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Swap.com’s List Your Way to $1K Giveaway

By
Ryan
Published: December 26, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swapping, Swapping ItemsTags: , , , , , , ,

List Your Way to $1K Giveaway
We’re so amped for the first ever World Swap Day on January 21st, 2012 that we wanted to get you in on the excitement now by announcing our first ever Swap.com Market contest: the List Your Way to $1K Giveaway!

All you have to do to enter is list everything you have to swap on the Swap.com Market from now until January 28th, 2012. Two lucky winners (one guy and one girl) with the best Haves, as judged by our panel of expert swappers, will get $1,000 towards what they really want.

Meet our judges:

Melissa Massello - GM Events, Swapaholic
Melissa Massello
GM, Events, Swapaholic		 Amy Chase, Fashion Director, Swapaholic
Amy Chase
Fashion Director, Swapaholic
Meg Travis, Marketing Director, Swap.com
Meg Travis
Marketing Director, Swap.com		 Ryan Kelley, Community Manager, Swap.com
Ryan Kelley
Community Manager, Swap.com

Curate your closets, edit your bookshelves and media centers, dig through your garage and your shed, empty the attic, de-clutter your drawers, and unbag your consignment pieces – this is the time to prove that swapping is the new shopping by listing your best items to swap. Get a head start on New Year’s resolutions, re-gift those unfortunate holiday presents, and join swappers around the globe by celebrating the first ever World Swap Day online in the new Swap.com Market.

So, how do you win?

All you have to do is list your items on the new Swap.com Market. Impress our judges by adding high-value items, by adding items in every category available, and by promoting your listings on Twitter using our #swapto1K hashtag or sharing with your friends on Facebook.

On February 1st, our judges will announce their two favorite swappers with the best Haves list, who will each receive a cool $1,000 to get what they really want.

So, what are you waiting for? Add all your items now.

Official rules available here.

Kick Off Your New Year’s Resolutions

By
Sarah
Published: December 26, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swapping, Swapping ItemsTags: , , , , , , , ,

Start diet todayCongratulations, you’ve almost survived another year! And with the 2012 right around the corner, it’s time to start those New Year’s Resolutions. Now, we all know that New Year’s resolutions are often made and broken within the first month of the year. But this year, we want you to think of a resolution that you might actually be able to keep. And we’re here to help by providing you with the tools to do it.

Looking to get in shape this year? Check out this Tone Fitness Kettlebell posted by DaltrysBabe23. Okay, I know this is one of those resolutions that gets made everywhere and broken after two workouts, but as a health nut I’m begging you , please, please, keep it up this year! Kettlebells are a great way to get in shape too, the workouts they provide are fast, fun, and really effective.
Going along with the health theme, it’s time to start eating better! Turn to chuffychumbles’ book Eat Fresh, Stay Healthy and make it your guide to buying and cooking fruits and vegetables! If you’re going to start eating healthy, it’s best to start at the very beginning and relearn how to pick out a solid assortment of healthy foods.  Turns out, some of the things you thought were healthy may be quite the opposite and this book will serve as a wonderful guide to get you started.
Resolve to learn a new craft, such as knitting. Get started with these knitting needles from cmarooney. I mean, maybe it’s just my own desire to learn how to knit, but I’ve always felt like it would be a very useful skill to learn, especially in the colder months up here in Boston. Why not try something new this year and get a useful skill?  Think of all the potential knitting has: you can make yourself a nice sweater or scarf and you’ll have something to do when you’re not swapping!
Push your limits in 2012 and resolve to do something outside of your comfort-zone, such as skydiving, using tickets posted by Emiraajeti. It’s always good to push your personal boundaries, it’s what makes you grow as a person. Now, maybe you don’t have to go so far as to go skydiving, but if you’re up for it, I’m sure it’s quite the life experience. Plus, you’ll get quite the story out of it to share with everyone in the new year.
Or try your hand at a new art in 2012 like professional quality photography. Check out this FUJI S-1 pro digital camera with a Nikon lens posted by stevebecker. It’s never too late to start learning how to take a good, quality picture. And with such a nice camera at your disposal, this is one resolution that shouldn’t be too hard to stick to.
What’s your New Year’s Resolution for 2012? Let us know by leaving your comments below or keep the conversation going on our Facebook page.
(Photo by Alan Cleaver)

A Holiday Gift: New Features on the Swap.com Market

By
Ryan
Published: December 23, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, Swapping, Swapping ItemsTags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Holiday GiftsAs we head full swing into the holiday season we’re especially thankful for all the  swappers in our community who have provided some really great feedback, to help us to make the new Swap.com Market better and better, each and every week. What may seem like small changes around here are just a sampling in a series of continued improvements in the coming months. Here’s some of the highlights:

See What’s New
New What's New page
The biggest addition since the launch of the Swap.com Market is the introduction of a new page that allows you to get a snapshot of your activity on the Swap.com Market, as well as view the details of everyone you’re following. Now under ‘My Swap’ you can keep track of what market items you’ve recently viewed, see who’s been checking out your items, and explore all the activity of everyone you’re following on your “What’s New” page.

Sweet, Sweet Sorting
New Filter by Category
Now when browsing some of your items can jump straight into what you really want to see by viewing your Haves and Wants by category. In addition to sorting items by Most Popular or Most Recently Added, you’ll now be able to see exactly what you or another another user has in a specific category when they send you a message to start talking about a swap.

Notification Bubbles
New Notification BubblesNew Banners
We’ve also made seeing what’s important to you easier with notification tallies of all your new offers, followers, and badges under ‘My Swap’. Now when you get a new offer you’ll be able to quickly identify it with the new banner across the left corner.

And for those of you power swappers, you also may have notice that we’ve increased the items per page while browsing to 40 items per page so you can see more without having to page through. We’re so excited to begin taking in all the feedback the community has to offer and want to implore you to share even more! Send your feedback to market@swap.com.

(Photo by Steve Snodgrass)

Five Items to Help You Get in Shape This Winter

By
Carleton
Published: December 22, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swapping, Swapping ItemsTags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With the holidays upon us and the weather getting colder and colder it’s easy to let yourself put on a few extra pounds. Thankfully there are plenty of ways to get in shape this winter with items from the Swap.com Market. Here are just a few of the great items that are available:

1. Bowflex Power Pro XTL from member jackreid27 – Keep yourself fit and strong this winter in the comfort of your own home with this home gym system by trusted fitness brand Boflex.
2. Tone Fitness 7.5lbs. Kettle Bell from member DaltreysBabe23 – If you’re just getting started and a total home gym like a Bowflex seems like too much, why not just get a simple kettle bell to start? These exercise weights are quickly become more popular than dumbbells.
3. Air Walk Trainer Walking Fitness Machine from member dedecorti – Cardio work is just as important as strength training when it comes to staying healthy. This compact, low-impact equipment is easy for anyone to use.
4. Suunto X6HR Heart Rate Monitor and Watch from member SurvivorsEdge – Fitness have long stressed the importance of getting your heart rate up to an optimal zone and keeping it there to get the most out of your excersise. Ensure that your heart rate is in the right place with this heart rate monitor.
5. Sportsline Pedometer from member jlhummel – There’s no better excercise than walking. Keep track of how many steps you take each day with this simple to use step counter. You’ll be able to track and improve upon the easiest workout out there.

(Photo by puuikibeach)

Five Tips to Green Up Your Holidays

By
Sarah
Published: December 20, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , ,

Green holiday ideasWe’ve already established that the holiday season can be rough on the waistline. But how about the effects on the environment? It turns out that the holiday season may not be the most environmentally friendly time of year after all. So why not take these simple steps to ensure a greener holiday season?

1. Go organic: There’s never a better time to turn to organics than when you’re cooking a huge meal. And why not step it up a notch further? Check out your local farmer’s market for all the greens and fruits you need to make those side dishes. Not only will you save some money, but you’ll also do something good for the earth.

2. Don’t forget the canvas: Bags, that is. We all know how much food it takes to make a holiday meal. Bring those canvas bags to the supermarket and skip all the plastic it takes to bag all those groceries. Nothing gets to me more than watching clerks double bag each individual item, leading to a mountain of plastic bags. Switch to canvas, you can fit more items in the bag and you won’t add pounds to landfills everywhere, so really it’s a win-win.

3. Forgo the disposable: While we’re on the topic of plastic, skip the disposable napkins, plates, forks, etc. Clean up maybe easier, but come on, it’s such a waste (unless you’re like my aunt and you carefully wash your disposable items and put them away for next year, in which case you have just entirely defeated the purpose of disposable goods anyway). It’s honestly not that much extra effort, so might as well not be wasteful.

4. Package leftovers properly: First things first, never throw away leftovers. I mean, I assume none of you do that, but I figure I should cover all the bases. Second, do not wrap leftovers in tin foil or Saran wrap. That’s insanity. And wasteful. This is the perfect opportunity to break out all the tupperware that has been lurking somewhere in the depths of your pantry. Also, if you tend to give leftovers to guests, consider asking them to bring their own plastic containers for easier leftover management.

5. Decorate naturally: Who said good looking decorations had to come from a store or be made out of plastic? Nature is actually pretty good at creating lovely decorations. Gather up a few leaves and pine cones to make a nice centerpiece. Cheap, easy, and environmentally friendly!

Happy holidays everyone!

(Photo by warrenski)

Swap4Schools: Librarian Deborah Michaud Shares Her Story

By
Swap
Published: February 22, 2011Posted in: CommunityTags: , , , ,

Swap 4 Schools

As the Swap4Schools campaign has shown us, give the Swap community a quick, fun and easy way to help out others and they will respond. The campaign is less than three weeks old and has already netted hundreds of donations in more than two dozen states. Yeah, we think that’s a good start too.

While we thank the generous members of our community who have signed up and donated almost entirely through word of mouth, we want to shine a spotlight on the teachers, librarians and administrators who are the seeing the results of this program in their schools.  We’ve started to hear a lot of stories roll in from program participants  and we are excited to share them with you.

One of the first teachers to contact us was Deborah Michaud, a librarian from Fitchburg, Massachusetts.  After receiving her first donation two weeks back, she quickly fired off an email to our Founder Jeff Bennett, expressing appreciation and amazement at the size of the donations her school’s library had received.

We reached out to her to find a little bit more about her experience with the program…

——–

Interview with Deborah Michaud, Librarian and Educator, Fitchburg High School

Swap: Thanks for allowing us to share your story. What do you do at Fitchburg High School and how long have you been there?
Deborah: I am currently a high school librarian. I started my career in education as a secondary history teacher. Then I obtained my school librarian certification and have spent 26 years in elementary, middle school and high school libraries.

What’s your favorite thing about being a teacher?
I get to work with kids and books which are my two favorite things in life.

How did you hear about the Swap4Schools initiative? Had you heard of swap.com before?
My principal forwarded an email from Jeff Bennett explaining the program. I had previously heard of swap.com.

How many donations did you receive?
I have received 17 books so far and I appear to have several more coming. I’ve received most of the Ellen Hopkins books, which are very popular with high school students.

What’s the impact been like for this program in your classroom?
I had no book budget this year so I have been haunting clearance shelves and used book sales to try to keep my library current. This has been an amazingly simple, not to mention cost effective, way to do that.

What do you think the possibilities of a program like this are – For schools, for students, and for others?
From my short experience with this program, I think it could make a real difference to students, especially in poor urban school districts like mine. Book budgets, especially library book budgets, are a fairly easy item for administrator to cut when budgets are reduced. However, it is so important for us to provide all students with the books they need and want to read. Most of our students do not have home libraries or transportation to our minimally funded public library. This program can make a significant contribution to all people, but especially to schools like mine.

