UsedEverywhere Blog

Posts from Nick Kempinski
http://www.whoisnick.com

Nick Kempinski is the leader of UsedEverywhere's social media efforts. Working with a team of writers to create this blog. But also works with great programmers to make all sites in the UsedEverywhere network more sharing friendly.

Don’t Re-gift. Re-sell.

It is a practice that’ both amusing and destructive. It happens every year, either intentionally or not. It’s the regift party.

Why Amusing?
A regift party is fun. I’ve even seen the same gift given between friends throughout the years. And each year it’s like rolling the dice… who is going to get the paper mache cow this year?

Why Destructive?
You’ve been invited to a party of friends of friends and are madly scrambling to find a gift to bring. Then, in the garage or attic, you find a dusty box. It’s a blender you’ve never used. So, you wrap it up and bring it with you.

When getting to the party, you hand out the gift and say “Happy Holidays”. Later in the evening, when everyone is opening the presents, yours is opened and then you see it: the blank expression of the person opening it. They gave you that gift last year…

Solutions
The main solution is to deal with the gift right after you’ve received it. Honestly, you probbaly knew the minute you opened it anyhow whether it would be going into storage or would be put to use.

So, if the plan is to just store it somewhere, piled with all those other unwanted gifts, how about considering some alternatives:
  • Return it
  • Throw it away
  • Sell it
Not all gifts can be returned. Only a few big box stores will take items without a receipt, and throwing it away is just wasteful and harmful to the environment. So why not put it up for sale (perhaps on your local UsedEverywhere.com site)?! You’ll be sure to make some money out of that gift, and then with that cash you could get something else that actually will be put to use.

The regift is surrounded in debate and controversy, so we want to hear what you have to say about the practice!
creative commons image courtesy of katsniffen

New Years Resolutions

It’s time to start thinking about next year’s resolutions…. I have a horrible time trying to decide on mine. But over the years I’ve come up with some methods that have helped me out:

Walk around the house
When I can’t figure out what to put down on my list, sometimes it helps to just stroll around the house. You might see a couple piles in the corner of projects you’ve started but never finished. Maybe that picture of your kids hanging in the hallway triggers a train of thought… Your home is full of memories, and by taking a little walk through, with a notepad, you just might come up with a few ideas.

Think about it on an empty belly
Yes, with the holidays comes vast amounts of food. And with it, the full belly! And so, because of all those big meals, I always seem to have “Exercise More” on my list. But, maybe if I think about my resolutions when I’m not so full, I could be more specific. An example? Go for more walks, learn to mountain climb, or start pumping iron twice a week.

Be specific
Big grandiose resolutions always seem to fail. Like that broad “Exercise More” resolution that I just mentioned. For me, it always helps when I shrink it down to something specific. So, instead of “Organise my house,” try deciding on a specific room to organise, like “Clean out the garage.” It also helps when I write out some specific notes about how I’m going to tackle the project. If the goal is to clean out the garage, then you might want to look up when the next community garage sale is, (like the one UsedEverywhere cohosted in Port Hardy), where your nearest donation centres are and what’s accepted at your local recycling centre. And don’t forget to make make sure you have your camera ready to take pictures of things you want to sell, and then place a free ad on your local UsedEverywhere.com site!

Write them down
Finally, I always find it helps when I write down my resolutions and tell someone! So what are some of yours? And if you’ve got some other tips on how to write your resolutions, we’d love to hear about them!

Also, check in on Cole’s Top Ten New Years Resolutions later this week if you’re in need of some inspiration; he just might have a couple gems for you! Speaking of… if you’re still not sure what to wear for Thursday night’s festivities, make sure you read his latest Top Ten of Things to Wear for New Year’s Eve!
Happy New Years!

5 ways to celebrate the holidays

The holidays are just around the corner and, in the midst of running around doing my last minute shopping, I started to think about all the different activities that happen at this time of year. With everything that’s going on, it can be hard to get control over it all. So here’s some tips from UsedEverywhere.com to help you out with five different things you might be doing this holiday season.

1. A Classic Feast
Having a big meal with family and friends is a great way to celebrate the holidays. It might be traditional dishes that you look forward to all year long, or new recipes that you’ve been wanting to try; regardless, the holidays are a special time to get together with loved ones over a meal to celebrate the season. Looking for some new recipes? Check out Chef Mom’s blog. Need some more supplies for the kitchen? You can find them on your local UsedEverywhere site, just go to Household > Accessories > Kitchenware. Here’s some listings from UsedOttawa.com for example.
2. Traveling

As the world becomes smaller it seems that more and more family and friends become, geographically at least, further apart. For many, the holidays are a time of travel, whether that means a flight across the country or an ocean, or even just a drive away. To help you through the stress of traveling, check out this guide to holiday flight survival. Another tip for surviving long flights and airport stress is to take an Ipod along with you. You can find some on your local UsedEverywhere site under Electronics > Audio > Portable Audio. Here are some listings from UsedPEI.com.


