Last week I wrote a post on Effectively Posting Your Listings to Your Blog.  I shared a few tips on how to write blogs posts about your listings to appeal to both consumers & also search engines.  I also shared a few things that will hurt your chances of a consumer coming back repeatedly to your blog.

Many of you have seen the recent influx of points so generously being given away by Bob. The only logical thing for me to do was be more generous.  Unfortunately, since I am still the new guy in the community builder realm of ActiveRain, I have been put on a quota of points to award per month.  Unlike Bob & Brad who have been given the platinum cards with unlimited amounts, I've only been given the gold card which I found out quickly does have a maximum limit.

That being said, I decided that since I can't give everyone 10,000 points, I could at least host a contest!  Besides, who doesn't love contests?  The last one that Jason Crouch sponsored had over 80 entries! I wonder if this contest can break that?  So, without further ado,  here are the details:

• Contest starts today & runs through Midnight CST August 31st.
• All entries must be written after time of this post.
• All entries must be linked into the comment section of this post.  Entries that are not left in the comment section of this post will not be awarded any points.
• Posts that look like they have been copied & pasted from the MLS or any other Newsletter service will be disqualified from the contest & not receive any bonus points.
• You may enter as many times as you wish, but will only receive points for 1 entry.
• At the end of August 31st, a Panel of staff judges will chose the top 10 posts.  The top 10 posts will then be placed into a poll where the members of ActiveRain will chose First, Second, & Third Place winners.
  
• Points will be awarded as follows:
  • 1st Place: 10,000 points
  • 2nd Place:  5,000 points
    
  • 3rd Place:  2,500 points
    
  • Top 10 Finalists: 1,500 points
    
  • Just Entering Contest: 500 points
• The top 10 finalists & also winners of this contest will not be based upon the listing itself.  In other words, it doesn't matter if your post is about a 10 million dollar mansion, or a $10,000 piece of land.  The winners will be based upon the quality of the post, additional content about the surrounding areas, & use of extras like video & slideshows.  Creativity & content will out weigh design & layout.
  
• Lastly, your posts will be judged upon grammar & spelling, so make sure to use the spell checker & proofread your post. Posts containing several spelling errors or typos may be removed from the contest.

  Best of luck to everyone & I look forward to many awesome entries!