ialottery blog

What Would YOU Do If You Won?

We took some of our actual winners’ answers about their plans when they won the lottery and posted the list as a fun “to-do” survey on Facebook so people could choose their favorite responses.

You can see the list in the image here: These were the Top 10 most common answers from our winners about their plans for their prize winnings. We then asked folks on Facebook to tell us what they would do if they won. And the answers show us once again why we love Iowa!

The No. 1 response that people chose as what they would do if they won the lottery was to “help others in need.” Coming in second was “build my dream home” and “pay bills.” Third on the list also was a tie, that one between “travel” and “contact a financial advisor and/or attorney,” which is something we always recommend to our players who win a considerable prize.

So, there you have it: a combination of philanthropy, common sense and plans to just enjoy life.

We hope our list give you a fun break to dream about what you’d do if YOU won the lottery!

 

Hey, VIP Club Members: Don’t Forget To Update Your Profile!

Since this time of year brings with it spring cleaning, here’s a reminder to tidy up the details in your VIP Club profile if you’re a member of our player’s club. If anything has changed since the last time you visited it, please update your profile! Here’s an example from this month about why that’s important: One of our VIP Club members almost missed out on a prize in our social-media contest because her information was out of date.

When we initially reached out to our contest winners, our email ended up in the women’s spam folder, so she didn’t see it. So next we tried to call her. The phone number was no longer in service. Luckily, we were able to finally make contact with her so she didn’t miss out on the prize before the claim period expired. But if your information is out of date, you could end up in the same situation!

To review/update your VIP Club profile, just log into your account and click on the “Manage Profile” option on the left side of the screen. You can then verify your mailing address, phone number, email preferences and more. If you have any questions about updating your profile, feel free to email us at [email protected] and we can help you through the process.

 

 

Slight Change In How You Can Enter Our Social Media Contests

We’re making a slight change in the way you can enter our social media contests. Starting next month, you’ll be able to enter our contests from four platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.

Google+ will not be one of the platforms involved. Please don’t think we’re picking on that service or you if you’re a Google+ fan! We’re making the change because we’re doing our best to comply with Google+ policies.

In its terms for regulated goods and services, Google+ states that it does not allow content to be posted that facilitates the sale of a list of items, including gambling products. We work hard to follow rules and policies, and because we give away lottery tickets in our monthly contests, that may cross a line within Google+ definitions.

We’ve therefore removed Google+ as an option for entering our social media contests. But you’ll still have four other popular platforms to choose from, so not to worry. (As a reminder, our next contest starts at 10 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 12. Click here for the full details!)

Why Can’t I Enter Your Social Media Contests From Out Of State?

A couple folks on Facebook each sent us the same question this week about our monthly social media contests. Bob and Ve Nessa both wanted to know why they couldn’t enter our contests from out of state.

We replied to them on our wall, but it’s something others have likely wondered about as well, so I’m sharing the deets here on the blog.

The lottery holds a social media contest each month that you can enter from Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram or Google+ for a chance to win prizes. We give away different lottery tickets each month and often throw in some lottery swag (think: T-shirts, water bottles, koozies, etc.).

In the details we post about our contests, we explain that you have to reside in Iowa to participate, must be at least 21 years old to enter; and you can enter only once.

Bob and Ve Nessa both said they live in Nebraska and want to be able to enter. We totally get that and are glad they want to join in the fun with us! But there are provisions in state and federal law that mean our contests have to be restricted to Iowa-only entries.

There are prohibitions against sending lottery tickets across state lines as well as limitations that allow us to offer lottery products only within the state of Iowa.

With the prizes in our social media contests being lottery tickets themselves, we need to ensure we’re following the law.

Ve Nessa posted an unhappy face to our answer, but said she understands that we have to follow the law.

No more unhappy faces! Get out there and have some fun! It’s Thursday, so that means the weekend isn’t tooooo far away.

(And if you live in Iowa, be on the look out for our next social media contest Oct. 21-23.)

 

Instagram & Pinterest Contest This Week!

Now that we’ve made our official debut on Instagram and Pinterest, we’re holding a contest this week exclusively for our followers on those platforms. It’s our way to thanking you for connecting with us – and we plan to keep the fun going!     

This week’s contest started yesterday and continues through 10 a.m. on Friday. We’re giving away five prize packs of $20 each in the “30 Somethings” scratch game plus some cool lottery swag.

And as we move ahead, look for our social media contests each month that you can enter from Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram or Pinterest! Our first contest involving all those platforms will start on Monday, July 13. Be sure to give us a like or follow so you’ll stay up to date on all our lottery happenings and contests!

