Tips to help when using Freecycle

Nicki

I'm afraid what I do is offer someone and arrange a time for collection and keep the other emails. If the original person doesn't collect when they say, I go back to my list. I don't post a taken or send an email until the item has actually been collected. This may be annoying to those who request and don't hear, but on the other hand it does mean they are still in with a chance of getting the item, and does it really matter if you wait a week to hear, if you end up getting something you want for free?

kingmonkey

Does anyone have any tips on how to manege the amount of emails you get.

I tend to filter wanted emails.

Pink_butterfly_3

Our group is generally lovely but I find the amount of wanted posts versus the amount of offered posts quite ridiculous sometimes! I know that it has been an issue on our group for a while as out of 20 email, perhaps 5 of them tend to be offered posts!

I don't mind 'wanted' posts but they always tend to be for ridiculous things that people would never give away for free. I remember someone asking for a car in good condition, with tax and MOT - i mean who would give that away?

Maybe i'm just bitter as i NEVER get anything that I ask for (and i'm very nice and polite i promise!). I always seem to miss out and it drives me mad!

squeaky

kingmonkey wrote:

Does anyone have any tips on how to manege the amount of emails you get.

I tend to filter wanted emails.

YEP.

Up at the top of the page is a coloured bar which says "Wotsit Freecycle".

Just above that is a line which says "Welcome your_user_name" and right beside that is a link to "edit membership".

Click on that and on the resulting page you can see some choices as to how you'd like to read the group.

Special Notices - would mean that you only get important announcements from your moderators.

Daily digest - sends you a single email with up 25 messages listed in it. So you should only get one, or at most two emails a day from all but the busiest of groups.

On line only - would let you read messages directly via the "messages" link to the left hand side of your home page.

No email - while it's there as an option provided by yahoo, ALL Freecycle groups ask/require that you do not do this, but instead choose special notices; otherwise they would never be able to reach you at all.

Madmel

One member of my local Freecycle group has a policy of putting all interested parties for his Offered posts in a hat. This gives all the daily email people the chance to reply to items. He picks one out of a hat, emails them then if they don't collect, he chooses another name from the hat.

Most items are smaller things like books or videos, but it is a great idea, and if you only get the emails once a day, makes you think you have the same chance as those who get every email as it is sent.

squeaky

Yes, often known as the "fair posting policy".

Members may well be asked (either in their etiquette file or an ADMIN post) if they would consider doing something like the following:-


You may by all means choose the prospective recipient of your offer in any way that you wish. But we'd like you to consider...

Many people only get chance to read after a day at work, or only take the daily digest. So if you don't just give on a first come first email served basis - you give ALL members a chance to reply.

How you choose the person is again up to you. Some people draw from a hat or list, some will pick charities and non-profits first if they apply, others will bin impolite replies BEFORE they draw... or bin long sob stories (few people like to feel "guilted" into giving).

Recipients are asked to be prompt and timely when meeting an arranged collection time, and to be sure to contact the Offerer if they are unavoidably delayed.



There are quite a few variations on this around the place, it's certainly not a formal policy of Freecycle - just one of the guidelines that help the world go round

bluep

Another couple of tips:

When offering, it can be helpful to put the first bit of your postcode in ie.
SE6 area - as our group covers a large area - which can mean an hour's drive between you and the other person - somethings are worth driving for...other items aren't! Or if you aren't comfortable with putting a bit of your postcode - then a vague area?

Also when offering - please describe things accurately especially if you can't post a picture up. I drove an hour to pick up an item that had been advertised as a child's bike seat (that attached to the back of a bike) in good condition - when I arrived, it was at least 10 years old, falling to bits with parts missing and frankly, not safe to put a toddler in. I was too polite to saying something, but inwardly seething and it went to the dump the next day.

On the whole though, my freecycle experiences have been brilliant - I've got rid of loads of our stuff to people who were really chuffed to pick it up (punch bag, old car that we didn't want the hassle of scrapping, computer games) and also we've picked up loads of really helpful bits and bobs for a toddler (fireguards, little people playset, clothes, baby walker)

squeaky

You do have the right and the freedom not to accept something if it's not "as advertised".

Best approach is simply to say "I'm sorry, but now that I can see it, it just isn't quite suitable/going to fit/ large enough/small enough, for what I wanted it for."

If you start calling it pure tat you may well find yourself in a bun fight.

So do it the easy way, walk away, and have a nice cup of tea by the fire when you get home

slinks

does anyone have any freecycle advice for this...

i went to pick up an electrical item that was described as great condition. it truly wasn't

it was a freezer that was really old, rusty and incredibly dirty, especially inside not only that but there was no plug even though the post said perfect working order!!

i hate being embarassed and didn't know what to do so quickly said thanku, took it off their hands and then just moaned for a couple of hours as my boyfriend helped me to pack it up carefully in the car, drag it home, hump it upstairs and then leave it outside the flat door... as we don't know what to do with it!!

it's not that i'm ungrateful but i would never have agreed to travel all that way and take something that size and weight if it had been described accurately in advance.

any advice for future? do i need to ask for photos etc even if it means losing out on an item i could really do with?

also anyone know where i can get rid of it so that someone else can benefit?! i know i can't take it to the tip...

slinks

now that i've posted it, it seems squeaky had already answered this whilst i was typing!!!! :rotfl: