Sharing Is Good: How to Save Money, Time and Resources Through Collaborative Consumption (17 page)

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Point system?
No.

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International?
Although the site is set up to serve those living in North America, it’s still possible for residents of other countries to Rehash. However, shipping costs often make international trades

difficult.

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Who pays for shipping?
Once a swap offer has been accepted, it’s up to the members to decide who pays the shipping.

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Insurance?
No. After a trade has been officially completed, both traders have the option to rate each other’s experiences. This feedback is used to develop a “Karma” rating for each member. A negative 98

Sharing is Good

karmic history is meant to deter other users from trading with

you.

Freecycle.org
— One of the oldest and most widely used grassroots organizations for giving and getting free stuff from your local community. Freecycle says its mission is to create “a worldwide gifting movement that reduces waste, saves precious resources & eases the burden on our landfills while enabling our members to benefit from the strength of a larger community.” Members are asked to join a

group that corresponds to their physical community. Within just a few minutes, it’s easy to create an offer to give something away or an ad asking for something you want. Groups are moderated by local

members, and optional rules can be adopted or not depending on

the group’s decision.

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Cost to join?
No.

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One-for-one sharing?
No. Freecycle members are welcome to request or offer as much or as little as they want. In fact, direct trades/barters are discouraged. Freecycle is meant to just be about giving stuff away for free.

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Point system?
No. However, if moderators receive multiple complaints about the same user, they may unsubscribe you from the

group.

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International?
Yes. Currently there are Freecycle groups in the United States and Canada.

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Who pays for shipping?
Freecycle is meant to facilitate peer-to-peer trades and sales only.

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Insurance?
No.

Craigslist.org
— This is the ultimate free classified site with categories for free stuff, shares, barters, sublets, garage sales, house swaps, tons of used stuff for sale, and more. In a theory, you could set yourself up with a job, an apartment, furniture, and a date all from this site in a matter of minutes and with no out-of-pocket cost.

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Cost to join?
No.

•
One-for-one sharing?
No.

•
Point system?
No.

•
International?
Yes. There are subcategories of Craigslist for hundreds of cities in the United States, Canada, and around the world.

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Who pays for shipping?
Craigslist is only intended as a forum for face-to-face sales and trades.

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Insurance?
No. It’s worth mentioning that given the massive number of categories and listings on Craigslist, fraud and scams

are quite common. It’s a good idea to stick to local trades where the item and its owner can be evaluated before agreeing to take it.

Trashbank.com
— Trashbank is a website where you can sell your items or services or barter, swap, and trade your items, services with other people.

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Cost to join?
No. There are no processing fees or other charges for using Trashbank.

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One-for-one sharing?
No. Since Trashbank offers barters, trades, and buying/selling, it’s possible to obtain items from a member

without making a direct trade.

•
Point system?
No.

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International?
Trading, buying, and selling through Trashbank is available only to individuals residing in the United States and Canada.

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Who pays for shipping?
Shipping details are usually displayed in the item/service detail section. Unless the trader/seller specifies who will pay for shipping, the buyer or trade requester will pay for shipping.

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Insurance?
Trashbank does not offer insurance, but does offer a two-sided review system. The company will take action on complaints of non-payment for a purchased item.

NeighborGoods.net
— Remember when, if you needed a ladder

or a cup of sugar, you just knocked on your neighbor’s front door 100

Sharing is Good

and asked to borrow it? NeighborGoods was founded on the idea

that real world connections create happier, healthier communities.

Using their modern Web platform, they make reaching out to your

neighbors safe and easy.

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Cost to join?
Borrowing and lending items on NeighborGoods is free of charge. Members may charge a deposit or a rental fee for

the use of their items, but NeighborGoods does not charge trans-

action fees. Members may choose to upgrade their account for

$9.99. Upgrading provides members with access to more items

and is optional.

•
One-for-one sharing?
No. NeighborGoods is about borrowing and lending things needed by the community, not bartering or direct trades.

•
Point system?
No.

•
International?
Yes. Although NeighborGoods is based in the United States, and that’s where the most active neighborhood

groups tend to be located.

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Who pays for shipping?
There is no long-distance sharing on NeighborGoods.

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Insurance?
No. NeighborGoods takes no responsibility for failed or less-than-perfect transactions. However, the company does give members tools to solve disputes. Peer ratings and comments are

among the primary review systems for both items and members.

If something doesn’t go well with someone, feedback is visible for other members to see when they’re deciding if they should share

with that person. Too many complaints about the same user may

trigger NeighborGoods to disable that person’s account.

SnapGoods.com
— An online platform that connects people who need things with neighbors and friends who are willing to lend them those things. SnapGoods lets you look for stuff posted by local

members, or you can limit it just to folks within your existing social networks for greater security.

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Cost to join?
Signing up for SnapGoods and posting and browsing goods is free. If you borrow something that makes use of the

SnapGoods secure payment system, you will be charged a small

fee on top of your reservation fee. The fee is $0.50 per reservation, plus 7 percent of the reservation fee.

