today.)
Nathan
This is the other Nathan – might as well start that way.
Not to be a pest, but I’m not fully sure which camp I’m in. IE I thought I remembered which post was mine – maybe I didn’t. however. I’m the one with the fiery yahoo email if that helps. Was just curious if I should keep checking that e-mail since I don’t use personal e-mail that much. Otherwise again – thank you for doing this. I’m sure it’s quite a bit of hassle for you. So if nothing else thank you for trying to do something for your readers it’s part of why I continue to trust and enjoy this site for information.
Stuart
Thanks for the reminder!
You filled out the grand prize form, but are a consolation prize winner. I moved your info to the right place just now.
Stuart
$25 consolation prize gift cards are away!
There were 13 consolation prize winners. 11 of them were legit (out of 21 total eligible winners), 2 were not valid but approved at my discretion. There’s one more technically invalid entry that I’m still thinking over.