We’re Now On Instagram & Pinterest!

We know you like to connect with us in the places you already go, so now there are two new ways you can do that: The Iowa Lottery has joined Instagram and Pinterest.

We’ve been involved in social media for eight years, proving that time really does fly! We jumped in when we started producing our own videos back in 2007 – and that counts as a couple millennia ago in the fast-changing world of social media!

But through it all, we’ve continued to gain new likes, followers and contacts, so we think (we hope) that means you like what we’re doing.

So now, in addition to our blog, Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and YouTube pages, you can find us on Instagram and Pinterest. We’re iowalottery (lowercase) on Instagram and IowaLottery (uppercase) on Pinterest.

Look for some changes coming in our monthly social media contests that we think will allow even more people to get in on the fun by entering them.

Two more ways we can say: See you there!

What The Law Says About Lottery Winners’ Info.

As our latest $2 million Powerball® winner was claiming his prize last week, we got a comment that’s worth sharing here on the blog, as it raises an important point about lottery winners’ information in Iowa.    

The comment came to us on Facebook, where someone raised concerns about the lottery sharing information about the winner. The commenter wished that prizes could be claimed anonymously in Iowa. We understand the perspective, and we encourage comments on the lottery’s Facebook page. But Iowa law requires that lottery winners’ information be made public. And the lottery, like everyone else, has to follow the law.

When you win an Iowa Lottery prize of more than $600, you have to fill out a winner claim form that includes your name, address and Social Security number before you can claim your winnings. Iowa law makes the information on that claim form public, meaning that anyone can request a copy of the form to see who has won the prize. We redact sensitive information, such as your Social Security number, from the form before we release it, but all other details are considered public information under Iowa law [Iowa Code Section 99G.34(5)].

The winner claim form states in part: "By signing this claim form, I authorize the Iowa lottery Authority to use my name and likeness for any publicity purposes that it deems desirable." Also, "The Lottery will redact your Social Security number on this claim form. The remaining information is used for research and publicity purposes and will be made available to members of the public."

We understand that privacy is a big concern these days. But on the other side of the coin, you want to know that the lottery is being run honestly and that its winners are being determined by random chance just like they’re supposed to be, right? The idea behind the law requiring disclosure of winners’ information is to help ensure that the lottery is not being rigged.

No matter what, we do our best to help our winners have a fun day when they're here. We add a lot of special touches to the prize-claim process to make it a memorable occasion.

Keep those questions and ideas coming, and we’ll keep talking about them here!

Mark Your Calendars For This Month’s Contests!

We’ll hold our November social media contests over the next two weeks, so set a reminder now to enter!

Our Twitter contest this month begins at 2 p.m. on Tuesday (Nov. 12), while our next Facebook contest starts at 11 a.m. on Nov. 18. You can find all the details about the contests here.

Good luck with your entries!

Why Do You Hold Your Contests At That Time?

We just posted the details about our upcoming Twitter contest, and that’s led to questions from some of our players. Specifically, they want to know why we have time limits in our games, promotions and contests, and why we hold certain contests at certain times.

Those are issues we talk a lot about ourselves as we plan out the lottery’s schedules. We know that not everyone may even like a certain game or contest, and with our busy lives these days, it can be difficult to fit everything in. So, we concentrate on variety in what we offer so you’ll have choices. It’s like Mom always said: Variety is the spice of life!

Our Twitter contests do generally run for just 15 minutes and we often hold them during the business day. We’ve tried longer contests on Twitter and have held them early in the morning and in the evening. The results surprised us: The number of entries actually went down in the Twitter contests we held outside business hours. And, the longer contests made some people complain that they couldn’t find our posts as easily because our information had been pushed well down in their feeds. Twitter is a fast-paced, instantaneous platform, and a 15-minute contest during the day seems to be “just right” for it!

But in the past few months, we have switched up our Facebook contests so they now run for 24 hours. The number of entries we’ve seen in them has skyrocketed, so it seems that people like the change. The Find-The-Symbol contests we hold on our website run at least for several days, and our bigger games and promotions run for weeks or months at a time so everyone has plenty of time to enter. The contests and events we hold at our retailers also are at different times and in different locations, again with the goal of giving people options.

But when it comes to the time limits in our games, promotions and contests, they are there for a reason. If we didn’t tell you the start and end dates, how would you ever know when to enter or buy tickets? I’m pretty sure we’d get complaints if we just said we were having an event at some time in April, but didn’t tell you exactly when.     

In the end, it may not be possible to please all of the people all of the time. (But we’ll keep trying!) And we like hearing from you, so keep that feedback coming!  