•
One-for-one sharing?
No. SnapGoods is about borrowing and lending things needed by the community, not bartering or direct

trades.

•
Point system?
No.

•
International?
Yes. However, the company is based in New York City, and that’s where the majority of its members are located.

•
Who pays for shipping?
There is no long-distance sharing on SnapGoods.

•
Insurance?
SnapGoods allows users to specify a security deposit to cover potential loss or damages. What’s more, SnapGoods

backs up transactions between verified users with the SnapGoods

Guarantee. If something goes wrong, they guarantee that your goods will be repaired or replaced, plus they will provide you with a temporary replacement item for the few days it can take to patch things up.

us.zilok.com
— An online marketplace that allows individuals and professionals to list any kind of item, service, space, etc., they want to offer for rent to their community. Zilok is one of the only sharing services to display listings of all the items for rent in a given location along with their price, conditions and available dates, conveniently mapped around the location of the user.

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Cost to join?
Zilok is free to use as a renter. Creating an account is free, and using the site to rent something does not incur any cost (a retainer fee paid to Zilok is deducted from the rental price paid to the owner).

•
One-for-one sharing?
No. Zilok is about borrowing and lending things needed by the community, not bartering or direct trades.

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Sharing is Good

•
Point system?
No.

•
International?
Yes. Zilok is set up to serve residents of the United States, the Netherlands, and the UK.

•
Who pays for shipping?
Zilok facilitates face-to-face trades between people living in the same community, so there’s no shipping.

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Insurance?
For any rental transaction, whether online or in the real world, a rental contract or agreement should be established

between the owner and the renter to confirm the deal and its

conditions. This contract is available for display within the de-

scription of the items listed for rent. The consequences of an

incident are governed by this contract. Individuals are free to use the standard contract that Zilok provides, which includes all the essential clauses of a classic rental agreement.

SwapTreasures.com
— SwapTreasures is a bartering website

where members can set up online “stores” and auction off unwanted items in return for virtual currency. Points are then used to “purchase” items from other members.

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Cost to join?
No. SwapTreasures charges no fees; it does not cost anything to participate.

•
One-for-one sharing?
No. No giving is required and no purchase is necessary since some points are awarded just for signing up.

•
Point system?
Yes. The more popular a listing is, the more points will be offered for it. Points earned by giving away an item can

then be used to get things you want from other users on the site.

Normally, the best offer (highest points) on the item has the best chance to win the item, but the seller decides which offer to accept.

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International?
Yes.

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Who pays for shipping?
SwapTreasures recommends that all item owners pay for the shipping, so that all members can enjoy

the benefits of receiving the winning item at no cost. The Free

Shipping tag is specified on an item description if the owner is

willing to pay for the shipping.

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Insurance?
No. A user feedback rating is employed so members can see how reputable another user is. User feedback is divided into three types: positive, neutral, and negative. Points can be rewarded to item listers and/or winners in situations where SwapTreasures

has to step in to resolve a dispute.

BarterQuest.com
— No, it’s not another Facebook game. BarterQuest is a cashless trading platform designed for both individuals and businesses. Goods, services, and the use of real estate can be traded, from anyone to anyone, anywhere in the world.

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Cost to join?
No. Registration, membership, trading, and listing items is completely free for individuals. There is a one-time fee of $9.99 for members who wish to verify their payment accounts (a

requirement for active trading).

•
One-for-one sharing?
Not necessarily. While most transactions on the site involve trading an item and/or points for another item, it’s not required that you list something before making an offer.

Multi-party trades or transactions involving three or more users

are possible through the BarterQuest system.

•
Point system?
One point has a real-world value of one dollar.

Points can be used to equalize the value of trades. Members may

trade with or without points. Points earned through trades can be redeemed for cash.

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International?
Yes.

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Who pays for shipping?
The seller. When a trade for goods has been confirmed, the user is required to ship their item to the

shipping address of their trading partner within 72 hours, unless otherwise agreed by their trading partner.

•
Insurance?
No. BarterQuest asks members to alert them to disputes so that they can determine whether a trading partner has

violated the Terms of Use and should be sanctioned. Finally,

members are asked to detail any negative trading experience in

the trade feedback.

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Sharing is Good

U-Exchange.com
— A barter site with over 70,000 members that specializes in every type of trade, from books and clothes to dog walking and website design services. Businesses are welcome to

join and engage in B2B and B2C barters.

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Cost to join?
No. Thanks to advertising on the site, there are no commissions taken on trades, either.

•
One-for-one sharing?
No. U-Exchange is set up to facilitate direct trades, but multi-party trades are possible.

•
Point system?
No.

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International?
Yes. U-Exchange has barter categories for over 80 countries, although the most active countries are the United

States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.

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Who pays for shipping?
Members work out their own shipping arrangements for long-distance trades.

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Insurance?
No.

Tradeaway.com
— TradeAway provides the means for a business or person to acquire goods or services through a medium where cash is not a requirement for a transaction to take place.