3. Cleaning House
It’s time for winter cleaning! Whether it’s in preparation for overnight guests and oncoming kitchen traffic, or simply to keep up with the needles that fall off the tree, this is almost always an activity on everyone’s list as they ramp up to the holidays! While you’re in cleaning and decorating mode, why not think of some ways to make this holiday season a little bit more environmentally friendly? And, if you need some help with all that cleaning, take a look at the Cleaning Services category on your local UsedEverywhere site: Info > Services > Cleaning Services. Here are some listings from UsedVictoria.com.
4. Wrapping gifts
Congratulations on finishing your holiday shopping! Now it’s time to start wrapping! If you’re like me, you’re probably always scrambling to wrap your gifts at the last minute, but remember, in the rush of everything, it’s important to think about the environmental impact of all that wrapping! Help keep our landfills from filling up by considering some of these eco-friendly gift-wrapping tips. The Arts & Craft Category on your local UsedEverywhere.com site might help you out. Go to Hobbies > Arts & Crafts Supplies. These postings from UsedRegina.com might give you some ideas to get started!

5. Not at All
Of course, there are those that don’t celebrate at all. It’s just a nice long-weekend away from work and more time with family and friends. This can be a great chance to catch up on reading (check out the list of the best books of 2009) or movie-watching (here’s a list of the best movies of 2009 to help you out). Find some books on your local UsedEverywhere site by going to General > Books & Magazines (here’s an example from UsedWinnipeg.com) and you can find movies under General Merchandise > CDs, DVDs etc. > Video DVD (check out the postings from one of our UK sites, UsedDudley.com)


Those are just a few of many many things you might do during the holidays and some ways to help you out. What are your tips? How do you celebrate?

Ad Description: Which is More Appealing?

Do you remember our post about the toaster ad from a few weeks ago? We’ve been refining it, and have now narrowed down to three alternative ways to sell an item, like a toaster, on one of the Used websites. Tell us what you think – which way would sell you the toaster?

1. Storytelling

Although a picture speaks a thousand words, sometimes adding a story may help to give your item some character and the buyer an incentive to take a look at it. For example:

My toaster needs a new home. My grandmother originally bought it in the 1940s and then it went to my dad, who gave it to me. It’s always been on the counter of our kitchen. To this day it makes the perfect toast; never too under-toasted, and never too over-toasted. 

So why would I be selling a toaster this special? My kids are getting to that age where they get into just about everything. And, although the toaster is working beautifully, toasters this old don’t have the same safety features that the new ones have. So it’s time to replace it.

2. Specs Only

Another way to sell a used item is to just state the facts. For example:

Manufacturer: Chicago Flexible Shaft Co

Brand Name: Sunbeam

Model Number: T9

Details: The T-9 Half-Round Sunbeam.

Produced: late-1930s through the 40s

Description (from an advertisement): Its lovely oval design (is) the last word in modern styling by George Scharfenberg.

for more details see:
http://www.toaster.org/
http://www.toaster.org/T9serv_man.pdf

3. Keywords

Some buyers know what they’re looking forward and don’t want to spend a lot of time searching or reading. So using key words that attract their attention is another way to go. For example:

Collectors, Set Decorators, Electronic Restoration

This toaster is for you. Perfect for any kitchen.

It’s cheap, it works, and it looks good to boot.

A great kitchen accessory.

So that’s our three toaster ad ideas. What do you think?

Which one would you use? Let us know.

3 Ways to Stand Out in a Crowd

courtesy of kalandrakas

The easiest way to stand out of a crowd might be to gel your hair in crazy ways, maybe add some hair dye, and put on something plaid or fluorescent. Likely, the bigger and puffier your clothes are, the more you’ll stand out. And, just to throw it over the edge, you could even stand on a post office box and wave your hands while yelling “look at me!”

People will look!

(see how we did that?)


While we don’t have fluorescent red or plaid for you to use when selling your items on one of our sites in the UsedEverywhere.com community, if you want to make sure your ads stand out in a crowd, we have the next best thing…Yellow! Plus, a handful of other options to help you make sure your used stuff gets sold!