Thank you for your time Deborah. Meanwhile, if you’re interested in learning more about Swap4Schools, click here to learn how to donate or here to sign up your school.

Behind each donation, is a great story and we aim to let those stories be heard.  If you’re a teacher, librarian, administrator or a donor who wants to tell you’re Swap4Schools story, we’d love to hear them. You can write them in the comments below, or share them on our Facebook Wall.

Thanks to everyone and we look forward watching this program grow and continue to impact more schools across the country.

Swapper of the Month: Jamie Beal, Teacher and Swap4schools Fan

By
Swap
Published: March 22, 2011Posted in: Books, Featured Posts, Swap SpotlightTags: , , , ,
Swap.com's Swapper of the Month

Our Swapper of the Month Jamie Beal is serious about celebrating Pi Day

Nearly two months ago, we initiated the Swap4Schools campaign to unite the swapping community with teachers and schools in need of books. In that short period of time, the campaign has spread like wildfire across the country, netting thousands of donations in more than 40 states.

The stories that we’ve heard from teachers and educators so far have been extremely heartening. Last month we profiled Deborah Michaud, an educator from Fitchburg, Massachusetts who contacted our CEO Jeff Bennett within the first week of the program.

An enthusiastic tweet about the program brought Swapper of the Month for March Jamie Beal to our attention. A middle school math teacher from Alton, Illinois, and a long-time swapper, Ms. Beal has created a class website www.missbeal.com to promote interactive learning in the classroom.

We reached out to her to find a little bit more about her experience with Swap4schools.

——–

Hi Jamie. Where and what do you teach? How long have you been a teacher?

Jamie Beal: I teach 8th grade Algebra and Pre-Algebra at Alton Middle School in Alton, IL.  The 2010-2011 school year marks my third year of teaching.

What’s your favorite thing about being a teacher?

JB: My favorite part of being a teacher is being able to share my enthusiasm for math and learning with my students.  I push my 8th graders to try new things and challenge them with difficult problems, yet we have a lot of fun while doing it!  I love seeing my students work really hard and succeed when doing so.  I recently had students memorize digits of pi for Pi Day (March 14th) and had 3 students memorize 67 digits, 90 digits and 112 digits!!  That was definitely an awesome day to be their math teacher.  :)

How did you hear about the Swap4Schools initiative?

JB: I am already a member of swap.com so when Swap4Schools was added, I saw it right away.  I created a Swap4Schools account and began telling everyone I knew about it!

How many donations did you receive? What have been some of your favorite donations that you’ve received so far?

JB: So far I have received 102 donations in the mail, with more on the way.  My favorite donations are the books my students are waiting to receive.  The students add the books to our “want list” and the day that their book arrives in the mail they are SO excited.  My bookshelf that used to not get much attention now has books flying off of it.  It’s a great thing when you can hear a pin drop in class because all the students are engrossed in a book of their choice.

What’s the impact been like for this program in your classroom?

JB: Since I teach math, I use the books donated for our “Flex” period.  This class is similar to a study hall but is more flexible for students to work on things they need to work on or get help with from a teacher.  On Tuesdays and Thursdays for the first 20 minutes in Flex, we Drop Everything And Read (D.E.A.R.).  I started this with my coworkers because all of our students have to read for Accelerated Reader and because I too enjoy getting a break to read for 20 minutes.  I try to lead by example with everything I do and if I want my kids to read for 20 minutes, I sit down and open a book along with them.

Swap4Schools has given my students books to read that they actually WANT to read.  Just getting mail for our classroom gets our students excited….over BOOKS!!  Who knew, right?!  Since I have shared Swap4Schools with my coworkers, Alton Middle School has received donations of over 500 books in the past month.  That is 500 more books in our students’ hands that weren’t there before Swap4Schools.  I have some students who used to complain about reading that are now the ones excited when a new book arrives and that itself is a success!

What do you think the possibilities of a program like this are – For schools, for students, and for others?

JB: The possibilities are endless with a program like Swap4Schools.  Libraries could be made solely on donations whether they are classroom libraries or school libraries.  Also, classrooms could receive class sets of books to use.  For example, my coworker Kate Page is trying to get a class set of the book Night to use in her Social Studies classroom.  She put it on her “want list” and so did a few other coworkers.  So far we have given her all of our donations and she is up to 12 Night books!  By the end of this school year hopefully she will have up to 32 copies of Night to incorporate into her curriculum for the 2011-2012 school year.

Along with the book donations, since Swap offers cds, video games and dvds to donate as well, these things could be helpful for many different types of classrooms. Our P.E. class has a Wii for fitness games so new workout video game donations could be really helpful.  Also, my coworker incorporates music into his Language Arts lessons on Fridays so cd donations could benefit his classroom as well.  Since teachers spend so much of their own money on supplies for their classroom, any donation helps!  This is why Swap4Schools is so awesome!

—

If you’re interested in learning more about Swap4Schools, click here to learn how to donate or here to sign up your school.

Behind each donation, is a great story and we aim to let those stories be heard.  If you’re a teacher, librarian, administrator or a donor who wants to tell you’re Swap4Schools story, we’d love to hear them. You can write them in the comments below, or share them on our Facebook Wall.


Swap Recommendations from a Gamer Mom for your Gamer Kids

By
Meg Travis
Published: March 28, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Video GamesTags: , , ,

Mario Sports MixI was once a gamer kid, back in the 80’s. And now I’m a gamer mom. My 9-year-old son’s friends think this is incredibly cool. How often when they go to a friend’s house do kids hear from the parent in charge: “Hey guys, Lego Star Wars III just came out, you wanna help me get the red bricks?” instead of: “Turn that thing off and get outside!”

Yeah, I’m that mom. Don’t worry, they still get plenty of exercise at my house…. playing Wii. (Just kidding.)

In support of healthy kids’ gaming playdates everywhere, here are a few of the games in constant rotation at my house. Because I’ve played them all, I can promise you – No bad words. No blood. Cartoon violence only (approximately the equivalent of a Disney movie). And when they’re done enjoying these, kick those kids outside (and if you’re me, that’s when you settle in to play Dragon Age. ;) )

1.  Pokemon White or Pokemon Black

(Nintendo DS) These are the most recent in the series, but any Pokemon title will do. Those little pokemon are so gosh darn cute until they evolve! Plus, try getting a toddler to say the word “Pikachu.” I promise you, any attempt will be adorable.

2. Mario Sports Mix

(Wii) When March and April showers have the kids stuck inside and you want to wear em out, pop in the Sports Mix and let them act goofy in front of virtual hockey, basketball, and volleyball. Just have the water bottles handy for when they need a rest!

3. Viva Piñata Party Animals

(Xbox 360)It’s like a wild kids’ birthday party in a video game. Kids love making their piñata avatars eat as much candy as possible to win contests, and racing around the loony obstacle courses.

4.  Curious George

(GameBoy Advance) For those of you with a GBA still sitting around your house, this game is definitely worth trying to swap for. It’s basic platform action, but something about George’s smiling face when he reunites with the Man With the Yellow Hat at the end of each level just keeps ya comin’ back for more.

Are you a gamer parent too? What kid’s games would you add to this list?

“The Art of the Swap” and Other Insights from The Office’s Dwight Shrute

By
Swap
Published: March 25, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Movies & DVDs, SwappingTags: , ,

If you caught last night’s episode of The Office, you may have noticed Dwight Shrute enacting his  latest Machiavellian scheme: Turn his work-sponsored garage sale at Dunder Mifflin into a master class on the “art of the swap“…at the expense of his more gullible colleagues, of course.

While we  usually don’t condone Dwight’s self-serving schemes, we do applaud his desire to carry forth the spirit of the swap.

We won’t spoil how it turns for out for Dwight ( it’s safe to say he wasn’t following “best swapping practices.”), as a consolation, we at Swap are putting our vote behind you to replace Michael next year.

What do you think? Do you want to see ” TV’s favorite swapper”  get the job or would you rather see someone else become manager.

While you think about it, enjoy the clip below.

Announcing the Release of the Swap iPhone App

By
Jeff
Published: March 31, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, SwappingTags: , , , ,

The Swap iPhone Mobile application Swapping is an age-old activity that’s been around forever.  Our mission at Swap.com is to enhance it…make it easier…create more connections and access to wider variety of swaps.  I have to say with the release of the Swap.com Mobile App for the iPhone this week, I believe that swapping has firmly entered the 21st century.

This is one of the most important advances in our company history. It represents a powerful new way to swap and gives you instant access to 13 million swappable items.

I have talked to many other Internet execs at RueLaLa, Kayak, Groupon and Yelp about their experience in building an app for smart phones.  Each exec was emphatic in pointing out that the process of determining what functions are essential is critical.  The iPhone is only so big so you have to be pretty judicious with what you feature.  The interface must be incredibly clean and streamlined as well.

We surely experienced this and we are grateful that the folks at Raiz Labs, who have built many  leading iPhone apps, were our partner in this endeavor.  There is no substitute for experience in such an important project.

The essentials that we decided to focus on with the Swap.com Mobile App are 5 key navigational elements:  Haves, Wants, GetNow, My Trades and Account. The app is super intuitive as the user navigates between these functions:

  • Easy entry of items you Have and Want by integrating a bar code scanner.  This scanner takes a picture of the bar code on media products and automatically brings up the item.
  • If you are adding this scanned item to your Have list, the App will let you know how many items you can get in swap.
  • If you are adding this scanned item to your Want list, the App indicates how many Swap.com members have that item.
  • All potential swaps are listed in the Get Now of the app where you can browse potential swaps and determine who you want to swap.
  • My Trades gives you a view into all of your pending and competed swaps including the ability to accept, buy shipping labels and rate swaps.The Swap iPhone Interface
  • Account lets you manage all of your account info, including if you would like us to “push” information on swaps to your iPhone.  This push feature is awesome.
  • Swapping is social and our app lets you share the items you like and your activity with all of your friends on Facebook and followers on Twitter…or email if you prefer.

I bought my first iPhone the second day they were available.  Since then I have downloaded a long list Apps.  There are many Apps that I use every day.  I am really pleased with how our initial version of the App has turned out. We let the folks at Mashable take the app for early spin and the title of their feature review today says it all: “Swap.com’s New Scan App Makes Trading Stuff Easy”

The article goes on to explain:

“Want to save your bank account and the environment at the same time? Swap sites, where you trade your books and other media, can help.

Manually entering ISBN or UPC codes for every item you’re willing to trade, however, does not make a lot of sense.

Swap.com is the first of the mainstream swap sites to solve this problem with an iPhone app that it released on Thursday. The new app allows you to simply scan the books, video games, movies and music that you want to trade. No manual entry necessary.”

To download the FREE Swap.com Mobile app for iPhone and start swapping, visit the Apple iTunes store.

We invite you play around with the app and give us your feedback. We think you’ll be excited with the new possibilities it presents and hope that makes your swapping experience that much easier.

Happy Swapping…on the web, at events…and now on your iPhone!

Swap.com and Mayor Menino Celebrate Swap4Schools

By
Swap
Published: April 1, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap UpdatesTags: , , ,

This post is a guest post from Swap CEO Jeff Bennett. You can read the whole post and Jeff’s other thoughts at www.jeffbennett.com. You can also learn more about Swap4Schools here

-1

Jeff Bennett with Boston Mayor Menino and Leah Blake, Principal

Our community members at Swap.com are people who are trying to make the most out of the stuff that they have. We learned that many are teachers and librarians who have joined Swap.com so that they could swap for books that they need in their classrooms. These folks spend money out of their own pocket to buy needed books and supplies for the children in their classrooms. So understanding that many teachers and librarians are utilizing Swap.com to help in this regard, we asked many in our community if they would be willing to donate books on some occasions versus receiving another book in swap. Many said yes.

With this need defined and relevant feedback from our community, we embarked on building Swap4Schools. We got access to a database of all of the public schools in the United States. We also created an opportunity for teachers and librarians to join Swap.com to set up their classrooms on Swap4Schools and list books that they need in their “Want” list. Swap.com then creates matches of our members who have these books with the teachers who want these books creating a swap….

Read the rest of “Swap.com and Mayor Menino Celebrate Swap4Schools” at Jeff Bennett’s Blog

Turn your Swap into a Treasure Hunt

By
Ryan
Published: April 6, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, SwappingTags: , , , ,
A Treasure Hunt for Swap.com

Turn swapping into a fun game you can play with your kids

A few months back, my wife was out of town for the weekend. This left me on daddy duty 24/7. I honestly enjoy when this happens. I’m forced to put everything else aside and just focus solely on my kids.

So, here I am on a random weekend with 3 kids to entertain for a lot of hours. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is … a treasure hunt. Yep, I set out to create an interactive, several hour crazy-as-can-be treasure hunt. My kids absolutely loved it. It was one of the few times I have seen them play together without trying to kill one another. They were running from clue to clue, cheering each other on with each clue they found and at the end, couldn’t stop laughing and jumping around when they found the treasure.

I asked my kids what they liked best about the whole event.

I loved what they told me: They liked the anticipation of what came next (I’m paraphrasing). With every clue, they thought the next one would bring the treasure. They got more excited with each interaction. I could see it on their faces (I also captured it on camera).

It occurred to me that the same feeling happens when you swap. It’s a huge treasure hunt. You never know what value the things you own hold, until you try to swap it for something else. On our site, Swap.com, we tell you what you can swap a book, movie, CD, or video game for. This value is based on other members’ Haves and Wants.

It’s a treasure hunt.

Now, with Swap.com Mobile, the treasure hunt moves from exciting…to addicting. In fact, I created another treasure hunt for my kids a few weeks ago where they could only use Swap.com’s iPhone app to play. The goal was to find items in our house that were worth certain Swap values. I have shelves of media items that aren’t being used and haven’t made it to Swap.com yet. So, the stage was set.

My kids first had to guess what the value would be and then got prizes based on hitting certain Get Now levels. It took them 12 minutes to scan over 200 items. The highest value item would allow us to choose from over 110,000 items in return. The lowest, was zero.

It was surprising though to find out what had current value and what didn’t.

Once they were done scanning our items, they wanted to move on to their friends’ houses. I couldn’t let them do this of course, but it was incredible to see. My kids didn’t want to end this treasure hunt. It had concrete meaning for them. We’ve already had 15 swap offers with all our new Have items. My kids are already thinking about what else they can swap for.

Treasure hunts are fun…swapping is downright habit-forming. Try it and you will see what I mean.

Beyond Swapping: 4 Ideas to Get Stuff for Less (or Free)

By
Swap
Published: April 8, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green IdeasTags: , , , ,

Swap.com presents 4 ways to stay thrifty beyond swappingWith the airing of The Learning Channel’s show Extreme Couponing last night, the art of acquiring stuff without spending money rocketed into the spotlight once again.  As swappers, we know that part of the buzz you get from a great swap is from celebrating the money you saved by swapping instead of shopping. But swapping isn’t the only way to score huge deals on new-to-you stuff.

Here are just a handful of ideas to add to your arsenal of frugal living tips (with thanks to Swap.com’s own Melissa Massello and her articles from  Shoestring Magazine).

  1. Yard Sales

    It’s spring and yard sales are everywhere. This Shoestring Magazing guide includes tips on finding a good yard sale, and hosting your own.

  2. Goodwill and Salvation Army:

    Shopping at Goodwill and the Salvation Army (and other mission-driven second-hand stores like them) gives you more than just big savings; it also gives you the satisfaction that your minimal dollars are being funneled towards  improving the lives of those in need in your local community and across the globe.

  3. Freeganism

    “Dumpster diving” is one extreme of the freeganism (or scavenging) trend, but luckily there are other more appetizing ways to get free food. For instance, did you know that any food-bearing plant on public property is available for public consumption? Several US organizations are dedicated to promoting this fact and to organizing efforts to preserve and grow “urban orchards.” The Boston Tree Party is one such group.

  4. Free Summer Entertainment

    Shoestring Magazine’s guides to free summer concerts and free Shakespeare productions will keep you cultured all summer long.

Finally, to help you on your journey to never paying full price again, enjoy the Thrifting Jargon Dictionary. You’ll be talking freegan in no time.

What are some of your favorite ways to stay frugal? What would you add to this list?

—

Photo Credit: Russell Reno

Swap.com Is Getting More Social

By
Jeff Bennett
Published: April 13, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap UpdatesTags: , ,
Swap.com's Facebook Page

Swap.com has made several exciting updates to its Facebook integration

We have all swapped things in our lives.

For me swapping started in the lunch room in first grade.  As I grew older, I continued to swap, trading cards, marbles, and sports equipment. Today, I trade tickets and toys for my kids.  Most of these swaps have come through friends and family since these are my closest connections.  It was not until I joined Swap.com that I swapped something with a stranger.  Swap.com created a trusted network so I felt almost as if it was a friend or family member.

Facebook Has Become the Social Hub of the World

It seems that every week I connect with someone who I have shared experiences with in the past and present.  The more you get into it the more you get back in return as well.  Facebook has really created a very deep social graph of people’s lives.

It’s natural for Swap.com to integrate with Facebook since we aim to enable the social connections that are so important to swapping.  I am pleased to let you know that this is exactly what we are doing.  We believe that it can really enhance the experience for our users and make it easier to expand network of friends who use Swap.com.

Our first Facebook integration simply allowed Facebook members to use their login credentials to log into Swap.com.  Many leading site like Pandora, Etsy, Yelp and others also allow for this.  It worked well for a small percentage of our base but we knew that we could do more.  I challenged our team on this.  Afterall, Facebook is the most important social graph…and Swap.com is the essence of social commerce.

Swap.com’s New Facebook Integration

We are now in the process of launching several updates to Swap.com’s Facebook integration.

  1. We have made Facebook more prominent on the site.
  2. We have updated the integration of the tools that allow users to use their Facebook credentials when logging into Swap.com.
  3. Just last Friday we started to suggest things that our users could add to their “have” and “want” lists based on information from their Facebook profiles and actions.
  4. We are also making it easier to invite your Facebook friends to join Swap.com.

The base premise here is that Swapping is Social.  We are working to create some significant benefits on Swap.com based on our members contributions to the social graph.  And all of this can happen automatically due to our integration with Facebook.  I hope you will like what we are doing and that our work can make swapping a little more social and personal for you.

We invite you to connect with us on Facebook and share your swapping experiences with us.

Swap’s 10 Favorite Beach Movies

By
Meg Travis
Published: April 18, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Movies & DVDsTags: , ,
One of our favorite cinematic beaches - From "The Beach"

The scenic cove in "The Beach"

I’m lucky enough to be writing this on my way to a vacation in the Bahamas, so I’ve got beaches on my mind. Where I’m headed it’s warm turquoise Caribbean water and soft white sand, but back home where I live north of Boston, its yellow gritty sand and c-c-c-cold Atlantic water. This has got me thinking – there are so many different kinds of beaches, and equally as many different kinds of movies with memorable beach scenes.

Here are a few on my list of most entertaining movies that prominently feature beaches.

  1. Beaches: It had to top the list because of the name.
  2. The Beach: Another obvious choice .
  3. Sleeping With the Enemy: The beach house that Julia Roberts escapes from is soooooo cool! I’d want to live there if I could get rid of that crazy man.
  4. Six Days Seven Nights: I think this one sticks with me because it was the first time Harrison Ford looked old on screen. In fact, the movie description actually describes his character as “grizzled.” Where did Han Solo go????
  5. Cast Away: I’d want to be alone on Tom Hanks’ island for maybe four days…. Four years would be a little much.
  6. Shawshank Redemption: The beach scene in this movie (you know the one – Zihuatanejo) makes me cry every time. EVERY time.
  7. The Blue Lagoon: “I don’t wanna talk about it. I just don’t wanna talk about it!”
  8. Point Break: Keanu Reeves’ minimal acting skills somehow only add to the fun of watching this movie. Bonus fact: Did you know there was a Point Break: The Musical??
  9. Blue Hawaii: Elvis!
  10. Saving Private Ryan: This one is actually on my swap.com want list. One of my top 10 of all time. Now THAT’S a beach scene.

I’m sure there are tons of obvious ones I’ve left off. What would you add to the list?

Swap Of The Day: Swap Your House

By
Jeff Bennett
Published: May 6, 2011Posted in: Swap Of The DayTags: , , , , ,

Swapping your HouseVacations are expensive. Sometimes you can not even get a hotel or inn accommodation in areas that you might want to travel to. So what about swapping your house?

The concept of “House Swapping” has been around forever. To some it might sound a little weird, but in this day though the popularity of this age old aspect of swapping it is certainly coming back into vogue.

There are many facilitators of “House Swapping.” We just got introduced some wonderful stories from the members of Home Exchange. Read these cool experiences about “House Swapping.”

What are some excellent examples of swapping that you see out in the world?

We’d love hear your suggestions for the next “Swap of the Day”

Swap Of The Day: Swap Out Those Old Light Bulbs

By
Jeff Bennett
Published: May 25, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

CFL light bulbAt Swap.com we are putting out the call to action to all you environmentally-conscious swappers — go green and swap out your incandescent lights for energy-saving Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulbs today!

Did you know that CFL bulbs use 25 percent less energy and last 8-10 times longer that incandescent bulbs use? Think about it — by swapping one 75 Watt incandescent bulb with a 20 Watt CFL bulb you could save your family $66 dollars over the life of the bulb! Not only is that significantly better for the environment, but it is also a wonderful opportunity to save money on your electric bill. Sounds like a win-win swap scenario to us!

What other excellent examples of swapping have you seen out in the world? We know there are tons of successful swap stories out there and we’d love hear your suggestions for the next “Swap of the Day.” Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

Swap Of The Day: Survey Says Gen Y’ers Prefer Swapping

By
Jeff Bennett
Published: April 27, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The DayTags: , , , , ,

At Swap.com we have some incredible stories about swapping in our online marketplace and at our offline events. We want to bring you swapping stories from all across the swap movement and would love your help!


An American Express Future of Consumer Spending survey has found that members of  Gen Y, more than any other age group, have given up the notion of owning many of life’s necessities and are instead swapping, renting and leasing goods and sharing clothes.

Rather than fritter money away, they have become cost-conscious and don’t want to waste big dollars on expensive items that date and depreciate quickly.

Do you feel like this captures your values? Do you prefer to rent & share items or would you rather own new things?

—-

Got a Swap of the Day you want to share??? Send your ideas for Swap.com’s Swap of the Day to swapoftheday@swap.com.

Swap Of The Day: Paint Swap

By
Jeff Bennett
Published: April 21, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, Swap SpotlightTags: , , , ,

At Swap.com we have some incredible stories about swapping in our online marketplace and at our offline events. We want to bring you swapping stories from all across the swap movement and would love your help! Send your ideas for Swap.com’s Swap of the Day to swapoftheday@swap.com.

