FreeCycle is a great way to help others while helping youreslf
Charity-friendly, a bargain hunter, mother, daily computer user, environmentally minded, earthy, budget conscious, not rich
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DEC
3
2007
With FreeCycle, each area is allowed to have their own local group run through Yahoo Groups and if there isn't a FreeCycle group available in your town, you can start one. For those of us who live in rural areas, it is sometimes best to join more than one local group since most of the groups near me are rather small. The groups in larger areas are much larger and can get a ton of emails though because of the larger number of members.
I personally belong to several groups. Some of the groups will allow you to join immediately and some require all members to be approved before joining. Some groups allow posts to be shown while others are moderated too. All of these things are left for the moderators of the individual groups.
How it Works
If you have an item you don't want, you post a message to the group stating that you are offering the item. You will want to include your offer in the form of Offer:Couch and the area where your item is located. Members of the group can respond to your offer and you can choose who to give the item to and make arrangements for them to pick the item up.
If you see an offer for something you want, you can respond to the offer by letting the other member know that you need or want the item. You are probably more likely to get the item if you respond quickly because some members just want to get rid of their items to the first taker, but often you are better off to let them know why you need the item. If I have several responders I will often choose the member who I feel will get the most benefit from the item.
You may also make requests if there are things that you need although the main idea is to give to others. If your refrigerator needs replaced for instance, you can place a post that you are requesting one. As with the offer, be sure to include the item and your location in your post so that others have some idea where you are located or they may not bother responding.
My Experiences
As I said, I have been a member for a couple of years now. I have been on both the giving and the receiving end of FreeCycle and have had some pretty good experiences with it. I have given away many items through FreeCycle and I have gotten a few of them too.
I have never had any problems when picking up the items or having others pick up things from me. I have only had one member who made arrangements to pick something up and didn't show up, although I have heard complaints along these lines from a few other members.
For the most part everyone I have had any dealings with has been friendly and easy to deal with. I have never had any negative experiences with the other members, although I have seen a couple of posts by other members who appeared to be irritated by rudeness of someone who was upset that they didn't get the item they requested. Personally, I have never had, nor do I expect to see such behavior.
Much of the success or failure of any individula FreeCycle group will depend of course on the moderation. Most members do well at posting their offers and requests without being moderated, but there are some members who should perhaps have moderation on their posts.
One important thing for members to keep in mind is to follow the rules. For the most part the rules are simple: Be nice to each other. Try to limit your requests. Post free offers only. Individual groups may have additional rules, but make sure you follow these principals and read the guidelines and you will do fine.
Last edited on Dec 03, 2007
Freecycle is recommended by kelly60
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