Here are 3 examples of how you can make your ad stand out:
  1. Latest Ad Upgrade - with the highest traffic on the site, listing your ad on this page will give you long-term exposure to a wide cross section of people

  2. Top Ad + Premium Ad Upgrade – This is the best option for big-ticket items like TVs, cars, jewelry, or snazzy electronics. Not only will your ad be listed at the top of its category, it’ll also be highlighted in yellow to make it extra eye-catching.
  3. Category Gallery Upgrade – If you have a number of individual, but related items, such as multiple furniture pieces or autoparts, we can help you make sure they all get sold. Give them longer term exposure in their category by placing them in the gallery where they’ll march along together, like a well oiled machine.
There are other ways to mix and match our upgrades so that your ads will get noticed. Next time you place an ad, these suggestions will be there … We’re here to help you sell your stuff!
And, don’t forget, all of our basic ads are absolutely FREE!
For inexpensive single items, you’ll find that they’ll sell quickly and you probably won’t even need to make them stand out. But for the times you really need to make sure your ad gets noticed, you might want to try out one of these upgrades.
You’ll stand out in a crowd, without ever having to dye your hair.

The Title: Which is more appealing?

I’m doing an experiment on what title sounds better. I’ve chosen that I want to sell a toaster. But I’m not sure what title would grab your eye – here are some options:
1. A $5 Toaster
2. Good Toaster – $5
3. The Best Toast You’ve Ever Tasted
4. Vintage Toaster – $5
5. My Grandma’s Toaster for only $5
6. $5 for Old Toaster
What would grab your eye?
Creative Commons Image by Donovan Govan

Really Simple Sharing

More on our 10 Ways to use MyLists

Get notified immediately when a MyLists page is updated. The power is in one little click with a fancy acronym.

R.S… What?

On Monday, I threw out a term (Subscribe to MyLists with RSS) which you may or may not have heard of before. RSS? Think about it like Really Simple Sharing.

What does it do?

It let’s websites share information. Instead of waking up in the morning and checking a whack of websites, you can subscribe once, and let the site come to you.

All you need to do, is goto the MyLists page you want to follow, and click on “[RSS feed for this page]“. Then you can bookmark it or subscribe to it.

Bookmark it.

If you bookmark the RSS page, your web browser will indicate in your bookmark bar that the MyLists has changed: something new, or something updated.

Subscribe to it.

Email programs like Outlook, Apple Mail, Thunderbird will allow you to get new listings like email. Or you can use a newreader application like Google Reader.

Share It.
MyLists isn’t the only page with this feature. All our categories have it. Just look for this link
Let us know how you are using our RSS to make usedeverywhere useful everywhere.

Use MyLists for your community

To Conitnue, 10 Ways to use MyLists, today we’ll look at using mylists in a group.

  1. Sell items for Fundraisers and Charities
  2. Share listings for Swap Meets, Groups & Communities


When you register your MyLists you are asked for an email and password. Any listing you add with the same email address and password, will automatically be added.

So how do many people manage MyLists?

Share that email address and password with several people.

Your MyLists then becomes a one stop view of everything from your group or community.

  • Show products which have the proceeds go to charity
  • Share products and services that will be at your upcoming event
  • Explain more about your cause
  • Inform viewers about when your event will happen

10 ways to use MyLists

If you have more than one listing on any UsedEverywhere site, then MyLists is the way to go. It’s easy to set-up, all you need to do is register.

Here are 10 ways to use MyLists:
  1. Sell items for Fundraisers and Charities
  2. Share listings for Swap Meets, Groups & Communities
  3. Advertise what’s going to be at your garage sale
  4. Manage several online stores
  5. Put your MyLists website address on business cards & posters
  6. Link to your MyLists from your website
  7. Share your MyLists on Twitter and Facebook
  8. Subscribe to MyLists with RSS
  9. Put your MyLists on your website
  10. Email your MyLists to buyers

All week, I’ll explain more and show you tips on how to customize the look of your MyLists, and share your MyLists.

In the meantime, how do you use MyLists?

In Moderation

Recently we had an ad selling a jet pack. The ad boasted that the thrust could launch a person 10 feet in the air. I wouldn’t buy it, but was curious who would. Would it work? Would the buyer post a youtube video, when they tried it out?
Yes, this was a prank.

But how did we find out?

We picked up the phone and called them.

Our moderators go to great lengths to review as many listings as they can and to review each reported ad to make sure that what we are selling is legitimate. hey work with buyers and sellers everyday. They are the life blood of what we do here at UsedEverywhere.com

To our moderators Wendy, Terry, Michelle and Kim and to all the volunteers we thank you! You make all of our UsedEverywhere sites safe!

If you want to help make sure that your community’s site is as safe, let us know any listings which might be questionable. It only takes one click, report it.
Get involved with the moderation team, email wendy@usedeverywhere.com
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