If your basement or garage is overflowing with cans of leftover paint the National Paint and Coatings Association has a suggestion: Hold a neighborhood or community “Paint Swap.”

Everyone brings their usable leftover paint to one place. After the paint is sorted it is given away on the spot to other people who can use it.

Of course, not all paint is created equal. If you decide to organize an exchange keep the following in mind:

  • Only accept latex and solvent-based paints if they are in their original containers, with intact labels.
  • Do not take paint that has been frozen or contaminated.
  • Make sure gallon containers are at least one-third full—that’s just good manners.

What a creative way to leverage Swapping! You can get guidelines for events like this at www.paint.org.

What do you think? Let us know!

An Earth Day Gift from Swap.com: Free Swapping All Day

By
Swap
Published: April 21, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, Swap SpotlightTags: ,
Here's a green idea: Try swapping instead of shopping

What better way to celebrate Earth Day on April 22, 2011 than to swap till you drop?

Why do you swap instead of shop?

Is it the knowledge that you’re saving a ton of cash?

Is it the excitement of getting stuff in the mail?

Is it to feed your voracious reading, listening, viewing, or gaming appetite?

No matter your main reason for swapping, the fact is, you’re also making a very earth-friendly choice when you swap instead of shop. You’re re-using instead of buying new, and you’re building ties to your community by trading with others. What better way to celebrate Earth Day on April 22, 2011 than to swap till you drop?

On Swap.com, all trades initiated on Earth Day, from midnight through 11:59pm on Friday April 22nd, will be FREE. (You’ll see the credits for these trades applied back to your Swap.com account within 3 business days.)

So enjoy this gift from us to you.  Happy Swapping!

—-

Photo credit: Michael Daines

An Award-Winning Spring for Swap.com

By
Swap
Published: April 26, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Spotlight, Swap UpdatesTags: , , , ,
Swap CEO Jeff Bennett and Boston Mayor Tom Menino

Swap CEO Jeff Bennett receiving an award from Boston Mayor Tom Menino

It’s been a whirlwind few weeks at Swap.com. We are moving at a blazing pace to give people more swapping opportunities.

The Swap team is hard at work making it easier to connect to your Facebook friends on Swap.com, find local swap events in your area, and give people a place to swap just about anything. We are also kicking into high gear to bring more swap events to more places (Texas…check. Boston…check. Los Angeles…check. New Orleans, San Francisco, and more).

So, it was great this month when we got a few awards to recognize all the work the team is doing. It allowed us to take a deep breath and gain some valuable perspective. We’ve already discussed our Swap4Schools partnership with Boston public schools. Mayor Tom Menino was so impressed with our community’s generosity, that he created a city-wide partnership.

Soon after that great day, we were told that Lead411 selected Swap.com as one of the country’s hottest startups . It was a very esteemed list that included Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Etsy to name a few. Based on criteria including fundraising levels and revenue growth, Swap.com was recognized as one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the Boston area.

A few days following the Lead411 announcement, we were informed by the City of Boston that Swap.com was chosen to receive the “Mayor’s green business award.” The award recognizes local businesses in Boston that demonstrate extraordinary performance related to sustainable environmental practices. Our CEO, Jeff Bennett was on hand to accept the award and was given an amazing introduction by Mayor Menino.

We’re not going to rest because of this recognition, but I won’t lie…it feels good to know that all of this work and recognition is going to bring more swap opportunities to our community.

Thanks to everyone who’s been supportive during our growth and if you’re learning about us for the first time (welcome!), here’s where you can find out  more about the joy of swapping!

Swap of The Day: A Queen’s Sandwich

By
Swap
Published: April 28, 2011Posted in: Swap Of The DayTags: , ,

What can a simple lunch trade teach us? According to Queen Rania of Jordan, swapping sandwiches can show us that “wonderful things can be found in the most unexpected places.”

In the clip below, Queen Rania joins ABC News to discuss her wonderfully-titled children’s book “The Sandwich Swap” and talk about the childhood experience upon which the story is based.

As a 5-year old at school, Rania engaged in some in a moment of “peanut butter diplomacy”, exchanging a bite of her hummus sandwich for a taste of a schoolmate’s peanut butter sandwich.  According to Rania, overcoming her distrust of a strange culinary treat with the help of  a friend opened her eyes to the power of experiencing new things and showed her the importance of not fearing the unknown.

Her aim for the book is to instill these  same values in young readers.

We like to think that anyone can a have a similar experience whenever they swap, through swap.com or among friends. Watch the clip below and let us know if you agree.

12 Books That I Can’t Stop Re-Reading

By
Meg Travis
Published: April 29, 2011Posted in: Books, Featured PostsTags: , ,
J. R. R. Tolkein's finest work

A friend perusing some well-worn classics

Some books are really difficult to part with. These are the books that never make it from your bedside table to the bookshelf, because you know eventually you’ll be reading them again.

The following are at the top of my list (and bedside table):

1. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
2. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
3. Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver.
4. – 10. The next seven spots are taken up by the Harry Potter series by  J. K. Rowling. Beyond the magical plots, places, and characters, for me the fun in re-reading these is trying to understand how on earth Rowling was able to piece the whole backstory together without creating too many inconsistencies as she unveiled it across the seven books.  It’s like an enormous Rubik’s Cube, trying to figure it all out.
11. The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris, and, from the ridiculous to the sublime…
12. Make Way For Ducklings by Robert McCloskey (to be honest, this one stays on my bedside table because of the 3 year old scholar of ducks with whom I share a house).

What books are on your list?

If You Like FREE Swapping, You’ll Love the Month of May!

By
Ryan
Published: May 2, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swap UpdatesTags: , , , , ,
April Showers Bring May Flowers

April showers bring more than just May flowers – usher in Spring with a month of free swapping!

It has been an undeniably long winter, especially up here in the city of Boston. Luckily, the never-ending cycle of rainstorms that make up the month of April, plus a few signs of budding life on the trees, seem to be pretty decent indicators that spring is FINALLY on the way. We could not be more thrilled.

Of course you know what this means… it’s time for some good, old-fashioned spring-cleaning! And spring-cleaning undoubtedly means uncovering a barrage of books, DVDs, CDs, and games that you no longer have any use for. Whatever will you do with all of those items?

Don’t fret – Swap.com has you covered!

For the ENTIRE month of May (starting at midnight, May 1 and ending at 11:59:59 on May 31) ALL Swap.com transaction fees will be waived.

Yes, you read that right. As a thank you to our swappers for being the best community anywhere, no swap fees will be charged for the entire month of May!

You will still be responsible for buying your own postage to ship your items (whether it’s through Swap.com or somewhere else).

So, swap, swap, and swap some more because there are no swap fees in the month of May. If you like what you see please remember to invite your friends; now would be a great time for them to try us out. Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter as well: the more people that swap, the more stuff you can get!

For more information, please email our Community Support team.

So what are you waiting for? Join us in welcoming in spring, and start taking advantage of your free swaps today!

Happy swapping,

The Swap.com team

—-

Photo Credit: Nick Allen

Swap of the Day: Carpools and Ride-Sharing by Zimride

By
Ryan
Published: May 3, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The DayTags: , ,

Zimride is a ride-sharing companyIf you’ve ever been stuck in traffic you know how frustrating it can be to see a river a cars with only one person in them all headed to the same place. That’s why an exciting new online community, Zimride, has devoted themselves to bringing people together to carpool and share rides.

Zimride allows drivers and passengers alike to share their cars, reducing greenhouse gasses, easing traffic and saving everyone money. The site allows you to cut back on your carbon footprint by matching you with other ride-sharing and even allows you to establish pay rates for trips with each other. They make it so easy that anyone can plan a ride-share for a onetime trip or a daily commute, giving you the flexibility to find the perfect way to get to your destination or share your car for some extra gas money.

It’s this kind of swap-minded mentality that makes everyone’s life a little easier.

Swapper of the Month: The Illustrious Alicatstrut

By
Ryan
Published: May 4, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swapper of the MonthTags: , , , , , ,

Alicatstrut is our Swapper of the MonthThe team at Swap.com has the privilege of meeting and interacting with some of the most awesome and genuine people you could ever have the pleasure of knowing online. That’s why we are shining the spotlight on some of our best and brightest community members with the introduction of our Swapper of the Month. Without further ado here is our Swapper of the Month for May, Alicatstrut from the great state of New York!

How long have you been a Swapper? How many trades have you made so far?

Alison: I’ve been here a little over two years. I started giving stuff to a friend of mine to swap for me for a few months before that and then opened my own account when she moved out of town.  I have been swapping in person constantly and after she left I was curious whether I could get a broader range of stuff on the site. I’m about to hit 900 completed trades on Swap.com.

What types of items do you trade the most on Swap.com?
A: Movies! I like horror, especially Japanese and Italian horror, but really any horror film will do. I also love cult classics, teen romantic comedies, foreign films, indies, anything B-rated (or worse), movies about cheerleading and gymnastics (even better if the cheerleaders and gymnasts are zombies), snooty intellectual comedies and TV shows on DVD. I love good commentaries on films almost as much as the films. What I tend to trade away are dramas, horror films that aren’t good (or bad enough to re-watch), physical comedies, romantic comedies and sappy movies. If I watch something and there’s nothing for me to fall in love with, it goes to the community.

What is the most prized possession you’ve received in a swap?
Trojan's Box Set Nyahbinghi - Various Artists CDA: It was tough even narrowing it down to nine favorites in 900. But I have to go with the Trojan Records Nyahbinghi Box Set because it was the first really offbeat item I ever got. I collect Trojan Records compilations and for a time was obsessed with The Wetlands Preserve (the club in NYC) and every band that came through its doors, especially first wave roots ska and reggae. These compilations are full of the most soulful, forgotten, tinny, brilliant music on the planet.

If you were deserted on an island, what three items would you take with you?
A: Given the proper amenities I’d take Firefly, Sports Night and Common Sense and The Rights of Man. I fell in love with Sports Night the first episode that aired and Aaron Sorkin is my kind of snobby genius. The show was cancelled too soon, similar to my second pick Firefly, which I watch over and over again. I’d bring Common Sense because I’m going to need something weighty to keep me from chewing my arm off without interaction with other humans.

If you could be anyone or anything for one day, who or what would you be and why?
A: I’d be a giant squid, they’re so diabolical!

Cuddly Giant Squid

The Cuddly Giant Squid

So who would win in a fight: a giant squid or several dozen sharks with lasers? Inquiring minds want to know!
A: I’m betting the giant squid would invent his own EMP to disable the lasers and bat the sharks away like tiny ping pong balls. I don’t even know if this is scientifically possible, but it’s still my answer.

Thanks for the awesome interview Ali and congrats on this prestigious honor!

So how can you be picked as our next Swapper of the Month?

Are you worthy of wearing the crown? There are several ways we select this sacred honor every month, all you have to do is be an active swapper! To be eligible for this majestic title, Swappers:

  • Must have completed at least 5 trades in the previous month.
  • Who have completed 20 trades in the last month are automatically entered!
  • Who have more than 500 trades completed are automatically qualified!

If you like you can even email us at swapperofthemonth@swap.com and tell us why you think you deserve to be our next Swapper of the Month. From there we’ll send you some questions and you get chance at fame and glory for a whole month!

Swapping with Mom… and Other Adventures

By
Meg Travis
Published: May 5, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured PostsTags: , , ,

Mother's Day CakeI’ve been trying to explain Swap.com to my mom and she finally gets the concept (who doesn’t get the concept of swapping?).

