Updated Swap Shop Rules - July 31, 2012

Due to the abuse that spammers, and to those who have persistently abused posting the swap shop system, we are now prohibiting placement of ads for any distributor network.  Examples are ACE, Scentsy, Avon, Denim Designs, etc.  Read more about the rule changes in the link below:

http://moswapshop.blogspot.com/p/missouri-swap-shop-rules.html

Thanks again for using the swap shop!

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SHO-ME HOME CRAFTS & FOOD

SHO-ME HOME CRAFTS & FOODS is designed to help network with home crafters of various backgrounds throughout the state of Missouri. Through this forum, we can feature items, compare marketing ideas, seek out promotional opportunities, and encourage one another.

If it is HOME-MADE, HAND-MADE, or HOME-GROWN, and if its from MISSOURI, then this is your opportunity to SHINE!

Just CLICK THIS LINK TO JOIN!!     https://www.facebook.com/groups/462238437127907/


SHO-ME HOME CRAFTS & FOODS IS A PART OF THE MISSOURI SWAP SHOP NETWORK

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ALERT! Special Announcement from The Missouri Swap Shop Network

Please do not post for sale or trade any items obtained though food stamps or WIC!  It is against the law!


It has once again been pointed out there is/has been a lot of baby cereal, food items and formula being posted on a number of our swap shops. Make sure it's legally sellable, meaning you haven't purchased them on food stamps or got it from WIC (better if you can provide a receipt of purchase). It is illegal to sell items purchased from either food stamps or WIC - just a reminder of something that people should know already!


If you think someone is abusing the WIC or Food Stamp program, you can call your local county office and report it or call the state office at (toll-free) 800-392-8209.

Advertise on the Missouri Swap Shop Network JUST CLICK HERE! Connect with all the counties in the MISSOURI SWAP SHOP NETWORK!! CLICK HERE!!

Swap Shop Helpful Hints and Tips

Here are some helpful hints and tips to make your swap shop experience a great one!

GENERAL USE

Items are not SOLD unless the item is picked up. Please do not mark anything SOLD unless the item is gone. Mark the item, PPU (Pending Pick Up) or Sold PPU. Then rather than marking the item Sold because it's gone, delete the post instead. This way, if someone else is interested they can be on a waiting list if the first person, doesn't show and you can move on to the next.

Everything on these groups should be assumed to be first-come, first-serve. If you have the cash and can get it within 24-48 hours it's yours. If you ask someone to hold and they agree, then that is up to the seller. If you ask a bunch of questions, but haven't said you want the item and will come and get it by setting up a date and time, then it's not yours. If someone comes behind you and says they will come pick it up or wants to come look at it and sets a time and place, then that's how first-come, first-serve works.

Eveyone has a right of refusal regardless of where they sell their stuff, just like a buyer has a right to say no if they don't want when they come to pick it up if it's not what they want or expected. If you say you are going to come, SHOW UP! Because you might get refused service by the seller next time you post.

CHECK YOUR MESSAGES - IT MIGHT BE IN "OTHER" MESSAGES

"OTHER" Messages is what you might receive is someone is not your friend. If someone says they have sent you a message, please check your "OTHER" messages to see if it has landed there.

1) If you are posting/checking from a phone, go to messages and scroll all the way to the bottom. There it should say "View Other Messages".

2) If you are posting/checking from a computer, click on Messages on the left side and under that there should be a place called "Other".

UPLOADING A SINGLE PHOTO

This is the option you use if you have less than five photos that you want to post.

1) At the top of the page above where it says "Write Something", there are several options. Go to Add Photo/Video.

2) For a single photo choose "Upload Photo Video" on the next screen.

3) Write in your description.

4) Then click on "Choose File", which you should have ready on your computer to choose.

5) Click on the file to upload

6) Put in your location under the next block

7) Then click "Post"

DO NOT PLACE PICTURES IN THE FILES SECTION, THEY WILL ONLY BE DELETED.

