BYU NewsNet - Blog gives prizes to the community

Living the poor college student life gives students an added appreciation for receiving things for free.

This is the idea that inspired Emily Cushing, a 1998 BYU graduate, to start Give Away Today, a blog which gives prizes to people who enter the daily drawing.

“I noticed on other blogs how excited people get when there are giveaways and decided it would be a fun idea to incorporate into my blog,” Cushing said.

Each day the blog highlights a business and gives away free samples of the product they are promoting.

Cushing launched the blog in December and has found great success with 2,100 to 6,000 hits each day.

“One of the main appeals of the blog is there are no strings attached. You don’t have to pay a fee to participate in the drawing,” Cushing said. “You do not have to give any personal information to be entered in the drawing as well.”

She said the blog appeals to all age groups and types of people.

“There are a wide range of businesses featured providing opportunities for people to win an assortment of different products,” Cushing said.

Karen’s Cookies, a cookie company located in Southeastern Idaho, was featured on the Web site in March and gave away a cookie decorating kit, a cookie decorating book and three sets of cookie cutters.

Karen Summers, the business owner, said she was extremely satisfied with the exposure she gained through Give Away Today.

“The day we were featured and the day after were huge sales days for us, and traffic to our Web site on those days increased by more than 100 percent,” Summers said. “We are still getting hits from Give Away Today on a daily basis, and it has been more than three weeks since our giveaway.”

Followers of the blog said they were excited about the prizes they are winning.

Phoebe Wilson, a Give Away Today winner, said in an email to Cushing, “Thank you for all the opportunities to win fabulous goodies and for introducing me to so many new wonderful shops.”

Today the Web site will feature a special giveaway for students online at giveawaytoday.blogspot.com.