The Cute Kid of the Year Contest Review

Although a contest that requires participation fee is usually a serious one, some parents would hold back for any reason ... like not wanting to pay online. There is a contest for those parents and it only requires submitting a photo and creating a free account:


The prize is $2500; only one tenth of the "cute kid contest", and there is no modelling career attached to it.
Even if you will participate in the "cute kid contest", why not participate in this one too with the same photo? It's free and your baby could win the $2500 prize on top of the benefits of the "cute kid contest".
Good luck.

The Cute Kid Contest is a photo contest. You take a high quality photo for your child, preferably by a professional, and submit the photo to participate in the contest for a small fee, usually below $20.

The photos will be screened by judges, and shortlisted several times like all beauty contests, and finally a winner is chosen to receive a prize, up to $25,000 for college education. The contest is run almost every month, and there are several agencies that run such contests. So you can participate for your kid in several ones and increases your chances of winning.

But that's not it. The winning photos are usually published on the agency's website for a purpose. Keep reading to find out.

Here is a list of what the winners get:

* Flown to NY for a 3-day getaway and photo shoot all expenses paid.
* $25,000 College Tuition Fund*
* Press Conference announcing the "2012 Cute Kid of the Year"
* Your own 2012CuteKidoftheYear.com website
* Huge National Press Releases and Exposure
* Canvas Portrait of Winning Photo and more!

Now you know what is the cute kid contest and how it is run. Once you know who runs it you'll figure out the full picture.

Such contests are run by advertising agencies. The winning photos, as well as other finalists, are usually made available for companies that need kids photos for their advertising campaigns. Examples are diaper, baby food, baby and kids cloths, and toys companies.

So ... you are not just running your kid for winning a beauty contest, you are also initiating your kids career in modeling.

Now that you know the real purpose behind the contest you might have already assumed that the organizing agencies will make money from using the photos for advertising purposes. But that's not all.

While advertising revenue is great, there is still more money to make from running such a contest. By submitting your child's photo you are opting in the agency's data base for parents. You have the option whether to check or un-check the boxes next to the kinds of offers you'd like to receive by mail, email, or on the phone.

In marketing there is a term for such activity: Building A List. I'll give you an example:

Assume your kid is in the baby or toddler stage, when you participate in this contest you'll be automatically identified as a person who buys diapers.

Have you seen the "free diapers" offers before? You'll probably get something like that for a couple of year, as well as coupons for diapers, or diaper samples sent to your doorstep. Then you'll be getting offers and coupons about pull ups, potty training, kids vitamins ... etc for another year. Then you'll be getting ads about pre-school home education for a year or two ... and so on as long as you are in the list.

They are all great offers to save you money, and to make the company money at the same time as an affiliate.

You see, it's not only a one time shot. Those companies are aiming at a long term business with you.

The good news is: there is a lot of good offers that you'll only know about through the company's mailing list.

The other good news is that once you decide you don't need those offers anymore you can just click a link (at the bottom of each email) to unsubscribe.

The cute kid contest is truly a win/win situation for all parties participating in the contest.

The parents have the potential of winning the cute kid prize, or getting their kid into model for a kids products company. For a less than $20 it's a no-brainer, especially for those parents who have no problem spending their money on lottery tickets or smoke. At least with the cute kid contest it's a contest, not gambling or a health hazard.

The kids product companies will have kid models to choose from, all in one place. This is a service they need and the cute kid contest provides.

The advertising agency that runs the contest will make money from the participants as explained above and from the kids products companies. They could have made the registration for free and get more kids models to choose from, but with a fee at least the parents will take it serious and try to get the best photos for their kids taken by a professional. This ensures higher quality of the photos and will get them higher pay for the model.

Before accepting the terms and conditions please read them. Some advertising agencies state in their terms and conditions that they have the intellectual rights of the winning photos, which means you win the prize and forget about the modeling revenue. Remember it's your kids money and you are responsible for protecting your kids rights. You could accept if you consider this a first step towards the modeling career of your child.

The parents also should read about the psychological effects of modeling on the child's mental and emotional health. If not sure about anything consult a professional.