CREATING AN ALBUM

1) When you are at the top where it says "Write Post" or "Add Photo/Video" - Click on the "Add Photo/Video"

2) Then, there are three options - "Upload Photo/Video" on the right or on the left is "Create Photo Album". Please do not use the middle one for swap shops. Go to the right to "Create Photo Album".

3) That will open up a box to choose pictures from your source. Choose all your photos by highlighting them and click "Open". They will then start loading.

4) Under each picture it will have "say something about this photo". That's where you put the information about the item - description, price, location.

5) When you are done with each photo, click the "Post Photos" blue box and your album is created.

6) You can always go back and add photos at a later time as well to the same album, by going to the album and at the top right it will have "add photos".

7) If you are posting from a phone, you will either need to get to a computer, find a way to post an album from your phone (which might depend on the phone you have) or you will be limited to the five posts in a 24 hour period.

DO NOT PLACE PICTURES IN THE FILES SECTION, THEY WILL ONLY BE DELETED.

EDIT INFORMATION IN ALBUMS AND DELETING PICS WHEN ITEM SOLD

After a picture is posted, you can still edit the information on the image. You can also delete your picture by doing the same from this location.

*Go to your album or picture and click on the photo.

*At the bottom of the picture there is a disappearing menu. Hover at the bottom and the menu shows up with several links - 1) a link to the album, 2) Tag Photo, 3) Options and 4) Like

*Go to Options, another menu will come up where you have a choice of seven items.

*The first allows you to change the location.

*The second and third option is to rotate your picture in case it's upside down or side ways.

*The fourth and fifth option really doesn't apply to groups, unless you want to download the pictures or make it your profile photo.

*The sixth is where you choose to "REMOVE THIS PHOTO".

*The last is for you to Enter Full Screen, if you wish to see the image bigger.

To EDIT information, such as size, price, etc. this is not in the drop down menu. Go to the picture and above where comments are there is a blue EDIT link, click on that and put in the information that pertains to the picture posted.

GETTING TO ALBUMS

Did you know to get to Albums and pictures in Facebook? Go to "PHOTOS" at the top of the page, next to the group name and click on the tab.

POST ALBUM FROM YOUR OWN PROFILE

When you create an album on your own personal profile to share with many groups, the setting of the album must be set to “Public” or no one in the group can see it but your friends.

To share an album from your personal profile, you can do one of two things. Go to the album and copy the link at the top and paste it into each group as a post OR you can click Share and choose all the groups that you want to share the album with. If you use the Share link, then the pictures show up just like they would as if they were loaded to the group. If you post a link, the people have to click the link to get to the album on your profile. Either way works.

SEARCHING FOR A LINK

You cannot search for a post that contains a link in the search box. Many people have problems finding their post because they have a link. Two ways to help with that. After you have made a post containing a link, make a comment on words you can remember that you can search because the comment should show up in a search. Or go to your post and click on the time and date link of the post and message it to yourself, so you can find it later.

LENGTH OF COMMENTS SECTION

That only the last two comments show up when there are multiple comments on a post? Then you have to click “view all x comments” to see the rest. This is great if you are on a computer and directly on the group page. On most phones though only the most recent comment shows up and some phones don’t have an option to click links. This is why it is helpful to keep comments down to a minimum.

GETTING LINK TO ONE SPECIFIC ITEM

That if you click on the time of a post, it is also a link, it will bring that post up so that when you send a link to someone it will take them right to that very post rather than them having to search for it in a group.

SEE ALL POSTS YOU'VE MADE IF YOU HAVE TIMELINE

You can see all the posts you've made in any group and easily delete things that are no longer available in just a few clicks right from your profile without having to search your groups. Here's how -- 1) Click on your name and go to your profile. (You must have Timeline)

2) Go to "Activity Log", underneath your main picture.3) At the top right, where it says "All", that's a drop down menu.

3)Click and go down to "Groups".