Now, in an effort to prove to herself (and me) that she’s really hip to this,  she’s constantly coming to me with examples of swaps we could do. Here’s an example from a recent email exchange below:

Mom: So, if I sent you Helen Reddy’s Greatest Hits, you could send me back Ultimate Air Supply?

Me:  Well, theoretically yes, if I owned any Air Supply CDs.

Mom: And if I sent you An Officer and a Gentleman, you could send me back Norma Rae?

Me: Yes, if I owned that movie or had thought about it since you made me watch it in 1979.

Mom: And I could send you I’m OK – You’re OK, and you could send me The Thorn Birds?

Me: Again, yes, right concept, wrong books. Mom, you don’t happen to own Best of Def Leppard, do you? Or Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic for the Xbox?

Mom: No, and you spelled “leopard” wrong. It has an “o” in it.

Me: Mom, I love you.

Hey, at least it’s progress.

Now I want to know, what would swaps with your mom look like?

Oh… and Happy Mother’s Day, everyone!

Swap of the Day: What Service Would You Swap for Five Bucks?

By
Ryan
Published: May 13, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , ,

Five DollarsLet’s be honest, five dollars doesn’t usually get you very far these days. Sure you can get a $5 footlong from Subway, a gallon of gas, five items from the dollar menu at a fast food chain, but what else can you really get with just that five in your pocket?

Enter fiverr.com, the site that allows people from all over to list small services they would be willing to provide for $5. Looking for someone to draw a portrait of you for $5? Or want a postcard from England for $5? Or perhaps you have always wanted to have your palm read, but never wanted to pay more than $5 for it? Look no further!

These are just a few of the offerings of the robust community has to offer. Members can browse by category to find services they are interested in or can request specific services that they would be willing to pay five dollars for.

And hey, if you are looking to earn some cash and have a small service that you would provide for $5, remember, it might not be much but all that extra cash can add up pretty quick!

What small service would you be willing to offer for $5? Can you read palms or draw portraits on the fly? Let us know if the comments section below.

Photo by: Andrew A. Smith

Swap of the Day: Can You Spare Some Time?

By
Ryan
Published: May 12, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , ,

Time is MoneyTime is perhaps our most precious resource. So why not swap it? Give a little time, get a little time.

And that’s just what a group called the Emerald Valley Time Exchange has set out to do with their innovative approach to swapping. The community led time exchange serves the Eugene, Oregon area and it is a self-proclaimed, community based “time bank” swapping community members time as their form of currency.

The best part is, the premise is really as simple as it sounds. You volunteer a service or talent, such as teaching an hour-long yoga class and you earn a time credit. You can then turn around and use that time credit towards someone else’s offered talents or services. There is an incredibly helpful (and fun) cartoon on the exchange’s homepage that lays out the whole principle.

The entire idea around the Eugene based organization is to capitalize on other’s expertise, swapping time to learn new skills, much in the same way our community members at Swap.com utilize our marketplace to turn what they have into what they really want.

So save a little money, get to know your neighbors better, trade some time for time… how can you go wrong?

What do you think about the Emerald Valley Time Exchange? Would you consider swapping services with some of your fellow community members? Let us know in the comments section below.

(Photo by: Brooks Elliott)

Beware of These Unfair Swapping Practices

By
Ryan
Published: May 10, 2011Posted in: Swapping, Video GamesTags: , ,
Fingers Crossed

Some companies pretend to promote Swapping, but don't deliver equal value

We obviously take swapping very seriously around the halls at Swap.com. It’s in our DNA.  Whether you call it swapping, trading, bartering, collaborative consumption, or something else, the basic concept should always hold true. Swapping is supposed to be an equal exchange of value from one person to another.

However, there are some companies out there facilitating swaps that really stretch the definition of equal value.  Sure, there might be a lot of value for the company, but for the swapper it is anything but equal. When these other companies try to convince me that the swaps they facilitate are fair and of equal value, I get cranky.

Gamestop is a pretty well-known national chain where people can sell video games, as well as buy new and used games. I’ve bought a few games there for my son over the past few years before joining Swap.com. My family had a Nintendo Wii at home for a few years, so we built up a pretty good game library. For his last birthday, he got an XBOX 360 with only one game.

Of course, Sam asked for a bunch of games, but buying them new costs up to $60 per game. I had just bought the console and wasn’t really in the mood to spend more so we decided to list all of our Wii games on Swap to see if we could trade them for XBOX games. I must say, even I was pretty surprised with the results.

We listed 20 games, 8 of which we have already swapped for original XBOX games. We got Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11, Madden NFL 11, DiRT, Pure, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, NBA 2K9, BioShock, and Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade. Not necessarily the list we would have chosen at retail, but we were pretty happy with it anyway.

The sum total of getting 8 used Xbox 360 games on Swap.com cost a total of $25.60 ($3.20 each for each mailing label). I did some research today to see how much it would have cost me to buy the same games at Gamestop. This is the part where I explain the crankiness. It would have cost me $121.92 to buy these games used (check their site).

Now, to be fair, I could subtract the amount they would have given me in trade for my Wii games (this ran from $2 – $15 per game). This totaled $52 (for those scoring at home, or an average of $7 per game when I spent up to $60 to buy it new). I now would have spent $69.67 to get the same 8 used games. This is a whopping 172% more than on Swap.com.

I don’t know about you, but to me this is pretty much the opposite of equal value. Gamestop asks gamers to trade in their games to get new-to-them used games. They then turn around and mark those games up more than 130%. That’s not a trade. That’s a swindle.

There aren’t suppose to be winners and losers in swapping – just winners and winners. Hard to feel that way at Gamestop.  Don’t call it a swap if it’s not even for all involved. Pretty simple concept.

What do you think? Do you always expect equal value when swapping?

What Book Should You Swap For Next?

By
Carleton
Published: May 31, 2011Posted in: Books, Featured Posts, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Finding a great book that you just can’t put down is one of life’s greatest joys. But what happens after you have eagerly devoured your favorite page-turner and you are left with nothing to read? First, don’t panic! Second, check out What Should I Read Next, a single-serving website that generates a list of books you might enjoy based on the titles or authors of your favorite books.

Recommendations are based in part by Amazon.com suggestions, but similarly to Netflix for movies or Pandora radio, you get more personalized results when you sign up for an account and build a list of your favorites reads. From there you can head back to Swap.com to add those titles to your want list!

How do discover new books to read? Do you get recommendations from friends or are you constantly checking the New York Times Best Sellers lists? Whatever your method for great story discovery, head over to What Should I Read Next today to start the search for your next great page turner!

(Photo by: Kate Ter Harr)

Find A Swap Event Near You – Swap.com Event Listings

By
Ryan
Published: May 12, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, SwappingTags: , , , , , , ,

Today’s post comes from Melissa Massello, one half of Swap.com’s tandem team of event experts – The Swapaholics. Melissa is our resident swap expert and event planner, coordinating all of Swap.com’s events around the country.

Swap.com Events ListingsIt’s finally here!

For months, ever since we officially joined forces with Swap.com, we’ve been hinting that BIG #SwapLove projects were in the works, and the all-new Events Listings at Swap.com, where you can find & list swaps happening all around the world, JUST launched today. Pop bottles, swappers! This is gonna be epic.

The Swap movement is about creating a worldwide community of people who love to share. We want to give our gently loved stuff a good home while finding new-to-us stuff to take home & love, and maybe meet some new friends or have a girl’s night out with our old ones in the process. Swapping is social, sustainable, and stylish.

If you’re hosting a swap, anywhere in the world, list your swap for FREE by creating a free account at Swap.com (use Facebook Connect to do this in one click!), and then fill out the List a Swap form. You can link to your group or event page on Facebook, your Meetup, your Eventbrite page, or your own website!

If you’re looking for a swap near you, go to  Find a Swap and browse the listings. (Bear with us — since we just launched about 24 hours ago, there are only a handful of events, but we know for a fact there will be hundreds more soon!)

And, if you’re inspired to organize your own swap this summer or fall, but don’t know where to start, stay tuned: our Swapaholics e-book will be available in June. We’ve been saying this for years: Swapping really is the new Shopping!

Battery Swap Stations Help Extend The Reach of Electric Vehicles

By
Carleton
Published: May 16, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Better Place Electric CarOver the last few years there has been tremendous progress towards making electric cars and hybrid vehicles more practical and commonplace here in the states. Unfortunately one issue that engineers are constantly struggling with is the long time it takes to recharge the batteries in these cars. Unlike filling up a traditional gas-guzzler at the pump, refueling electric or hybrid car can take many hours, making the prospect of travel far away from home a dicey proposition.

To remedy this situation Better Place, an Israel-based company aiming at developing more efficient electric vehicle charging methods, has developed a a prototype automated battery exchange statiot that will swap uncharged batteries for newly charged ones automatically. The swapping takes place at a bay station without the driver even having to get out of the car and takes approximately two minutes! This new prototype aims to ensure that drivers will be able to venture far and wide away from their home charging unit and just goes to show once again the many benefits that swapping has and how it can save everyone time, money and energy.

Here’s a look at the process of swapping out batteries by Better Place:

What do you think of Better Place’s battery swap stations? Could this be what brings electric cars to the masses? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.

(Photo Courtesy of Better Place)

Swap4schools Stories: Interview with Lauren Skilling

By
Swap
Published: May 17, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, Swap4SchoolsTags: , ,
Lauren Skilling's Classroom

Lauren Skilling's Classroom: "I love that each day I come in to school to see little faces looking at me with eagerness and a desire to learn new things."

Time to time, we like to check in with the teachers who have participated in our Swap4Schools book donation program. In the few short months we’ve been running this campaign,  Swap fans have donated thousands of much-needed books to teachers in nearly every state (thank you!). With the school year coming to a close, we’d like to highlight another teacher with a great story tell.

This month we talk to Lauren Skilling, a teacher from Moultonborough, New Hampshire (that’s her adorable kindergarten class in the photo to the left) to learn little bit more about her experience with Swap4schools.

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Swap: Where and what do you teach? How long have you been a teacher?

Lauren Skilling: I teach kindergarten at Moultonborough Central School, in Moultonborough, New Hampshire.  This is my fifth year teaching, but it is my second year teaching kindergarten.

Swap: What’s your favorite thing about being a teacher?

LS:I love that each day I come in to school to see little faces looking at me with eagerness and a desire to learn new things.  Their smiles of success are priceless.

Swap: How did you hear about the Swap4Schools initiative? Are you already a regular swapper?

LS: I heard about Swap4Schools from Jeff Bennett.  I was not a regular swapper, but when Jeff explained the program to me, I was eager to become a member.

Q.  How many donations did you receive? What have been some of your favorites so far?

LS: My class has received six book donations so far.  I am still new to the process, but was pleasantly surprised when a package arrived that I thought would be one book, but instead had five books.  Such a treat!  Most of the books that I have listed on my want list accompany a science program that I was recently trained in, and so it is wonderful to have great books to read as part of the lessons.

Swap: What has been the impact of the donations in your classroom and your school?

LS: I hadn’t planned on telling my students about the program, but when our first book arrived the day after Earth Day it seemed very fitting to explain how the book had come to us.  The kids were so excited to learn that people we did not know wanted to add to our classroom library, and that the book had come all the way from Colorado.  The arrival of the book led to further discussion about the importance of reusing and reducing.  When the second package arrived the kids were beyond excited to see what the books were, to read them, and to learn where they had come from.  And the fact the California was even further away made them even happier.

