How do we really feel about online voting contests? What SUCKS about them?

[Seanna {Madam}]

Update: This is an old thread I stated awhile ago so I'm not in the contest anymore. I see the thread is still kickin though, nice!



OK. So I'm currently in an online voting contest and it's one that I REALLY want to win. I won't shamelessly try to promote it this time though :0)
My thoughts these days are, how fair are they really? Doesn't it seem more like a "who you know" contest rather then judged off of your talent, looks, personality, photography, and what not? Plus, it's so impersonal with the internet running the game. And whatever happened to the old school Pin Up contests that are held in public with judges? Let's bring that back! Maybe start a City to City contest kind of Dr. Sketchy's style? Yeeeeah, now I'm thinking! Awww, s***, I'm onto something. You heard it here first!
(DC, Dee, we will talk about this later, lol)
Luckily, the one I'm in is just boiling down to the last 12 contestants and then it's fairly judged by real people face to face on stage. I'm just curious what the outside looking in perspective is. I know that it is an attempt to get the contest holders company promoted without actually having to network to hundreds at a time which I understand is hard. And I understand that is a give/take because the model gets more face time on their sites and promotion out of it too. Sometimes this goes round and around in my head because I feel like my friends are getting worn thin with voting requests and frankly I'm assuming, a bit annoyed with it. Let's hear it PL!

And s***, if you all respond that you love it Seanna will be holding an online "Seanna's Favorite Pin Ups Contest" in March. You heard that here first too. Snap! (no I'm not drunk, I'm just extremely hyper right now.)

[Seanna {Madam}]

I always like the idea of some good competition Daddy Cool! But wouldn't it still be a chance for someone to go promote it to their friends which, would once again, turn out to be that popularity contest issue? There has GOTTA to be a fair way to enter a contest and then be judged by a select group of professionals. I know the concept behind these contests is typically a company looking for promotion by using a model to do all the work for them and then reward with some swag and cross promo. I hate to sound so tainted by it but I've entered numerous contests, bugged the s*** out of my friends, shamelessly promoted myself out of my own comfort zone and then have won some and lost some. I've definitely seen girls lose that whom, to me, should have been a shoe in winner. Instead they ate the dust of some crazy myspace pro with more time on their hands, who posts more bulletins, and tweets out the banana yet, had a lackadaisical pic posing in tacky lingerie. Perhaps it can start as a voting machine but the finalists are chosen by a board chock full of talent like a well known photographer, model, designer, and artist. Also maybe have a wild card girl that if she didn't get to the finals but the judges like her, is allowed in based off of an amazing portfolio. Now that's a contest!

Daddy Cool {PL} said:

Keep the feedback coming folks...
What if PL had a photo contest...no registration, no accounts needed, 1 vote per day, totally anonymous, so you'd really vote for the photo you felt was the most amazing and noone would know... Oh, and completely automated, calculated by computers including the winner announcements.

[Vintage Suits by Mary]

You are absolutely right, Seanna. Contests should be judged by professionals, NOT friends. Getting your friends to vote for you is not a contest (at least not a pinup contest, it's a contest to see how many frineds you have with time on their hands)

[Edson Carlos]

They ARE popularity contests because they're slated as "model contests". They focus the decision making on who is in the photo rather than the photo itself.

If we did our own, we'd repeat our extremely fair method used for the Calendar photo contest held last year. This time with a slight twist, people won't be able to rank down images. Oh, and 1 vote/day!

This would be considered a Photo Contest and would be open to models AND photographers for submissions. Voting would be open to absolutely anyone with no registrations required and it would be anonymous. The anonymity removes the layer of awkwardness from people tracking their votes closely, you voting, and they notice you didn't vote for them. Additionally it removes the knowledge of how close rankings stand. We think this would drive people to really vote for the photo that captures the theme and their eye the most. Yep, I said theme ;)

Voting period would be short, certainly not a month long. All photos being uploaded to the contest would be pre-screened so myspace quality junk just won't cut it.

Thoughts.... ?

[Vintage Suits by Mary]

I like that idea, but I think people should be allowed to vote once, period. And the moderator's vote should carry more weight.

[Auburn Hills]

I'm not fond of them, but if it's quick and easy to cast a vote I will. I get irritated and don't vote when you have to register and or go through a bunch of crap first.

[Cody Brown]

I absolutely hate the contests that let you vote over and over. It's a pain in the ass for the people you know and those who have their friends voting everyday will win. Doesn't matter if that person is attractive or not. I think every contest should be one vote per person or computer. Good Luck!!

Cody

[Miss Katrina Darling]

Im in a contest at the moment it begins online and then the top 12 girls go on to a face to face panel/ audience judging with swimsuit parades and burlesque performance as the talent round.


For me I started off in 4th place then due to recent family mater i have negected the 'vote for me' malarky with has resulted in me dropping to 11th :(

Whats worse is that I know a lot of the girls in the top 12 aren't even Performers! So they wont stand a chance of winning the real life pagent in comparison to someone who is a performer.