December “Holiday Bonus” Facebook Contest

We’re celebrating the holiday season early with a special Holiday Bonus for our December Facebook contest! You asked for more time to enter our monthly contest and we heard you loud and clear. Beginning with our December Facebook contest, you’ll have a full 24 hours to enter! Woo Hoo!

This month, we’re giving you a chance to win free plays in Iowa’s $100,000 Cash Game!

You can enter December’s Facebook contest anytime from 11 a.m. Monday (Dec. 17) to 11 a.m. Tuesday (Dec. 18). We’ll be asking you a lottery-related question on the Iowa Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contests” tab.

Enter for your chance to win one of three sets of $20 in Iowa’s $100,000 Cash Game coupons. That sounds sweeter than a whole package of candy canes in your stocking. Sorry Santa!

Visit our Facebook page anytime from 11 a.m. Monday to 11 a.m. Tuesday where we’ll pose our question on the Lottery Contests tab located under our cover photo. When the man on the Lottery Contests tab turns green and says “Enter Now!” that’s your cue to enter. Click the tab, read the question, fill in the entry form and your answer and click “submit” during the new 24-hour window and you’ll be entered. It’s just that easy!

Important Note: The question will NOT appear on our Facebook “Wall.” You’ll need to click the Lottery Contests tab to see it! Also, if you’re viewing our Facebook page on a smart phone, you will need to use the Desktop view in order to see the Lottery Contests tab. It does not appear in the mobile application view.

We’ll select three winners from all of the correct answers submitted, so make sure to double-check your answer before you hit the submit button. Then we’ll blog about the winners, update the Lottery Contests tab on our Facebook page and link to the blog entry on Twitter.

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. If you’re one of the winners, we’ll need to verify your information so we can send out your prize pack!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 26, to verify their information with us to claim their prize. We’ll also select alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

A few other details:
• You must live in Iowa to participate.
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win.
• You can only enter once per person. Only the first entry from each person will be accepted. Duplicates will be removed, including those by the same player entering with multiple email accounts.


And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for lottery purposes. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

Twitter Contest Winners Take Home the Gold

Thanks to everyone who entered our Twitter contest today! Our three winners will be enjoying some free tickets in another one of our holiday games!

Today’s question was: How many winners will get to go to Last Vegas as part of the Winter of Winners promotion?

The correct answer: 10! Ten trip packages to THE PALMS™ in Las Vegas will be awarded on Jan. 14. Don’t forget to continue entering your nonwinning holiday tickets for a chance to get in on that! Any entries you had from the first two drawings also will carry over.

Here are the three Twitter followers who gave correct answers to today’s question and were selected as winners in our contest!

Congratulations to:

@Aubrizzlynn
@tomstiles4
@MzR0se

They each have won $20 in tickets in the Holiday Gold scratch game! It’s a $1 holiday game with a top prize of $1,500. And remember, if you don’t win a cash prize instantly on your holiday tickets, you can also enter them into your free VIP Club account to earn Points For PrizesTM AND entries into the Winter of Winners promotion.

Our Twitter contest winners need to contact us by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, to claim their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month’s contest. Our next Twitter contest is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Jan. 22.

©2012 FP Holdings, L.P. dba Palms Casino Resort. All Rights Reserved.

All That Twitters is Gold

We’re continuing with our holiday theme for this month’s Twitter contest – and this month you’ll get a holiday bonus!

Those who enter our Twitter contest will get the chance to win one of three prize packs that each contain $20 in the  “Holiday Gold” instant-scratch game.

And as a holiday bonus, we’re extending the contest entry time! Our contests usually last 15 minutes, but this month you’ll have 30 minutes to answer our easy question and be entered for a chance to win those free tickets.

And remember, you can also Play It Again™ with any nonwinning tickets in that game – along with all other nonwinning holiday-themed scratch tickets this season – by entering them into your VIP Club account. Entering those nonwinning holiday tickets not only earns you points to use in the Points For Prizes™ online store, but also gets you entries into the Winter of Winners promotion!

All the promotion’s details can be found on the Winter of Winners page on our website.

Our Twitter contest is set for 11 a.m. on Tuesday (Dec. 11). To be eligible to enter, just follow us on Twitter – it’s free to create an account if you don’t already have one. Then give us the correct answer to our super-easy contest question and you’ll be entered for a chance to win one of the three ticket prize packages.   

At 11 a.m. Tuesday, we’ll pose our question on Twitter. Reply with your answer within the NEW 30-minute time limit and you’ll be entered in the contest! Reply to @ialottery on Twitter. (Don’t direct message us on Twitter, as direct messages aren’t eligible for entry.)