My students also enjoy writing a thank you note to the person who donates to us.  It is a great way to reinforce their writing skills, but also allows us to express our gratitude for these kind donations.

Swap:  What do you think the possibilities of a program like this are – For schools, for students, and for others?

LS: I think this program is a wonderful way for people to take things they no longer find a use for and put them to good use.  Today many schools are facing budget cuts, and this program provides teachers with an additional means of gathering goods that will positively impact their students’ learning without having to ask for additional funds from the school.

As a relatively new teacher of young learners, who learn considerably from having books read to them, it is awesome to have a means of increasing my classroom library without my own out of pocket expense.

Ever since receiving our first donation, I have spread the word about Swap4Schools.  I have been encouraging the teachers that I work with, as well as teachers I take courses with, to participate in this program.  I think the possibilities for this program are huge, and I think it will grow to be a very powerful resource for teachers.

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If you’re interested in learning more about Swap4Schools, click here to learn how to donate or here to sign up your school.

Behind each donation, is a great story and we aim to let those stories be heard.  If you’re a teacher, librarian, administrator or a donor who wants to tell you’re Swap4Schools story, we’d love to hear them. You can write them in the comments below, or share them on our Facebook Wall.

Live More Sustainably This Spring With Five Easy Swaps

By
Carleton
Published: May 24, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Spring flowersWe all love swapping for the time and money it saves us, but there are other benefits to trading as well. Swapping is extremely ecologically friendly! By swapping for an item instead of buying the item new, you’re helping save a great deal of natural resources and energy. There are plenty of other simple swaps you can make to help create a more sustainable future. Here are five easy ways to have a positive effect on the environment this Spring:

1. Utilize Carpools & Rideshares

Avoiding cars and other CO2 producing vehicles by walking or biking is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, but sometimes it just isn’t practical for longer trips. It would take hours just to walk to a grocery store located 12 miles away! Consider being greener when traveling longer distances by utilizing carpools or ride shares. If more people share rides, less CO2 is produced and less energy is used. Start a carpool at work or check out Zimride, the online ride sharing community we’ve previously talked about.

2. Shop Local at Farmer’s Markets

Live more sustainably by swapping where you get your food! Farmer’s markets are almost always more eco-friendly than grocery stores and you can almost always find some good, organic produce. The food at farmer’s markets is often sold directly by the farmers who produced it, meaning it took less energy to ship and to store the food. These markets are frequently cheaper and can be a lot of fun. If there aren’t any farmer’s markets in your area, look into a Community Supported Agriculture program that allows you to have fruits and vegetables shipped directly to your house from local farms.

Spring gardening3. Start Your Own Garden

Better yet, get truly local food by growing your own fruits and vegetables! Depending on your home and location you might not be able to plant everything you want or need, but even the smallest garden can make a big difference in creating a more sustainable lifestyle.

4. Compost Your Waste

If you do start a garden, make it even greener by starting your own compost system. By collecting your organic waste, such as food scraps, and putting it into a compost bin, you are creating your own nutrient-rich organic soil. This reduces waste and provides you with a tremendous resource of high quality soil for your new garden.

5. Collect Rainwater for Reuse

How is setting up a rainwater collection system green you ask? Well, water is essential for any yard or garden. The most sustainable source of water is rain. Unfortunately, mother nature rarely does as we ask and we can’t rely on a regular schedule of rain to keep our yards or gardens thriving. Swap using precious water from the tap with collecting rainwater into a basin that you can later use to water your plants. It will save you money and energy, and best of all it’s extremely environmentally friendly.

What other swaps have you and your family made in your lives to promote sustainability and a greener lifestyle? Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

(Photos by Richard Bitting & Daryl Mitchell)

Earn Mailing Labels by Inviting Friends to Swap With You

By
Ryan
Published: May 20, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, SwappingTags: , , , , , , ,

Circle of FriendsWe all agree – Swapping is more fun when you can swap stuff with your friends! So we’re making it more rewarding for you to invite your friends to swap items with you on Swap.com. Now when you invite your friends to join Swap.com, for every FIVE friends who create a Swap.com account, you’ll earn ONE free Swap.com mailing label.

It’s even easier to invite your friends when you link your Facebook account to your Swap.com account. When you login through Facebook connect, you can:

  • Discover your friends’ recommendations for movies, books, games, and music
  • Explore your friends’ wants and haves in the media categories that interest you
  • Share your swap activities with your friends to increase your swapportunities

In order to track your progress towards earning your FREE mailing labels you MUST invite your friends and family through our Invite a Friend page. From this page you have the option to invited friends through you Facebook account, web mail account or personal address book.

Take the following example to see how well this new Swap.com perk works out for you: You have 200 friends in your address book or Facebook account, and you invite all of them to join Swap.com. 15 of them create their own Swap.com accounts. That means 3 FREE Swap.com mailing labels for you, plus the fun of having 15 of your friends to swap books, movies, video games, and music with. Good stuff, right?

Invite your friends now to enjoy Swap.com with you.

Swap of the Day: McDonald’s UK Swaps Cashiers for Computers

By
Ryan
Published: May 19, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

McDonalds RestaurantUK customers at America’s favorite fast food restaurant may be in for a surprise next time they stop in for a tasty Big Mac or kid friendly Happy Meal. European McDonald’s chain restaurants are in preparation to swap their staff of cashiers with a host of touch screen terminals, eliminating approximately 7,000 jobs in the process.

With the new touch screen automated system customers can conveniently select from the menu and pay for their meal. The new terminals will also be swapping out the use of cash for payments, relying on customers to pay directly by credit or debit card only.

The new terminals will help the fast food chain increase efficiency by cutting down on ordering time, but it seems the move lacks a certain personal touch. For years McDonald’s restaurants has been known for their “service with a smile” approach to ordering food, encouraging consumers to swap items within their order with the staff to give their meal a personal spin.

No news yet on whether the new terminals are headed for to North America.

What do you think of McDonald’s swapping their staff of cashiers for automated ordering stations? Let us know your thoughts on Facebook or in the comments section below!

(Photo by ChicagoGeek)

Swap of the Day: UK Doctors Swap Scalpels for Bicycles

By
Carleton
Published: May 23, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , ,

CyclistThree British doctors are swapping out their scrubs for cycling shorts and pedaling across France to raise money for the Help For Heroes charity. Jeremy Collyer, Ken Sneddon and Paul Norris, all from Queen Victoria Hospital in England, are participating in the fundraiser to help injured British service men and women get the proper care they need.

The three cyclists who are trading in their every day routine for a once in a lifetime ride starting at Headley Court near Epsom, UK on June 15.  Seven days and 640 miles later, the undoubtedly exhausted doctors will find themselves at the end of their ride in Nice, France. To learn more and to track their progress, check out their ride website.

The event is part of a longstanding tradition of outreach and aid that can be traced back to Sir Archibald McIndoe of Queen Victoria Hospital.  During World War II, Sir Archibald McIndoe worked hard to provide plastic surgery for those injured in combat.

Swapping for such an honorable cause always makes our hearts warm!

(Photo by: Don DeBold)

Swap of the Day: Turn Your Spare Room Into A Hotel Room

By
Sarah
Published: June 7, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Spare bedroom swappingHotels can often be expensive and impersonal.  And while that is fine for a night or two, why pay a high price for a so-so experience when there is a cheaper, homier option for your vacation dwellings? The Swap team happened to stumble on the super cool Airbnb, a site that just might make travelers rethink how they go about booking rooms for stay.

The site allows members to swap extra space in their home for an extra income stream by listing available space, be it a spare bedroom or a full house, into a temporary rental location. Renters can set available dates and a price on their property and then receive requests  from potential tenants. The site facilitates booking an allows members to trade-in the boring hotel shuffle for a unique, one of a kind B&B experience.

If you’re looking to book a room through the Airbnb community you’ll simply need to enter in a location as well as check in and check out dates to find the available deals  From there you can browse a variety of rental space options that people around the world have listed as available in their homes. Prices vary from area to area but on the whole the penny saving traveler will be pleased to find that there are many options that are much cheaper than typical hotels.

Much like Swap.com, Airbnb has recently utilized Facebook to allow members to find reviews and recommendations from friends and family using the service.

How great, a travel site that not only appeals to my cheap side, but also allows me to swap my standard vacation for a more interesting vacation experience.  Just imagine the people you can meet!

(Photo by: Brian on Flickr)

Swap of the Day: Get Your Own Private Driver

By
Sarah
Published: June 6, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Black private carDitch the taxi – swap your regular ride and arrive at your destination in style with your very own (temporarily at least) private driver.  How you ask?

Thanks to Uber, private drivers are no longer just for the upper echelon of society. Uber is the VIP private driver service that allows members to request a car from any mobile phone via text message or mobile app.  Minutes later a sleek black car appears at your doorstop to pick you up and drive you to wherever you please.

Paying is even easier, as the service just charges the ride, tip included, straight to your credit card on file.  And, it’s not as outrageously expensive as you might think either!

Sadly, the on demand black car service is only currently available in San Francisco and New York for now, but we’re sure hoping they expand soon!

(Photo by Ed Callow)

Paving the Way for Local Swapping Opportunities

By
Ryan
Published: May 26, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, SwappingTags: , , , , , , ,

Find A Local Swap EventNow more than ever it’s important to remember that swapping opportunities can happen all around you. Ever wonder which members of your local community are on Swap.com, trading haves and wants for items all over the country? Wouldn’t it be great if you could see all your neighbors on Swap.com to see what’s on their have and want lists so you could organize some offline swapping?

With the new Swap.com local you can now find and connect with swappers that live in your local community through dedicated pages for towns and cities across the U.S. Swap.com Local enables our online community to easily connect and swap in their actual neighborhood, connecting members with the community already swapping around them! Find local swappers, swapping events and media items to trade all in your neighborhood! Here’s what Swap.com CEO Jeff Bennett had to add about the all-new Swap.com local feature:

Swapping is the ultimate peer-to-peer social commerce activity. What drives this activity is friends & neighbors coming together to swap things they no longer need, or are willing to share, for things they want. From books to recipes to tools & lawn mowers, people often swap their stuff within their trusted local community

The goal of Swap.com Local is to enhance swapping opportunities on a hyper-local level and to make it easier to swap your stuff amongst trusted neighbors and friends. So say you live in Pittsburgh, PA, and want to organize an swapping event to trade you items. With the new Swap.com local our Swap.com event listings you can now list your event, find out which members are around your community and invite them to share in the swapping fun!

Find your town or city in the new Swap.com local directory today to connect with neighbors and friends already taking part in the swapping movement!

Swap of the Day: Clipping and Swapping for a Cause

By
Sarah
Published: May 27, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Coupon clipping swapCoupons always remind me of my grandmother.  She used cut them all out of the Sunday papers and arrange them alphabetically in a special coupon box that she took with her on every shopping trip.  For the longest time, I thought this strange little ritual was something only my grandmother and her friends took part in.

Turns out that couponing is making a comeback in a big way (TLC’s Extreme Couponing comes to mind).  And why shouldn’t it?  Coupons save money and in the case of the Cape Clippers Coupon Swap can be used for a good cause!

The Cape Clippers not only allow members to request and swap unwanted coupons, they also donate the little money savers to U.S. military personnel overseas.  The military personnel can use the coupons beyond the expiration date which ensures that they get all the savings donated! At Swap.com we can’t think of a more fantastic way to give back to our servicemen and women than by swapping and passing the savings onto them!

The group is also working to get donations to local food pantries via the clipping abilities of the members. To learn more about clipping for a cause, check out the great article featured in Cape Cod Today.