Please make sure i stay in the top 12 and not just by the skin of my teeth. you dont have to register AT ALL.

hit up : www.bestburlesquepinup.co.uk

just go to the vote page and in the 'favourite pin up' field type my Email : [e-mail]

this is a uk only competition and i know there aren't a lot of UK'er on here as there could be i do my promo for PL, you cast your vote for me ?
hehe!

Lots of love and good luck to anyone else in competitions at the moment,

Katrina Darling xx

[Seanna {Madam}]

I like the voting once thing too Mary! Having to vote every day is a bit much.

Vintage Suits by Mary said:

I like that idea, but I think people should be allowed to vote once, period. And the moderator's vote should carry more weight.

[Seanna {Madam}]

I agree that the calendar voting seemed fair and went really well so I think you and Dee have the handle on your contests! Are you going to have a final say? Regardless, as long as it's fair I'm down.

Daddy Cool {PL} said:

They ARE popularity contests because they're slated as "model contests". They focus the decision making on who is in the photo rather than the photo itself.

If we did our own, we'd repeat our extremely fair method used for the Calendar photo contest held last year. This time with a slight twist, people won't be able to rank down images. Oh, and 1 vote/day!

This would be considered a Photo Contest and would be open to models AND photographers for submissions. Voting would be open to absolutely anyone with no registrations required and it would be anonymous. The anonymity removes the layer of awkwardness from people tracking their votes closely, you voting, and they notice you didn't vote for them. Additionally it removes the knowledge of how close rankings stand. We think this would drive people to really vote for the photo that captures the theme and their eye the most. Yep, I said theme ;)

Voting period would be short, certainly not a month long. All photos being uploaded to the contest would be pre-screened so myspace quality junk just won't cut it.

Thoughts.... ?

[Edson Carlos]

Please tell me you got the memo? ;) Top right corner of the site... Look there for answers!

Seanna {M} said:

I agree that the calendar voting seemed fair and went really well so I think you and Dee have the handle on your contests! Are you going to have a final say? Regardless, as long as it's fair I'm down.

Daddy Cool {PL} said:

They ARE popularity contests because they're slated as "model contests". They focus the decision making on who is in the photo rather than the photo itself.

If we did our own, we'd repeat our extremely fair method used for the Calendar photo contest held last year. This time with a slight twist, people won't be able to rank down images. Oh, and 1 vote/day!

This would be considered a Photo Contest and would be open to models AND photographers for submissions. Voting would be open to absolutely anyone with no registrations required and it would be anonymous. The anonymity removes the layer of awkwardness from people tracking their votes closely, you voting, and they notice you didn't vote for them. Additionally it removes the knowledge of how close rankings stand. We think this would drive people to really vote for the photo that captures the theme and their eye the most. Yep, I said theme ;)

Voting period would be short, certainly not a month long. All photos being uploaded to the contest would be pre-screened so myspace quality junk just won't cut it.

Thoughts.... ?

[Frankie Fairlane{★}]

I'm sorry... but i dont like the "vote for me" emails. Or how i have to keep on voting n voting. Its so time consuming. & yes i agree, it does seem like its a popularity contest. I have not ever been in any kind of contest because i am too shy(im working on it)& have stage fright.

[Retro Lovely Magazine {★}]

This is a bizzare and refreshingly informative thread for me as I am running one of these "dreaded contests" and I'm not going to plug it here in the spirit of really listening to what has been expressed by others.

OK I said bizzare because at first on-line stuff typically is a popularity contest. And those who concoct them are usually exchanging some kind of prize or award for the advertising they get from it. Not so hard to see all that. And Seanna you'll like this part... the whole thing I am doing was brought about to help promote a burlesque show, at first I thought I'd expose my photography more, get in front of the pinup crowd more effectively and help the Burlesque folks have a great show, proceeds from their event, well a portion of it anyway, goes towards helping preserve this awesome little opera house where Mae West among others performed back in the day. So this began for visibility. As a photographer I too felt the "popularity" thing was a bit too strong so what we are doing is just like you mentioned. We'll narrow it down to a dozen finalists, produce prints of their winning submissions and have the final voting carried out by the audience at the burlesque show. The show by the way is having a burlesque contest and as someone below mentioned I thought there had to be some models out there with great images who aren't all into getting up on stage and have to walk and talk... so I felt I was trying to address that.

To some other points I've read (and feel decent about)

The contest I'm running does NOT require any kind of sign-up to vote ( I so hate that myself, I don't want junk e-mail, and I won't send any out)

Each IP address is logged but each IP address can vote for more than one model/image so if 5 or 6 shots really mean something to you you don't have to choose (or kinda like a silent auction ) but each person can only vote for any particular image one time.


Unfortunately it is a rather "this for that" world, many social networking sites offer paid for advertising opportunities ( I just bought an ad here ) Some people have problems with that. Like I myself, if I'm on a news website, I nearly never hit any video feeds, if I wanted to watch television and live through commercials, I'd watch TV. If I want news I'll deal with the ads I may glance at, but I can chose to look at them or not. Those videos make me nuts.

Cheers all

Michael