Sticky: Lotto Guide [Skull Ruler is Back] [19/08/2005]

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The Unofficial Guide On How To Make A Lotto
(Also covers the topic on what lottos you should join and shouldn't join)

This guide is here to help you make a successful lotto. It covers almost ALL the topics. If you are unsure or need just a little help on how to make a successful lotto, please keep reading. Also because this guide is quite new I'd love to hear some feedback and suggestions for this guide. All of that is very helpful!

Remember if you are going to make a lotto or join one the main idea of it is to have fun and possibly earn some extra gold. 3nodding


Content

Post 1: Introduction
Post 2: The Basics
Post 3: Extras
Post 4: Do's And Dont's
Post 5: Scam Lottos And Rip Offs
Post 6: FAQ
Post 7: Grammar/Typo Experts & Suggestions Wanted
Post 8: le reserve 8


I am back and am willing to answer questions. If you have sent a PM before 3 days and have not gotten a response please resend it.

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wahmbulance READ BELOW FOR THE BASICS wahmbulance

After an incident a while back of me editing the first post and the topic unstickng, updates will have to share the top portion of this post.

exclaim Annoucement: Lately most of the posts have been edited, updated, revised, etc. If you think that something current in this lotto guide is not up to date with current rules please PM me and notify me. Thank you.

arrow NOTICE: Guide is only updated when needed, not everyday, however I'm on usually once a week to answer questions, so it's not that I've forgotton about the guide, it's just things don't change everyday.

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The Basics
(What your lotto absolutely NEEDS)

Now some of the basics are VERY basic indeed however sometimes due to excitement you forget them while making your lotto. The basics here are definitely needed! Without them your lotto probably will end up turning to a failure. We wouldn't want that, would we? wink

Basic 1: The Title Every lotto needs a title. Your title should have something to do with the gold/item(s) you can win in your lotto. Something as "lotto" as a title is not very attracting nor does it tell the people quickly what you can win in your lotto. If someone were to see "100k Lotto" in the title they'd be more attracted on coming to see it than if it said "Big Lotto". 3nodding

Basic 2: Ticket Fee and How Many Slots There Are Sometimes people are interested in your lotto but are too lazy to ask how much the ticket fee is. Also someone who is trying to make sure this isn't a rip off lotto or a scam would need to know how much each ticket cost and how many slots there are in total. If you were to have a 100k lotto and each ticket cost 1k (reasonable) but people didn't know how many slots there are they PROBABLY wouldn't enter feeling they might get ripped off. However if you were to tell them there was 110 slots they'd probably enter. However if you were to have 200 slots they probably wouldn't knowing not many people would enter due to how much profit you are making and how much time it would take for the slots to fill up. Remember not to earn too much with your lotto as people won't enter knowing how much you profit.

Basic 3: Method On Choosing The Winner To chose your winner you should be using one of gaia's random features. Preferably the random number generator for lottos, as using dice doesn't make it equal chance at all for a lotto.

NOTE - You can no longer use any method for picking a winner, outside of gaia. No more hat draws, no more randomizer.org, etc.

Basic 4: Log That Shows Who Has Entered And Their Slot Number How are people supposed to know how close this lotto is from being completed and what slots are available for them if there is no list on the post showing them it? Also how are you suppose to remember who joined and what slots are left if you don't keep track? Exactly. It messes up the lotto. For the log if there are lots of slots instead of posting all of them post the user and put low slot number - high slot number instead.

EXAMPLE - 1 - 20 Skull Ruler
Skull Ruler has slots 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and all the way up to 20.
(editing right now)

Basic 5: Rules You don't have to include the rules of Gaia's ToS. You include the rules you have. Such as if you wanted NOT to allow refunds you'd have to mention that. If you didn't people would have the right to get a refund. Even though it is kind of not nice to ask for one they still would have the right to. That is why you MUST include that.

Basic 6: Thread Organization MOST people would love a thread that is organized all the information is set out and easy to find. Otherwise you don't have the ticket fee at the top, and have the slots taken at the top. Also you don't use bright pink font and huge ugly fonts other than for TITLES. Unorganized threads shows lack of profession which makes the participants angry and not want to join it.