We’ll select the three winners in our contest, then we’ll blog about the results and link to that blog entry on Twitter and Facebook.

If you win, you’ll need to contact us with your name, date of birth and mailing address so we can send out your tickets. Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, to contact us with their information in order to claim your prize.

A few other details:
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• You must live in Iowa to participate.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win!
• Only one entry per person. The first entry from each person will be accepted. Duplicates will be removed.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Twitter. The information you provide will only be used for the lottery’s Twitter Contest. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

November Facebook Contest

Eating turkey may make you a bit tired, but our November Facebook contest will certainly get you pumped up!

This month, we’re giving you a chance to win free plays in Mega Millions and some cool lottery swag!

November’s contest is set for 11 a.m. (CST) on Monday (Nov. 26). We’ll be asking you an easy lottery-related question on the Iowa Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contests” tab.

Enter for your chance to win one of three sets of $10 in Mega Millions coupons and some stellar lottery goodies. I don’t think pumpkin pie can compete with our contest. Unless it’s got whipped topping, then maybe!

Visit our Facebook page at 11 a.m. Monday where we’ll pose our question on the Lottery Contests tab located under our cover photo. When the man on the Lottery Contests tab turns green and says “Enter Now!” that’s your cue to enter. Click the tab, read the question, fill in the entry form and your answer and click “submit” during the 15-minute window and you’ll be entered. It’s just that easy!

Important Note: The question will NOT appear on our Facebook “Wall.” You’ll need to click the Lottery Contests tab to see it! We recommend visiting our Facebook page early so you can make sure everything is working for you and you can easily locate the tab. Also, if you’re viewing our Facebook page on a smart phone, you will need to use the Desktop view in order to see the Lottery Contests tab. It does not appear in the mobile application view.

We’ll select three winners from all of the correct answers submitted. Then we’ll blog about the winners, update the Lottery Contests tab on our Facebook page and link to the blog entry on Twitter.

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. If you’re one of the winners, we’ll need to verify your information so we can send out your prize pack!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 3, to verify their information with us to claim their prize. We’ll also select alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

A few other details:
• You must live in Iowa to participate.
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win.
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will not count.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for lottery purposes. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

Howwwwwwwl about a Twitter Contest?

“Happy Howlidays” from us to you! We’re giving away tickets in this cute game in our next Twitter contest.

Our Twitter followers will get the chance to win $20 in tickets in the  “Happy Howlidays” instant-scratch game. What can be better than a ticket with cute dogs on it? Especially when it’s got a top prize of $2,000.

And remember, you can also Play It Again™ with any nonwinning tickets in that game – along with all other nonwinning holiday-themed scratch tickets this season – by entering them into your VIP Club account. Entering those nonwinning tickets not only earns you points to use in the Points For Prizes™ online store, but also gets you entries into the Winter of Winners promotion!

All the promotion’s details can be found on the Winter of Winners promotions page our website.

Our Twitter contest is set for 2 p.m. on Tuesday (Nov. 20). To be eligible to enter, just follow us on Twitter – it’s free to create an account if you don’t already have one. Then give us the correct answer to our super-easy contest question and you’ll be entered for a chance to win one of the ticket prize packages.   

At 2 p.m. Tuesday, we’ll pose our question on Twitter. Reply with your answer within the 15-minute time limit and you’ll be entered in the contest! Reply to @ialottery on Twitter. (Don’t direct message us on Twitter, as direct messages aren’t eligible for entry.)

We’ll select the three winners in our contest, then we’ll blog about the results and link to that blog entry on Twitter and Facebook.

If you win, you’ll need to contact us with your name, date of birth and mailing address so we can send out your tickets. Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 27, to contact us with their information in order to claim your prize.

A few other details:
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• You must live in Iowa to participate.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win!
• Only one entry per person. The first entry from each person will be accepted. Duplicates will be removed.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Twitter. The information you provide will only be used for the lottery’s Twitter Contest. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

October’s Frightful Facebook Contest Results

Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for…THE WINNERS!

Congratulations to:

1) Onyotse Agbese
2) Chrissy Carman
3) Penny Staley

Each of these three winners will receive $20 in Powerball coupons!

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. We’ll need to verify each winner’s information so we can send out their prize packs!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. (CST) on Monday, Oct. 29, to verify their information with us in order to claim their prize. We’ve also selected alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

Thanks to everyone who entered the October Facebook contest.

Mark your calendars now for
November’s Facebook contest set for 11 a.m. (CST) Nov. 26.
We sure hope you can join us!

