Jul 23, 2007 6:04 AM, PROMO Xtra, By Rich Tedesco

Thirty thousand people will get another chance to win money after a printing mistake made all of them a $1,000 winner in a car dealer's sweepstakes mailing.

Each sweepstakes mailing from Roswell Honda in Roswell, NM, was a winner because the "scratch-off" panels all concealed a prize. But the thousands of people who thronged the dealership in the promotion executed by Force Media Group were disappointed over the sweepstakes mistake have will get another chance—at much improved odds.

Those people have been entered in a special drawing for a $5,000 grand prize and 20 second-place prizes of $1,000 apiece. All contestants receive a $5 Wal-Mart gift card or a digital camera, which was what each contestant was supposed to get in the first place.

"We’ve never had anything like happen," says Jim Fitzpatrick, president of Force Media.

The original contest was supposed to have one $1,000 winner for the 50,000 mailings to Roswell area residents. After Force Media realized the mistake, it stopped 20,000 mailings at the post office. So the eligible sweepstakes contestants—those inconvenienced by the trip to the dealership—are playing at much better odds.

In addition to the second sweeps remedy, Force Media took out three full-page ads in a Roswell newspaper to explain the error and sent retraction letters to the recipients of the mailing. It also sent two of its vice presidents on-site to field consumer complaints over the massive mix-up.

Thus far, the sweeps miscue appears to be having a curious reverse impact.

“Yesterday, they reported the strongest sales day they ever had,” Fitzpatrick says.

An Aug. 4 drawing of the sweepstakes winners at the dealership is planned as an event to kick off a new sales campaign.

For more stories on games, contests & sweeps

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