Basic 7: Respectful You most definitely should thank all participators and bumpers at your thread. Not doing this shows lack of respect and turns people off. Remember you want people to come and join your lotto. Not think you are a stuck up brat! xd wink

Lastly Revised: November 13, 2006

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Extras
(Help you boost your popularity!)

So you've made sure you've covered all the basics with your lotto yet still hardly anyone is joining. Well here is some helpful advice to help out your lotto even more. These are EXTRAS which means they Are not NEEDED for peoples SATISFACTION. They just help boost the speed and how people like your lotto. biggrin

1) The Title Make your title fancy. Maybe make it using alliteration? Or possibly use some fancy UNIQUE characters in the title. Try not to use the same as everyone as it will make your contest look like a copy. 3nodding

2) Sub-Prizes Maybe cut down the first prize to make a sub prize for the second person you draw out. And for a third it could be a refund. This makes people want to join more so they have an even better chance of winning something! smile

3) BUMPing Contest Why not have a bumping contest? Have a prize of about 3k (or more) for the top BUMPer in a few days or so. This attracts more people and also helps your lotto stay on the first page of the lotto forum. It has two pros and almost no cons.

4) Multiple First Prize For the lotto if it's say 60k give them a choice of a Dec Letter (if you have one) or 65k. It'll attract more people because if someone really wants a Dec Letter instead of having to wait to find a seller they could just choice the letter as the prize.

5) Decoration - Images Make a banner. Maybe even some spiffeh dividers. Also add the code to your banner. Some people might just put it in their sig as free advertisement. Of course you need to remember to put your own banner in you sig. ^^;

6) Advertising Most people who have made a lotto know: It's hard to get people to enter it and that they have to bump A LOT. Now if your like me and want to do other things on Gaia other then just bumping, advertise! Add a link in your signature to it, make a banner and put in your sig, and tell your Gaia friends. Of course you will still have to bump a lot, but this gives you a chance to post on other areas and let people see your lotto at the same time.
REMEMBER: Do not advertise your lotto in other people's threads! This is extremely annoying and against the rules. If anything this will make people not want to come. Also to pm everyone to join your lotto, this is also really annoying. If you annoy people, you'll get a poor reputation and less people will be interested in your lotto.

7) Give away some tickets!: I don't mean randomly give away a ticket to someone who posts on the thread. However you could put in your ticket prices description, that if you buy X amount of tickets you get X free tickets. I don't suggest a buy one get one free, because you might as while just cut the ticket prices in half since it applies to everyone. However say, someone buys 1000 tickets, then let them get maybe 10-50 free depending on the price of your tickets. Be sure to post this offer in the ticket pricing post so people are aware of it and people are more motivated to buy tickets. wink

Lastly revised: October 14, 2006

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The Do's And Dont's
(Well some people can't tell from wrong and right//joking)

smile Do: follow the basics I have listed.

smile Do: try to spell and use grammar as much as you can correctly.

smile Do: (OPTIONAL) make a little profit.

smile Do: be firm with how much each ticket costs. Do not lower the price for ANYONE. Unless its a special deal that you have notified everyone with, such as if you buy 100 tickets you get 5 tickets free. However if someone justs ask for a lower price, say no.

smile Do: try to have fun. If someone starts bumping your thread, talk to them in your thread. Iy'll make it more interesting for the both you and you still get your thread bumped. If the person is bumping for a contest just ask them to post the number after each post or whatever the system is.

sad Don't: report rip of lottos, only report SCAM lottos. There is a difference. See below. smile

sad Don't: speak n00b/1337/net chat.

sad Don't: have a profit of more than 50% of the prize. It is AGAINST the rules to have a profit of more than 50%/ Althought you ARE allowed to do 50% maximums, I'd only do that if it was a small slot 50/50 lotto. Otherwise in big million lottos, it'll turn people off if you make half of x million.

sad Don't: change the prize UNLESS you are adding to it. Subtracting = a big nono. People SHOULD have he right to drop out if you lower it!

sad Don't: scam, you will get reported to the mods. stare

sad Don't: rip people off

sad Don't: enter yourself in your own lotto. This includes mule or extra accounts of your's too. If caught, lotto will be shut down and you will most likely be banned.