October’s Frightful Facebook Contest

Halloween is sneaking up fast and we’re giving out our treats early with another Facebook contest! Here’s a fun joke to get you in the Halloween spirit: Who won the zombie race? Look for the answer at the end of this blog!

This month, we’re giving you a chance to win free plays in Powerball!

October’s contest is set for 2 p.m. (CST) on Monday (Oct. 22). We’ll be asking you an easy question on the Iowa Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contests” tab.

Enter for your chance to win one of three sets of $20 in Powerball coupons. That sounds pretty spooktacular to me (Insert evil laugh here)!

Visit our Facebook page at 2 p.m. Monday where we’ll pose our question on the Lottery Contests tab located under our cover photo. When the man on the Lottery Contests tab turns green and says “Enter Now!” that’s your cue to enter. Click the tab, read the question, fill in the entry form and your answer and click “submit” during the 15-minute window and you’ll be entered. It’s just that easy!

Important Note: The question will NOT appear on our Facebook “Wall.” You’ll need to click the Lottery Contests tab to see it! We recommend visiting our Facebook page early so you can make sure everything is working for you and you can easily locate the tab. Also, if you’re viewing our Facebook page on a smartphone, you will need to use the Desktop view in order to see the Lottery Contests tab. It does not appear in the mobile application view.

We’ll select three winners from all of the answers submitted. Then we’ll blog about the winners here, update the Lottery Contests tab on our Facebook page and link to the blog entry on Twitter.

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. If you’re one of the winners, we’ll need to verify your information so we can send out your prize pack!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 29, to verify their information with us to claim their prize. We’ll also select alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

And now for the answer to our zombie joke: Nobody, it was dead even!

A few other details:
• You must live in Iowa to participate.
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win.
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will not count.


And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for lottery purposes. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

October Twitter Contest Results

Thanks to everyone who entered our Twitter contest today. The winners will be enjoying some free tickets in one of our newest holiday games!

The contest question was: How many entries does a nonwinning $5 Peppermint Super Crossword ticket get you in the Winter of Winners promotion?

The answer was 5 entries! The number of entries is determined by the ticket value. For example: a $2 ticket receives 2 entries, a $5 ticket receives 5 entries, etc.

Our three winners have each won $30 in tickets in the Peppermint Super Crossword scratch game! It’s one of eight new holiday games and has a top prize of $50,000. And remember, if you have any nonwinning tickets, you can also enter them into your free VIP Club account to earn Points For Prizes™ and entries into the Winter of Winners promotion!

Congratulations to:
@blooidgirl88
@cindr29
@RachaelEWoods

The winners need to contact us by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 23, to claim their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month’s contest. Mark your calendar now for November’s Twitter contest at 2 p.m. Nov. 20.

September Facebook Contest Results

Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for…THE WINNERS!

Congratulations to:

1) Chris Hargens
2) Dylan Bartz
3) Kimberlee Bogs

Each of these three winners will receive $10 in Iowa’s $100,000 Cash Game coupons and some lottery goodies!

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. We’ll need to verify each winner’s information so we can send out their prize packs!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. (CST) on Monday, Oct. 1, to verify their information with us in order to claim their prize. We’ve also selected alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

Thanks to everyone who entered the September Facebook contest.

Mark your calendars now for
October’s Facebook contest set for 2 p.m. (CST) Oct. 22.
We sure hope you can join us!

September’s Facebook Contest

It’s almost time for fall! But rather than jumping in a pile of leaves, we’re having a Facebook contest. This month, we’re giving you a chance to win free plays in Iowa’s $100,000 Cash Game and some lottery goodies to boot!

September’s contest is set for 11 a.m. (CST) on Monday (Sept. 24). We’ll be asking you an easy, lottery-related question on the Iowa Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contests” tab.

Enter for your chance to win one of three sets of $10 in Iowa’s $100,000 Cash Game coupons and some lottery goodies!

Visit our Facebook page at 11 a.m. Monday where we’ll pose our question under the Lottery Contests tab located under our cover photo. When the man on the Lottery Contests tab turns green and says “Enter Now!” that’s your cue to enter. Click the tab, read the question, fill in the entry form and your answer and click “submit” during the 15-minute window and you’ll be entered. It’s just that easy!

Important Note: The question will NOT appear on our Facebook “Wall.” You’ll need to click the Lottery Contests tab to see it! We recommend visiting our Facebook page early so you can make sure everything is working for you and you can easily locate the tab. Also, if you’re viewing our Facebook page on a smartphone, you will need to use the Desktop view in order to see the Lottery Contests tab. It does not appear in the mobile application view.

