Hello Freecycle Members!
One of the most frustrating aspects of being a Freecycle member is scheduling a time for someone to pick up the cool treasure you've offered, only to be stood up by the potential recipient.
These are called no-shows.
Here are a few tips to decrease the chance of no-shows:
1) SEARCH THE WEBSITE TO FILL A WANTED
When you get ready to place an OFFER, search the website to see if there is a WANTED post for the item you are about to OFFER. This person may be grateful and motivated to receive your OFFER and is more likely to show up at the scheduled time.
2) ALLOW 12-24 HOURS TO COLLECT RESPONSES
We suggest allowing 12-24 hours to collect responses from people interested in your item. This gives people a chance to respond who aren't on the computer the moment you post. It is all-too-common for a person to respond from impulse and wanting to be the first to respond. Then reality kicks in, they change their mind, and don't show up.
By collecting a number of responses, you can save a 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice, so that if the first person is a no-show, you can then OFFER your item to the next person without having to post it again to the group.
3) CHOOSING A RECIPIENT
Have you received email from people that simply say, "Is it still available?" or "I'm interested" or "I'll take it."
Compare this with a response that says, "Wow I'm really interested in the cool treasure you are offering. It would be very useful in my daughter's bedroom and the color sounds perfect! I live near you in Tacoma and could pick it up at your convenience. Thank you so much for considering my request. Have a good day!"
The 2nd person is far less likely to be a no-show because they've taken a few moments to express their interest, they name the item that they are responding about, they indicate their location and their availability for picking it up, and how they might use the item. And they are polite-- They say "Thank you."
4) HOLD OFF ON GIVING YOUR ADDRESS
Send an email asking what time would work for them and wait for a second reply before giving your address. If you don't hear back in a timely manner, move on to the next person.
5) HOLD THE ITEM FOR A GIVEN TIME FRAME
Tell the recipient that you will only hold the item for them until say 1-2 hours after the appointed pickup time - After that you will move on to the next person.
6) CONSIDER EXCHANGING PHONE NUMBERS
Ask for the phone number of the recipient. This gives you an opportunity to contact the recipient if you need to reschedule. Realize though that some people prefer not give their phone numbers and prefer all contact to be via email.
7) GIVE DETAILED DIRECTIONS TO YOUR LOCATION TO THE PERSON YOU CHOOSE
Providing detailed directions like a map of your location to the person that you choose to receive your item will help a great deal. Don't cause no shows because your location is hard to find.
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HOW LONG SHOULD I WAIT IN THE EVENT OF A NO-SHOW?
Did the person contact you in a timely manner with a legitimate reason for missing their pickup time? Are you willing to wait and reschedule for another time? Are you anxious to give your item away and have multiple recipients that were interested? It is totally up to you.
DON'T BE A NO-SHOW
There are legitimate reasons for someone not to show up, emergencies, unexpected situations, illness, etc. but these should be the *exception* rather than the rule. It takes only a moment to call or email the offerer with an apology and a request to reschedule. Or if you've changed your mind for whatever reason, just let the offerer know! Please remember, this person is offering you a gift and they are taking time out of their schedule to meet with you. Join in the Freecycle community by honoring your commitments to meet the OFFERer at the scheduled time.
Please remember that members are under no obligation to contact every member that has inquired about their item. A 'TAKEN' post lets members know that your item has been rehomed.
Have fun, enjoy the giving and receiving of your OFFERs and WANTEDs and be kind to one another!
Thanks for being a Tacoma Area Freecycle Member!
Your Friendly Tacoma Area Freecycle Moderators
Questions? Comments? TacomaAreaFreecycle-owner@yahoogroups.com
QUICK GUIDE TO CORRECT SUBJECT LINE FORMAT:
(Use ONLY one of these four keywords)
OFFER: couch - (Your Home Location)
TAKEN: couch - (Your Home Location)
WANTED: garden hose - (Your Home Location)
RECEIVED: garden hose - (Your Home Location)
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Compose messages easily with Internet Explorer and *Firefox* Freecycle Plugins from http://wiki.memberplugin.org. Click to install it today!
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Please join our new forum, the Tacoma Area Freecycle Café. It is a place where you can share links, services, resources, community agencies, volunteer opportunities, trade, or barter.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TacomaAreaFreecycle_Cafe
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(c) 2010 The Freecycle Network http://www.Freecycle.org). All rights reserved.
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COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS? Email: TacomaAreaFreecycle-owner@yahoogroups.com
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