sad Don't: use bright yellow, lime green or neon coloured text. Unless its just for a title or something, don't use it. Even then, I advise mid-tone colours for titles, as they attract attention and don't hurt people's eyes. Examples are: red, royal blue, forest green, etc.

sad Don't: fight with people in your thread. That means if someone rips you off by not paying or something else, handle it through pm. Also if some rude obnoxious person picks a fight in your thread, ignore it or just simply tell him/her to stop. If the person doesn't, report their posts. Fighting can give you a bad reputation and turnoff people.

sad Don't: Forget about your lotto. Big lottos of 50,000 and up, generally take quite A LOT of time to complete. Make sure ahead of time that you have the time to maintain it and not quit it. People will get upset if you just quit, and if you start a new lotto in the future they might remember that you don't stick to your lottos.

exclaim If by chance something comes up real big and you're unable to maintain it, try to at least notify the lotto participants in your first of your lotto.
Also try to refund your ticket buyers, if you cant try to get a friend to do it.

sad Don't: buy the prize with the lotto money. This is considered breaking the official lotto rules and is not allowed. It is fine to use the prize money as the prize though. Just not something such as: you don't have enough to buy the nitemare scarf as the prize but you were intending to use the ticket money to buy it.
However, items as prizes are allowed of course if you already own the item. You should prove you have the item though by wearing it, screen shotting your inventory, of putting the item up for display in the post feature that allows you to display items from your inventory.


Lastly revised: October 14, 2006

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Scam Lottos And Rip Offs
(They're the WORST kind of lottos)

Do you know the difference between a scam lotto and a rip-off? Well it's actually quite tricky. Rip offs are owned by GREEDY people. Scams are OFTEN owned by GREEDY n00bs! However there is no real way to judge so don't make any false accusations unless: the person just joined, is poor, or speaks with very bad spelling and grammar.

Rip Offs

To identify a rip off you see some person who joined about two months or more ago. That person is making about a 50% profit of the lotto. What a rip off. There is no evidence if the person is scamming though. It's probably just a greedy no good person. sad Rip offs are bad however IF they did supply the information on how much each ticket cost and how many slots there are then they are innocent and should NOT be reported because you can easily figure out how much profit they make. However not many people join "Rip Offs" as they really are RIP OFFS! xd 3nodding

Scams

The EASIEST ways of identifying a scam lotto is by *joined date, posts, and/or spelling/grammar level. However just because the person just joined does NOT make it a scam 100%. Ask them if they already have the prize and if they have any other accounts first. Then if you got that proof it MAY not be a scam but there is still a chance.

* SIDE NOTE: If there's a one week old member with an well organized lotto and who seems to know what they're doing, then give them as much respect as some random one year member

Also scams can be done with older members however this doesn't happen often unless they've been terribly upset with Gaia lately.

Another way is the plus 500k lotto scam. Otherwise the person is fairly new (3 months give or take) or sometimes older, and is having 4 million lotto. The tickets are 1g each and there are 6 million slots. You think it wouldn't be a scam since the tickets are low. But guess what? It is a HUGE one because 1g adds up, and it can add up VERY fast. If you're really thinking it is a scam notify someone asking if they could check the lotto out. However don't tell them it's a scam because there still is e possibilities it is not one.

One of the most rotten lousy scams there's been is the "enter yourself" lotto. It's when the creator of the lotto enters themselves into the lotto by either their main account or/and by secret mule account(s). They can go on randomizer and keep randomizing till it hit their number. Then they claim all of that money to themself. If the creator does enter themself into the lotto don't enter, and report it.

There are other scams that are very clever. Just use your judgment best. Try not to start a fight though because you never know for sure if it is a scam or not...unless the person says it's a halo and refuses to put it on. lol

Feel free to report ALL scam lottos to the green moderators. If you're not sure about it being a scam pm them anyways so they can look into it.

XxXDr4g0nXxX

The punishment for a scam is most always a permanent ban. (I only say most always because sometimes it a lot has been scammed we will talk to the scammer and try to get them to return the scammed items or gold. If they do return the scammed goods, we will only ban them for a 14 day period. Of course, any other offence would get them a perma ban. That includes something so little as spamming).