There ya go, now you can go to any post you've made in any group you've posted in and remove posts or items that are sold or are no longer available.

USE LIKE BUTTON

That if you click “Like” instead of commenting, it does not bump the post to the top and because people automatically set to “follow” their own posts regardless of the settings they choose for the group. They should get a notification. Though should doesn’t always mean they will because sometimes notifications get lost if people get too many and don’t check them often.

IF SOMEONE "LIKES" an item, it doesn't mean they want the item. Just means they Like it, so please don't ask someone if they want the item just because they liked your post or photo. 

POST TAGGING

If you tag someone in a comment, they will get a notification that they have been tagged and if they check their notifications should get back to you sooner, rather than later. Tagged posts override group settings as well. If they don’t follow their group posts, they most likely will if they get a tag.

To tag someone in a post to make sure they get a notification that they have been tagged. Start typing their name and a box should come up that gives you a choice of whom you may be seeking. Click on the person who matches the person you are tagging. You may have to backspace or put in a few more characters to get the person's name to show up. Once you have that person tagged, their name will show up in blue as a link in a post or comment and they will receive notification that they have been tagged.

THANK YOU'S AFTER PURCHASE

That it is rather helpful in the post bumping and with the sheer number of posts in the group if folks would send a Thank You by message, rather than to post it on the group. It’s nice to be thanked and everyone should be doing it after they make a purchase, it’s just good manners, but it doesn’t need to be done publicly.

SETTING ALBUM POSTED FROM YOUR OWN PROFILE

When you create an album on your own personal profile to share with many groups, the setting of the album must be set to “Public” or no one in the group can see it but your friends.

To share an album from your personal profile, you can do one of two things. Go to the album and copy the link at the top and paste it into each group OR you can click Share and choose all the groups that you want to share the album with. If you use the Share link, then the pictures show up just like they would as if they were loaded to the group. If you post a link, the people have to click the link to get to the album on your profile. Either way works.

SET YOUR MESSAGING FOR EVERYONE

If you set your messaging to everyone, people can then message you regarding an item and it keeps clutter off the group as well as some people get messages faster than they get comments. To change your settings

1) go to little arrow next to the HOME button on the top right, which is a drop down menu.

2) Then go to PRIVACY SETTINGS and click.

3) Then in the middle of the page, go to HOW YOU CONNECT and Edit Settings to the side and click.

4) A box will come up, third one down is "Who Can Send You Facebook Messages", change that to EVERYONE.

TYPES OF GROUPS

That this is an “Open Group” and by being so, anyone can view the posts regardless of whether they are a member or not. If you choose to post personal information like your phone number, address or meeting time and place, please be aware that the whole world can see if they go to this group. It would be better if you messaged people this information.

Also, the differences between open and closed groups: an open group, besides being visible to anyone on Facebook, it also puts the posts in your feed to all your friends; a closed group, the posts cannot be seen by anyone but the members of the group and the posts do not show up in your friends feeds. When most groups were created, FB didn’t give anyone instructions for this or most administrators probably would have changed their settings, but after a group gets to a certain number of members, those settings can no longer be changed. This group cannot be changed to anything but an open group because we have met that member number.

Advertise on the Missouri Swap Shop Network JUST CLICK HERE! Connect with all the counties in the MISSOURI SWAP SHOP NETWORK!! CLICK HERE!!

Swap Shop Rules - Updated July 17, 2012

We all need 'em, and we occasionally need to be reminded of 'em.  Here is the latest edition of the Swap Shop Rules

1. Bump only entire albums! Bump no more than five albums or five individual posts not made in an album once every 24 hours. This DOES NOT mean bump individual pictures out of an album, only the entire album may be bumped and no more than five.

• For those of you who don’t know what “bump” means, that’s when someone posts the word bump to move their post to the top of the page. Also, no different than posting an asterisk or a character or a comment saying it’s still available. They are all bumps.