We’ll select three winners from all correct answers submitted. Then we’ll blog about the winners here, update the Lottery Contests tab on our Facebook page and link to the blog entry on Twitter.

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. If you’re one of the winners, we’ll need to verify your information so we can send out your prize pack!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 1, to verify their information with us to claim their prize. We’ll also select alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

A few other details:
• You must live in Iowa to participate.
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win.
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will not count.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for lottery purposes. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

We’re “Doubling” Our Fun with the September Twitter Contest

The end of the summer doesn’t mean the end of the fun! We’re keeping things going with another Twitter contest.

This time, we’ll be giving away three prize packs of $20 in the new “Double It” scratch game. We’re hoping our winners can “double” their fun by winning some cash! Double It is a $1 ticket with top prizes of $1,000.

Our Twitter contest is set for noon on Tuesday, Sept. 18. To be eligible to enter, just follow us on Twitter – it’s free to create an account if you don’t already have one. Then give us the correct answer to our super-easy contest question and you’ll be entered for a chance to win one of the ticket prize packages.   

At noon next Tuesday, we’ll pose our question on Twitter. Reply with your answer within the 15-minute time limit and you’ll be entered in the contest! Reply to @ialottery on Twitter. (Don’t direct message us on Twitter, as direct messages aren’t eligible for entry.)

We’ll select the three winners in our contest, then we’ll blog about the results and link to that blog entry on Twitter and Facebook.

If you win, you’ll need to contact us with your name, date of birth and mailing address so we can send out your tickets. Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 25, to contact us with their information in order to claim their prize.

A few other details:
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• You must live in Iowa.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win!
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will be removed.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Twitter. The information you provide will only be used for the lottery’s Twitter Contest. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

‘Lucky’ Twitter Contest Winners!

Thanks to everyone who entered our Twitter contest today! They’ll be enjoying some free tickets in one of our newest games!

Today’s question was: Who was the $1 million winner in Sunday’s “Mystery Millionaire” finale event?

We had NO wrong answers – everyone answered correctly with “Dean Stuhr.” We just blogged about Dean today; you can read his story and watch video from the live event here.

We had a blast putting on the live event. Dean was so overwhelmed he could barely say anything! But we’re sure he’s celebrating this week.

Today, we used a random number generator, or “RNG” to determine the winners of the contest instead of doing an in-house game. It allowed us to get you the results much more quickly.

Our three winners have each won $30 in the Lucky Cherry Slots scratch game! It’s a new $1 game and has a top prize of $1,000. And remember, if you have any nonwinning tickets, you can also enter them into your free VIP Club account to earn Points For Prizes.

Congratulations to:
@kgbearclaw
@barelyberlee
@Mischelle63

The winners need to contact us by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 28, to claim their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month’s contest. Stay tuned for the next one coming soon!

July Facebook Contest Results

Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for…the winners!

Congratulations to:

1) Jarrod Christensen
2) Cathy Howard
3) Michelle Golden

Each of these three winners will receive $10 in Powerball coupons and some cool lottery goodies!

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. We’ll need to verify each winner’s information so we can send out their prize packs!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. (CST) on Monday, July 30, to verify their information with us in order to claim their prize. We’ve also selected alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

Thanks to everyone who entered the July Facebook contest.

Mark your calendars now for
August’s Facebook contest set for 11 a.m. (CST) Aug. 27.
We sure hope you can join us!

‘Super’ Twitter Contest Winners

Thanks to everyone who entered our Twitter contest today! Hopefully our winners will be able to “cash out” with their prizes!

Today’s question was: Who is the Iowa Lottery’s current CEO?

The answer, of course, is Terry Rich. Terry has been the Iowa Lottery CEO since 2009. He is only the lottery’s second CEO, following Dr. Ed Stanek.

There were a ton of right answers and NO wrong ones. We love that our players are so well-informed! Way to go.

Today, we used a random number generator, or “RNG” to determine the winners of the contest instead of doing an in-house game. It allowed us to get you the results much more quickly.

Our three winners have each won $30 in the Super Cashout scratch game! And remember, if you have any nonwinning tickets, you can also enter them into your free VIP Club account to earn Points For Prizes.

Congratulations to:
@BW_0
@vickie_68
@DannyBeaverino

The winners need to contact us by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, July 24, to claim their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month’s contest. Stay tuned for the next one coming soon!

July’s Facebook Contest

What better way to celebrate July than with a Facebook contest? This time we’ll be giving you a chance to win free plays in Powerball®!

This month’s contest is set for 2 p.m. (CST) on Monday (July 23). We’ll be asking you an easy, lottery-related question on the Iowa Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contests” tab.