3nodding

Lastly Revised: September 07, 2006

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FAQ
(Frequently Asked Questions)

Q: Why was this guide created? I already know this junk!
A: It's just like asking why was this question created? I already know that you know!

Q: I have feedback/suggestions for this guide? Where may I post them?
A: Great, you may post them here or through a pm. I'm always looking for helpful feedback and suggestions. 3nodding

Q: May I point out some typos in this thread?
A: Sure, but I may not correct it.

Q: May I post/PM you about my question with lottos?
A: Yes of course.

Q: Who may I report a scam lotto to?
A: An online mod who moderates the Lottos and games subforum. ^__^

Q: Can I report someone who is rude?
A: N00b rude, no. Plain rude, as in extensive flaming/harassement yes...but this really doesn't have much to do with the lottos.

Q: How come no one is joining my lotto? neutral
A: It takes A LOT of time. Seriously, you can go through 10+ pages without people buying a single ticket. If you find that you have spent ridiculous amounts of time bumping your lotto you may want to change it. Make it more interesting, add more prizes, add little fun contests, offer little sub-contests, etc. If you really hate bumping, I suggest if it's possible ask a friend to keep you company in your lotto.

Q: Is my lotto good?
A: You can pm me your lotto so I can look at it. However, I don't have time for everyone, so if I am unable to answer you, just bump your lotto and see if people join or not. If no one will enter, it may be lacking things, in that case recheck over this lotto guide to see if you could improve your lotto anyway.

Lastly revised: September 07, 2006

[Voice Mail]

Helpful People

Thank you to the following people below, for helping out with the guide during its earlier stages and rough drafts:


-LadyDelaidra, she really helped a lot with typos and grammar. Thank you so much. heart
-Skroy, he helped with lots of typos. Thank you! heart
-Shaille Akuryou she pointed out a typo. Thanks! heart
-Bird Draggon she found loads of spelling errors and grammar mistakes. Thanks! heart

Another huge thank you goes out to the recent people who sent me many grammar and typo revisions through pm and through this thread. I have been busy lately, so unfortunately I cannot remember everyone who helped within 2005-2006+ so I will not be able to list your names. Sorry sad

Lastly Revised: September 03, 2006

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heart

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hibeki-manslayer

bump

Thank you.

This topic is now ready for posts. Please beware of the hundreds of typos. I'm not perfect. ^^

[LadyDelaidra]

This is very informative. It should be stickied. Good job!

[Voice Mail]

LadyDelaidra

This is very informative. It should be stickied. Good job!

Thank you! heart

[LadyDelaidra]

Skull Ruler

LadyDelaidra

This is very informative. It should be stickied. Good job!

Thank you! heart

Would you like me to go through your topic and check for spelling mistakes?

[Voice Mail]

LadyDelaidra

Skull Ruler

LadyDelaidra

This is very informative. It should be stickied. Good job!

Thank you! heart

Would you like me to go through your topic and check for spelling mistakes?

Yes I would love it if you were to. 3nodding

[LadyDelaidra]

Okay, First Post Mistakes:
None!
Second:
absoulutly? - Absolutely
excitment? - Excitement
definily? - Definately
Something as "lotto" as...? - Something WITH Lotto as...
someone was to see...? - Someone WERE to see...
slots there are they probably wouldn't...? - Slots there are PROBABLY wouldn't...
They'r? - They're
suppose? - Supposed
Exactly it messes up the lotto? - Exactly. It messes up the lotto.
wanted NOT to...? - Wanetd TO not...
layed out? - Set out
particpaters? - Participators (i think)

[Voice Mail]

LadyDelaidra

Okay, First Post Mistakes:
None!
Second:
absoulutly? - Absolutely
excitment? - Excitement
definily? - Definately
Something as "lotto" as...? - Something WITH Lotto as...
someone was to see...? - Someone WERE to see...
slots there are they probably wouldn't...? - Slots there are PROBABLY wouldn't...
They'r? - They're
suppose? - Supposed
Exactly it messes up the lotto? - Exactly. It messes up the lotto.
wanted NOT to...? - Wanetd TO not...
layed out? - Set out
particpaters? - Participators (i think)

Thank you so much! ::runs off to edit mistakes:: heart heart heart