2.  Please refrain from purposely placing a bump on others posts and bump only your own.

3.  Please refrain from making frivolous comments/conversations on posts, as this bumps the item to the top for unpractical reasons.

4. Make an album only if you have three or more pictures. Do not place only one picture in an album. If you have less than three pics, combine your albums, upload and add to an already existing album or post as an individual post.

5. Post limit is five (5) in a 24 hour period if you are not using an album and the edit box in an album and no more than five albums per day. If you use the comment box, rather than the edit box in an album, five posts applies to you as well. Use an album and the edit box and you are allowed to post as many as you want. This will be strictly enforced, meaning posts over five will be deleted.

6. Do not repost the same item unless it has been at least seven days since prior posting.

7.  If you have multiple views of the same item, they are required to be in an album because the posts will get separated.

8. It is considered rude to hijack another person’s post, either looking for goods or posting one of your own within their post unless it’s something they are looking to buy. Play nice and make a post of your own.

9. Same hijack rule for posting other groups. We don’t care if you advertise your group, but please refrain from doing it within someone else’s post, unless it’s linked specifically to an item the person is looking to purchase.

10. No posting of inappropriate content including adult toys, videos, creams, etc. Please keep used or unused liquor off the group as well. Keep it legal - No selling of illegal items, drop-side cribs included - It is your responsibility as the user to check the Federal, State and Local laws for resale.

11.  If your item has sold or you are no longer looking for a particular item, remove your post. If you cannot remove your post for some reason, state on the post that the item is sold or send a message to the admin and the post will be removed.

12.  Posts older than 30 days that haven't been bumped is removed from the group regularly during site cleaning. This keeps the group content current and more user friendly. All bumps of any kind are also removed after 24 hours, which doesn't affect your place in line, you are still in the same position as when it was bumped. It just looks cleaner and doesn't look like it's been bumped five times and not worth selling.

13.  And as always, be kind and no arguments on the group. Rude comments, arguments and those who ignore the rules might just find posts removed or yourself banned and we don’t want to have to do that.

14. No business opportunity sites or links, and no direct or catalog sales. Business representatives can post individual items. All businesses/representatives must be locally based.

15. Blocking admins for any reason is considered sufficient reason to report your profile to Facebook.

Rules are subject to change.

Advertise on the Missouri Swap Shop Network JUST CLICK HERE! Connect with all the counties in the MISSOURI SWAP SHOP NETWORK!! CLICK HERE!!

Swap Shop Spammers BEWARE!

This is a notice to all the spammers who frequent our various swap shops on the Missouri Swap Shop Network.  Please be aware that we are aggressively monitoring our swap sites for spammers, which include but are not limited to:

-fake profiles

-MLM business sites or links (without a local contact)

-off-site links

-profiles for those out of state

If you are a distributor for a product (such as ACE, Scentsy, Pink Zebra, Wraps, Designer Denim, etc), then you MUST provide local contact information.  If we don't see it, it will likely get deleted.  If it is posted multiple times, it will get you BANNED.

Our swap shop members do a great job of reporting and blocking folks who violate the rules.  Let's keep our shops FUN and LOCALLY based by following these guidelines!!

Advertise on the Missouri Swap Shop Network JUST CLICK HERE! Connect with all the counties in the MISSOURI SWAP SHOP NETWORK!! CLICK HERE!!

Looking for VENDORS, PRESENTERS, and ATTENDEES!

The annual MMSA fall conference is approaching and we need vendors, presenters and attendees! If you would like more information, please go to the website: http://www.mmsa-mo.org/ or visit us on Facebook at "Missouri Middle School Associaton". Forms are online, as well as contact information for more info. Please make plans to attend and like our page. MMSA is for parents, teachers, administrators, businesses, etc. all who care about MIDDLE level education!

Advertise on the Missouri Swap Shop Network JUST CLICK HERE! Connect with all the counties in the MISSOURI SWAP SHOP NETWORK!! CLICK HERE!!