Up for grabs will be three sets of $10 in Powerball coupons and some cool lottery goodies!

Visit our Facebook page at 2 p.m. Monday where we’ll pose our question under the Lottery Contests tab located under our cover photo. When the man on the Lottery Contests tab turns green and says “Enter Now!” that’s your cue to enter. Click the tab, read the question, fill in the entry form and your answer and click “submit” during the 15-minute window and you’ll be entered. It’s just that easy!

Important Note: The question will NOT appear on our Facebook “Wall.” You’ll need to click the Lottery Contests tab to see it! We recommend visiting our Facebook page early so you can make sure everything is working for you and you can easily locate the tab. Also, if you’re viewing our Facebook page on a smartphone, you will need to use the Desktop view in order to see the Lottery Contests tab. It does not appear in the mobile application view.

We’ll select three winners from all correct answers submitted. Then we’ll blog about the winners here, update the Lottery Contests tab on our Facebook page and link to the blog entry on Twitter.

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. If you’re one of the winners, we’ll need to verify your information so we can send out your prize pack!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Monday, July 30, to verify their information with us to claim their prize. We’ll also select alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

A few other details:
• You must live in Iowa.
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win.
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will not count.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for lottery purposes. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

Time for Another ‘Super’ Twitter Contest

It was hard to pick a theme for this month’s Twitter contest since we’ve got so many cool new tickets out. We settled on a ‘super’ theme!

July’s contest gives you a chance to win $30 in tickets in the new “Super Cashout” scratch game. It’s a $3 ticket that plays a lot like our “Bingo” tickets, but has top prizes of $30,000. It’d be easy to keep cool in this hot summer weather with that kind of cash!

We’re changing up the time of our contest again as well. Our Twitter contest is set for 2 p.m. on Tuesday, July 17. To be eligible to enter, just follow us on Twitter – it’s free to create an account if you don’t already have one. Then give us the correct answer to our super-easy contest question and you’ll be entered for a chance to win one of the ticket prize packages.   

At 2 p.m. next Tuesday, we’ll pose our question on Twitter. Reply with your answer within the 15-minute time limit and you’ll be entered in the contest! Reply to @ialottery on Twitter. (Don’t direct message us on Twitter, as direct messages aren’t eligible for entry.)

We’ll select the three winners in our contest, then we’ll blog about the results and link to that blog entry on Twitter and Facebook.

If you win, you’ll need to contact us with your name, date of birth and mailing address so we can send out your tickets. Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, July 24, to contact us with their information in order to claim their prize.

A few other details:
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• You must live in Iowa.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win!
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will be removed.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Twitter. The information you provide will only be used for the lottery’s Twitter Contest. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

Twitter Contest Winners Are Kicking Their Summers Off Right!

Thanks to everyone who entered our Twitter contest today! We hope all of you were able to cool off at the computer this afternoon.

Today’s question was: What should you do to your ticket to make sure it’s yours? The answer, of course: sign it!

Player security is a big deal here at the Iowa Lottery. Signing your ticket ensures that no one else can claim that ticket without you knowing. Some of our players have said they sign their tickets before they play – we think that’s a great idea! That way, if your ticket blows away in the wind or gets misplaced, you still know it’s yours.

There were a ton of right answers and NO wrong ones. We love that our players are so well-informed! Way to go.

Today, we used a random number generator, or “RNG” to determine the winners of the contest instead of doing an in-house game. It allowed us to get you the results much more quickly.

Our three winners have each won $20 in the Triple Fortune scratch game! And remember, if you have any nonwinning tickets, you can also enter them into your free VIP Club account to earn Points For Prizes.

Congratulations to:
@wenger56
@TheSaintAndrews
@PennyMartaJones

The winners need to contact us by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, June 19, to claim their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month’s contest. Stay tuned for the next one coming soon!

Kicking Off Our Summer With A Twitter Contest

It’s heating up outside, but we’re staying cool in front of our computers with a Twitter contest!

This time we’re giving you the chance to triple your fortune by giving away three prize packs of $20 in the new “Triple Fortune” scratch ticket. It’s a $2 ticket with top prizes of $10,000. You could buy a lot of new bathing suits just in time for summer with that kind of moolah!

Our Twitter contest is set for noon on Tuesday, June 12. To be eligible to enter, just follow us on Twitter – it’s free to create an account if you don’t already have one. Then give us the correct answer to our super-easy contest question and you’ll be entered for a chance to win one of the ticket prize packages.   