(Photo by: MissMessie)

Swap of the Day: Swapping Seats on Jet Blue

By
Ryan
Published: June 2, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , , ,

Swapping airline seatsToday’s Swap of the Day post comes to us courtesy of Swap.com co-founder Mark Hexamer about an executed swap his family devised on their way back from vacation:

A little over a month ago I was traveling back from Orlando, FL with the family when I was reminded of the power of the swap.

Anyone who has traveled through the Orlando Airport around the Easter holiday knows what an absolute zoo it can be. Between families visiting grandparents, vacationers trying to thaw out from the winter, college kids on Spring break and young families visiting Disney it has to be the busiest airport in the world.

My wife and I gave ourselves a good two hours to make our way to the gates with kids in two. But between a 45 minute check-in line and an hour at the security gates our cushion quickly dissolved. This was especially problematic since we learned at check-in that all five of us (including our 2-year-old, 4-year-old, and 6-year-old) were all in different rows and the airline could only change our seats at the gate. But by the time we got to the gate the airplane was boarding and refused to make the changes.

Uh oh. Some passengers are going to be awfully surprised with who they are sitting next to. Pass the wipes and the binky! Clearly seat swapping would have to save the day.

The situation did not look good – for starters we were we all in different rows and the plane was filled with families that did not want to be split up. On top of that we didn’t have the best seats to trade other passengers. Any takers on the middle seat last row next to the bathroom? It was a swap job fit for Swap.com’s trade algorithm.

Turns out we had the next best thing, Jet Blue flight attendants to the rescue! With some Southern charm, the negotiation skills of a union leader and the promise of vouchers and free snacks all three kids were soon sitting next to their parents. Kids were happy, parents were happy, voucher and snack-laden passengers were happy. It was a win-win-win situation.

In the end, it turns out the day was saved by a perfectly executed 3-way swap.

____________

Got a good real life-swapping story for us? Send your tales of trading to swapoftheday@swap.com so we can share your story here on the Swap.com blog!

(Photo by: Binder.donedat on Flickr)

Swapping Should Be FREE – So No More Transaction Fees

By
Ryan
Published: June 1, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Updates, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hand Putting Deposit Into Piggy BankSwap.com has helped our members save nearly $13 million by swapping for items instead of purchasing them new. We have expanded rapidly in the last year including the introduction of Swap.com Mobile, Swap Local and Swap Events, helping us to expand in many ways in the U.S., and now abroad. Today we are on our way to building the “world’s largest swap marketplace” thanks to all of you swapping with us both online and offline.

So when you take a step back and think about it: swapping a book with your neighbor or online with a swapper across the country are essentially the same thing. We believe Swap.com can play a vital role in enabling both of these kinds of swaps, but in order to do so we can not charge transaction fees for swapping because it is not the way it naturally works. Swapping is a social activity where the only “cost” associated is the transfer of an item that was once in your possession to another. Swapping is essentially meant to be free, so swapping on Swap.com will be free from now on.

And we’re hoping that making swapping free on Swap.com will help you save even more money! We want to continue to expand rapidly, because the more swappers that are part of our community the better the swap opportunities we can create for everyone!

Like what you hear? Invite your friends and family to join the swapping movement! Because with swapping, the more the merrier! Every friend you invite who signs up for a Swap.com account will count towards free Swap.com shipping labels for you (5 friend sign-ups = 1 free mailing label).

Happy Swapping!

The Swap.com team

(Photo by: SeniorLiving.org)

Five Things You Can Do To Swap Your Old VHS Tapes

By
Carleton
Published: June 3, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green Ideas, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , , ,

Recycling old VHS TapesIn the 80’s and 90’s many of us amassed huge collections of our favorite movies and TV shows on VHS. They were lots of fun, but with DVDs and Blue-Ray discs now ruling the home video market it’s hard to know what to do with all these tapes sitting in our basement. Selling or donating your old tapes can be tough to do, so why not swap them for something new and useful! While we don’t support trading them here on Swap.com there are still many ways to reuse those old VHS tapes, here are five of our favorite VHS crafting projects:

1. Turn them into Bookends – There are all sorts of fun craft projects you can do with your old tapes in order to re-purpose them into something that’s useful around the house. One of the simplest projects is to turn them into nice looking bookends. All it takes is a little glue and an old CD and you’ll have a nice way to hold up your books (or old VHS tapes!)

2. Make a bag – Everyone could use another bag to haul their stuff around, why not make one out of your old VHS tape? The tape ribbon inside your cassette makes for great raw material you can use to knit, crochet and sew together into most anything. A bag is a great way to start but there are plenty of other uses for it.

3. Make Jewelry – Tape ribbon can also be easily fashioned into fun jewelry like bracelets or brooches. All it takes is some basic macrame skills and before you now it you’ll have some funky and hip accessories for your favorite outfit.

4. Make Decorations – Tape ribbon also works as a great stand-in for gift wrap ribbon. It’s elasticity and glossy finish makes it the ideal way to top off any package colored with blacks, whites or grays.

5. Make a Fly Swatter – Keep the bugs away this summer with a homemade fly swatter that you can fashion out of a few old tapes and a plastic stick. Those bugs will never know what hit them!

Do you have any other recommendations on how to reuse your old VHS tapes? Let us know how you’ve swapped you old tapes for new creations on our Facebook page or in the comments below!

(Photo by: Rob Pearce)

Arizona Residents Swap Together at Local Event

By
Carleton
Published: June 8, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Events, SwappingTags: , , , , , , ,

Phoenix AZ swappingLast week swapping enthusiasts converged onto the Phoenix Marriott Mesa Hotel & Convention Center for the annual convention of the National Association of Trade Exchanges, a group devoted to helping people swap goods and services.

Over 700 business attended the event who swapped their merchandise and services with other attendees without using money. Attendees swapped all types of items ranging small goods like eyeglasses to the larger services like a ride in a fighter jet.

Local events like this can really take swapping to the next level, allowing anyone to walk away with exactly what they want and cutting down on other costs like shipping and packaging. Best of all – when you swap you’re often able to find incredible deals, obtaining things you want for a fraction of their retail price!

Swap.com is all about these kind of local swap meetups, which why we’ve introduced our very own Swap.com Events listings where you can find and list local swapping events in your city or town. If you’re interested in organizing or attending a swap event in your area head over to events.swap.com today and get started!

(Photo by: Neeta Lind)

Swap of the Day: Two Retailers Swap Brick & Mortar Stores

By
Carleton
Published: June 9, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , , , ,

We all know the economic and ecological benefits when we swap items instead of buying something new. The savings swapping provides aren’t just individuals, corporations big and small are finding ways to protect the bottom line by trading as well.

The latest example of this comes from General Growth Properties, Inc. and Macerich Co., two retail companies that have both agreed to a property swap that will benefit both companies financially. The swap is a deal which includes two malls for six big box retail spaces, where Macerich will take on ownership of two Phoenix-area malls (Superstition Springs Mall and Arrowhead Towne Center), in exchange from General Growth who will receive six retail properties whose locations include Chicago, San Diego, Tuscon, Utah and two in California.

By swapping these properties these two companies are both better off, both reaping big benefits by swapping instead of buying new. You can reap the benefits of swapping too, by adding books, movies, music and video games to your lists of haves and wants and trading today!

(Photo by Zol87 on Flickr)

Swapper of the Month: The Well Traveled Ksjcbeck

By
Ryan
Published: June 13, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swapper of the Month, SwappingTags: , , , ,

The team at Swap.com has the privilege of meeting and interacting with some of the most awesome and genuine people you could ever have the pleasure of knowing, both online and off. That’s why we are shining the spotlight on some of our best and brightest community members with our Swapper of the Month feature! Without further ado here is our Swapper of the Month for June, Ksjcbeck from way down in Alabama!

How long have you been a Swapper? How many trades have you made so far?

Karen: I joined Swap in March of 2009 soon after transferring back to the land of Krispee Kreme from an Army base in Germany where my husband was stationed. We lived overseas for about nine years – Germany (3 times) and in Naples, Italy as well. But I didn’t start swapping til November of that year, I was too busy dealing with culture shock-being back in the states after living in Europe for so long. Right now I’m awaiting swap #450 to go through!

What types of items do you trade the most on Swap.com?

K: I’d say probably 90% of my swaps are trading books, I have a little over a thousand in my “book room” in the basement. Being my first time living in the south I’ve had the opportunity to discover some wonderful Southern authors – Kathryn Stockett, Mark Childress, Rick Bragg and Cassandra King just to name a few. I also love mysteries, but not the gory stuff, just where they find a body and then solve the crime – e.g. Janet Evanovich, Sue Grafton, Tamar Myers and M C Beaton.

What is the most prized possession you’ve received in a swap?
K: That’s a tough one! I once got an old 1988 mystery that I read years ago and wanted my own copy. I also received Crazy in Alabama and then was able to get it autographed by Mark Childress!

If you were deserted on an island, what three items would you take with you?
K: Oh, that’s easy! My Nintendo Gameboy (complete with Dr. Mario), my Italian Gaggia cappuccino machine (I’m kind of a coffee snob… I only drink my own) and a pallette of books (really enjoying my ‘Southern author binge’!)

If you could be anyone or anything for one day, who or what would you be and why?
K: I would be me, RETIRED! Then I could read and swap all day (and harass Mick on the forums!) I’m just really looking forward to planting a garden, reading hundreds of books a year, traveling (hopefully back to Europe), spending more time with my husband!

Thanks for the awesome interview Karen and congrats on this prestigious honor!

So how can you be picked as our next Swapper of the Month?

Are you worthy of wearing the crown? There are several ways we select this sacred honor every month, all you have to do is be an active swapper! To be eligible for this majestic title, Swappers:

  • Must have completed at least 5 trades in the previous month.
  • Who have completed 20 trades in the last month are automatically entered!
  • Who have more than 500 trades completed are automatically qualified!

If you like you can even email us at swapperofthemonth@swap.com and tell us why you think you deserve to be our next Swapper of the Month. From there we’ll send you some questions and you get chance at fame and glory for a whole month!

Swapping Tunes LIVE With Turntable.fm

By
Carleton
Published: June 10, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Music, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , ,

Swapping music with Turntable.fmMusic fans just love the feeling they get when they can share their new favorite song with a friend or loved one. There are a lot of websites that focus on new music discovery, but none up until now that have captured the experience of swapping favorite tunes with someone in real time. Now thanks to Turntable.fm you can swap tracks and DJing duties with friends in real time!

This new site couldn’t be easier to use. Once you login with your Facebook account you’re able to join any number of virtual rooms where you can take turns playing songs at a series of turntables and chatting with friends. The service has an impressive selection of tunes to choose from or you can upload your own DJ tracks for free. You’re even able to join any of the pre-existing rooms or create a new one for just you and your friends. It’s the perfect way to connect with friends while swapping your favorite tracks.

The Swap.com team has been holding court and spinning hits in our very own Swapping Tunes – Swap.com room, so come join us for some DJ fun! Head on over to Turntable.fm to create your account and start trading songs with your friends today!

Swapping Takes Spain By Storm

By
Carleton
Published: June 15, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Events, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Swapping in SpainAlthough we mostly talk about the exciting ways people are embracing the swapping lifestyle here in in America, the desire to swap your goods and services knows no borders. The swap movement can be found all around the world. Take Spain for example, where in metropolis of Barcelona swapping events have become quite common, particularly in the Sagrada Familia neighborhood.