At noon next Tuesday, we’ll pose our question on Twitter. Reply with your answer within the 15-minute time limit and you’ll be entered in the contest! Reply to @ialottery on Twitter. (Don’t direct message us on Twitter, as direct messages aren’t eligible for entry.)

We’ll select the three winners in our contest, then we’ll blog about the results and link to that blog entry on Twitter and Facebook.

If you win, you’ll need to contact us with your name, date of birth and mailing address so we can send out your tickets. Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, June 19, to contact us with their information in order to claim their prize.

A few other details:
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• You must live in Iowa.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win!
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will be removed.

And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Twitter. The information you provide will only be used for the lottery’s Twitter Contest. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

May Facebook Contest Results

Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for…the winners!

Congratulations to:

1) Amy Westhoff
2) Joshua Follman
3) Nancey Schneider

Each of these three winners will receive $10 in Mega Millions coupons and some pretty stellar lottery swag!

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. We’ll need to verify each winner’s information so we can send out their prize packs!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. (CST) on Tuesday, May 29, to verify their information with us in order to claim their prize. We’ve also selected alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

Thanks to everyone who entered the May Facebook contest.

Mark your calendars now for
June’s Facebook contest set for 10 a.m. (CST) June 18.
That’s right! We’re mixing things up again so please note the new time.
We sure hope you can join us!

May’s Mega Millions® Facebook Contest

Are you ready for a MEGA contest? Our next Facebook contest is coming up, and we’ll be giving you a chance to win free plays in Mega Millions.

Per a few player requests, we’re trying out some new times for our contests. So our contest this month is set for 7 p.m. (CST) on Tuesday (May 22). We’ll be asking you a lottery-related question on the Iowa Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contest” tab.

This time, we’re giving away three sets of $10 in Mega Millions coupons and some pretty stellar lottery swag!

To be eligible to enter, just “Like” us on Facebook – it’s free to create an account. Then give us the correct answer to our super-easy contest question and you’ll be entered for a chance to win one of the prize packs.   

At 7 p.m. Tuesday, we’ll pose our question on the Lottery’s Facebook page under the “Lottery Contest” tab located under our cover photo. When the man on the Lottery Contest tab turns green and says “Enter Now!” that’s your cue to enter. Click the tab, read the question, fill in the entry form and your answer and click “submit” during the 15-minute window and you’ll be entered. It’s just that easy!

Important Note: The question will NOT appear on our Facebook “Wall.” You’ll need to click the Lottery Contest tab to see it! We recommend visiting our Facebook page early so you can make sure everything is working for you and you can easily locate the tab. Also, if you’re viewing our Facebook page on a smartphone, you will need to use the Desktop view in order to see the Lottery Contest tab. It does not appear in the mobile application view.

We’ll select three winners from all correct answers submitted. Then we’ll blog about the winners here, update the Lottery Contest tab on our Facebook page and link to the blog entry on Twitter.

We’ll notify the winners by phone and/or email to claim their prize. If you’re one of the winners, we’ll need to verify your information so we can send out your prize pack!

Winners will have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, May 29, to verify their information with us to claim their prize. We’ll also select alternate names in case any of the winners don’t contact us within the specified amount of time.

A few other details:
• You must live in Iowa.
• You must be at least 21 years old to enter.
• There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win.
• Only one entry per person. Duplicates will not count.


And now for the fine print: This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the Iowa Lottery and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for lottery purposes. The risk of loss for electronic misdelivery, late delivery or failure of receipt for information entered electronically remains with entrant regardless of the cause of the transmission failure.

Triple the Fun for Our Twitter Contest Winners!

Thanks to everyone who entered our Twitter contest today! We like to think it was ‘triple’ the fun, since we’re giving away tickets in our “Match 3 Tripler” scratch game, and there are three winners!

Today’s question was: What will your nonwinning tickets get you in our VIP Club? There were NO wrong answers!

We love talking about it – our VIP Club has plenty of perks. But probably the biggest one is that you can enter all your nonwinning scratch tickets into your FREE VIP Club account and earn points to use in our Points For Prizes™ online store. Those nonwinning tickets will sometimes also earn you entries into our promotions!

Today, we used a random number generator, or “RNG” to determine the winners of the contest instead of doing an in-house game. It allowed us to get you the results much more quickly.

Our three winners have each won $20 in the Match 3 Tripler scratch game! And remember, if you have any nonwinning tickets, you can also enter them into your free VIP Club account to earn Points For Prizes.

Congratulations to:

@WilliamJReidIII
@cgerstbrein
@taggartchase

The winners need to contact us by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, May 22, to claim their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month’s contest. Stay tuned for the next one coming soon!