Swapping events have become a regular attraction for the city’s young and old alike. People have been known to come from miles around for the chance to trade their goods with others. Much like Swap.com, attendees will often setup 3-way swaps, to ensure that more people are able to walk away with exactly what they’re after. Best of al it all takes place for free, just like on our site, because swapping isn’t about exchanging money, it’s about exchanging things you have.  Take a look at this short video to see the Spanish swappers in action.

We’re just excited about swapping events as everyone in the video, which is why we’ve setup our very own Swap.com events listings where you can go to find and host swap meets in your local area.

(Photo by: Frank Kovalchek)

Preview: The New-Look of Swap.com

By
Ryan
Published: June 14, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swap UpdatesTags: , , , , , ,

It’s been awhile since we’ve been able to add some much needed polish and an updated look to your favorite swapping site. Well today we’re going behind the curtain for a sneak peak at the new look of Swap.com:

Updated look of Swap.com

The updated look of Swap.com - Logged in Homepage

You’ll notice that most of the changes are purely cosmetic to give a fresh face to our beloved site. The updated header changes reflect the new addition of Swap.com Events listings and the all-new… well I think I’ll stop right there (that’s for another blog post). But you’re interested in what’s coming NEXT you can always check out the preview when we launch these updates.

For a full preview of the update click on any one of the preview thumbnails below:

The updated look of Swap.com - Logged in Homepage

The updated look of Swap.com - Friend Profile view

The updated look of Swap.com - Item page view

What do you think of the new look and feel of Swap.com? Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

Swap of the Day: Racing Stars Swap Rides At Watkins Glen

By
Ryan
Published: June 16, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , , , ,

Lewis Hamilton swapping ridesYesterday racing stars collided at Watkins Glen, NY, to swap stories and rides for the day, as Tony Stewart of NASCAR fame met with Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton to trade cars on the historic track.

The two took turns driving each others cars, which are vastly different vehicles, NASCAR being the familiar stock car type vehicle most Americans are familiar with and the F1 speeder with an open-wheel body and external cockpit.

Check out the video below to see the two racing stars exchanging in some ride swapping:

So now the only questions is, which would you rather swap your ride for: a powerful NASCAR stock car or a sleek F1 racer? Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

(Photo by: Mark Kent)

Swap of the Day: Schools Swap Food for Healthier Options

By
Carleton
Published: June 20, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , , ,

Swapping food for healthier optionsSwapping can be a great way to improve many aspects of your daily life. Whether it’s trading items around the house, or swapping out bad habits in your daily routine, applying the swapping philosophy can improve almost any area of your life. And it’s stories like this that we love to share as a source of inspiration for those looking to swap what they have to get what they want.

Recently, Los Angeles area public schools have taken to the swapping ideology by trading traditional lunch time staples like corn dogs, pizza and chocolate milk for healthier, low-fat options like California sushi rolls and spinach tortellini in butternut squash sauce. Swapping cafeteria items like chicken nuggets for a new variety of vegetarian and ethnic foods not only provides for a better sampling of cuisine it also teaches students about the importance of eating healthier.

The new options the schools have swapped for are designed to grab children’s attention without relying on sugary or greasy foods. It’s also a great reminder that healthy eating and dieting isn’t about less but more about swapping out bad foods for better foods.

What foods have you swapped in your diet recently? Are you eating more healthy fats like salmon and avocado or simply cutting out unhealthy habits? Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

(Photo by: Catherine Bulinski)

Swap of the Day: How Swapping Benefits Your Health

By
Carleton
Published: June 22, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Swapping food for a healthier lifeStart swapping for a healthier lifestyle! No, we don’t mean that swapping media items or clothing benefits your health (although it may make you happier, which surely has it’s own health advantages).  But what we’re talking about are the simple, everyday swaps you can do to start on the path of healthy eating habits.

Rather than going about trying to lose weight by cutting back on what you eat (often tough and ineffective), a better approach to eating and living healthier is to apply the swapping lifestyle to your food choices. Instead of battling hunger, simply trade in unhealthy food for healthier options!  Or as the ever popular new diet books say, Eat This, Not That!

Eat This, Not That serves as a great source for those looking to better their nutritional habits.  Along with providing caloric information for major restaurants across the country, the books offer up suggestions and tips on healthier alternatives to unhealthy counterparts.

Don’t know where to start? Registered dietitian Rebecca S. Reeves recommends some of the following food swaps:

Instead of:
Lattes made with low-fat milk and whipped cream. When you add whipped cream, your relatively healthy beverage becomes very high calorie.

Consider this:
Lattes made with nonfat milk and no whipped cream. If you are watching your blood pressure, consider ordering decaf because caffeine may temporarily increase your blood pressure levels.

Instead of:
High-fat potato chips, tortilla chips, or pretzels. Many of these are also high in salt, giving them a double whammy if you are concerned about your blood pressure as well as your weight.

Consider this:
Corazonas tortilla chips, potato chips, and oatmeal squares, which are infused, with heart-healthy Corowise plant sterols. Corowise has been shown to decrease “bad” or LDL cholesterol in numerous clinical studies.

What food swaps have you created in your daily life? Have you recently traded in a boring bag of potato chips for trail mix to go along with your lunch? Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

(Photo by: Klaus Post)

Introducing the New and Expanded Swap.com

By
Ryan
Published: June 17, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swap Updates, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Swap.com is building the world’s largest swap market with your help. With over 1 million members already swapping millions of items, Swap.com is THE place to connect with friends and swap the stuff you have for the stuff you want.

Right now, you can swap books, video games, movies, and music online; you can find swappers in your area to see what they have and want; you can donate to schools; and you can go to one of our awesome local swap events. More swapping opportunities means, well, more swaps.

This is why we are excited to announce the launch of a redesigned and expanded website today. We are thrilled to share these changes with our community. This is the start of our global expansion, not only into new regions but also into limitless swap categories. This is why you will see a “Coming Soon” page for our soon-to-be-released Swap Market.

In the very near future, you will be able to swap anything with just your trusted network or with anyone around the world. The team is hard at work building the new Swap Market, so stay tuned for future announcements. In the meantime, “Like” our Swap Market page and share what you want with your friends. In return, we’ll give you VIP early access to the Market as soon as it is available.

New Look and Feel

The NEW look of Swap.com

For our members who have come to love swapping media with others, no need to worry. If that’s all you want to swap, Swap Media will always be there for you…with no fees. However, if you are like us and have mountains of stuff where you live, the Swap Market will give you the opportunity to swap that stuff too.

You’ll also probably notice the fresh new look of the site first, designed to help users find what they’re looking for fast, and to connect easily with friends and other swappers on the site through our enhanced Facebook integration. More importantly, you’ll also notice enhanced navigation throughout the site, featuring direct access to our primary services: the Swap Media Market, Swap Events, Swap Local, and Swap4Schools.

Remember, if you “Like” the Swap Market page on Facebook, you’ll get early access to this Swap.com enhancement as soon as it’s available!

Come check out the new evolution of Swap.com today, and let us know what you think by stopping by our blog, our Facebook page, or by sending us an email.

Swap of the Day: Uncovering A Delicious Form of Swapping

By
Sarah
Published: June 28, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The DayTags: , , , , , ,

Homemade food swappingIn my black and white view of the world, people can be easily separated into two neat categories: those that eat to live, and those that live to eat.  As an overenthusiastic member of the latter category, the concept of the food swapping trend that has been emerging absolutely thrills me.

The idea behind locally held food swaps is simple: save money, meet new people, get delightful homemade food.  Participants  make whatever food item they please, and package it with the appropriate labels.  At the food swap, samples are set out for people to try the items before committing to the trade.  Once the food has been tasted and decisions have been made, everyone selects the items they would like to bring home and the swaps are carried out.

The great part about food swapping is if you brought enough food for say seven individual swaps you could potentially walk away with seven different meals, taking care of all of your cooking for the week.  Imagine all the mouthwatering possibilities!

Ever participated in a homemade food swap? Let us know in the comments section or on our Facebook page, we love the concept and would love to hear how your local swap went.

(Photo by: Joshua Blount)

New Resource for Gen Y-er’s Sharing for Survival

By
Sarah
Published: June 23, 2011Posted in: Community, Featured Posts, Swap Spotlight, SwappingTags: , , , , , ,

Sharing and swappingAs a college student who is inching ever closer to that dreaded graduation date one day at a time, the reality of entering the job market during a recession is always looming in the back of my mind.   The only consolation being of course, that I am not alone in this, as my entire generation struggles to learn how to navigate the new “normal” of job hunting and survival.

Enter the aptly named ebook “Share or Die” from Shareable.net, a collection of essays giving voice to Generation Y, documenting the lives of recent grads. Containing nearly 30 essays, cartoons, instructional how-to’s, and guides from contributors of Shareable.net, Share or Die is the first ebook of its kind. It’s the complete resouce for post-college grads and others looking to adopt a more collaborative lifestyle.

Share or Die ebook“A new economy based in collaboration rather than competition is growing, and young people are at the cutting edge. Unsatisfied with their parents’ communities, 20-somethings are using technology to build an entire infrastructure of social entrepreneurship dedicated to using less and sharing more. Share or Die chronicles some of these projects and gives readers the tools they need to join this new economy.”

There you have it, the concept of swapping and sharing is the way of the future! Check out the essays as a free e-book at Shareable.net or download as a full PDF for only $15.

How are you becoming more collaborative in your consumption? What other online resources have you found recently? Let us know on our Facebook page or in the comments section below!

(Photo by: Carlos Maya)

Green Ideas: Neighbors Set Up Swap Shop at Local Landfill

By
Carleton
Published: June 27, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Green IdeasTags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Raleigh North Carolina Swap ShopResidents near Wilmington, NC have found a great new way to get free stuff for their homes and help the environment at the same time. City officials have set up a “swap shop” near the landfill where local residents can leave behind household items they no longer need for anyone to take, free of charge.

The purpose of the Swap Shop is to encourage waste reduction through the practice of reusing items amongst the community, extending both the life of the items and the life of the area’s landfills. The program has already greatly reduced the amount of material simply thrown away that the landfill must process and allows residents to pick up items they need for a fraction of the cost. It’s a win-win for everyone. Many of the popular items swapped at the site include furniture, tools, gardening equipment, lamps and books.

All of this just goes to show that one man’s trash is (always) another man’s treasure. Local swappers reportedly love the ability the get rid of their old stuff while picking up something new that the need. The swap shops have proved so popular that their are plans to open four shops in other nearby locations.

Has your city or town established a local swapping program or swapping event? Let us know in the comments section or on our Facebook page, we’d love to feature them here on the Swapping Ideas blog!

(Photo by: The City of Raleigh)

Swap of The Day: LEGOLAND Employees Swap Their Boss’s Ride

By
Carleton
Published: July 8, 2011Posted in: Featured Posts, Swap Of The Day, SwappingTags: , , , , , , ,

Swapping volvo for LEGO carSwapping is a great way to save time and money, but it can also be a lot of fun. A perfect example of this is the prank the staff at LEGOLAND in Los Angeles, CA, pulled on their boss swapping out his Volvo SUV for one made entirely of LEGO bricks.

The LEGO car was made back in 2004, but employees only recently noticed how much it looked liked their boss’s car, making it a perfect match for swapping out for the vehicle look-alike. Because the LEGO car is made of 201,760 plastic pieces and weighs in at 2,934 pounds it couldn’t exactly be picked up and placed in the right parking spot. Instead a forklift was used to complete the swap! Take a look at this awesome swapping prank video for the manager’s surprised reaction:

Swap of the Day: CellSwapper.com Let’s You Swap Contracts

By
Carleton
Published: July 18, 2011Posted in: