Brand New AZ Money Savin' Mama Page UPDATED 12/3/2011

Hi, I'm AZ Money Savin' Mama,

In November of 2011 I was struggling with how I was going to buy gifts for everyone on our Christmas List & also realized that I had quite a few items in my gift closet that we no longer need. I was hoping that I could sell the unnecessary gifts & use the money I got to buy necessary gifts. Soon after I realized that I am probably not the only one struggling with this problem & wanted to provide a forum so my fellow Arizona residents can all join together & help each other out. That is how the AZ Money Savin' Mama - Free, For Sale or Trade page was "born".

At the beginning of December the page had already grown to almost 150 members with over 100 items for sale as well as some free items & ISO (in search of) posts. Then I joined a few other similar communities on Facebook to get a better idea of the best way to ensure all the members get the most out of it. That is when I realized that the Facebook Group Format is the best way to provide a community of people with the opportunity to buy, sell & trade with each other as well as post free items & ISO posts. I hope it will be continue to grow & be an even better opportunity for us to "buy local" this Christmas & throughout the year.

I am hoping that instead of spending all our hard earned $ on Christmas gifts bought at large stores, we can make an effort to buy them closer to home & spend less too. Here is an ad I found encouraging buyers to keep their money in their own community.

The AZ Money Savin' Mama Buy Sell Trade or Free GROUP layout consists of individual posts made by the members which includes all the information & hopefully a picture of the item(s) or service(s) they are either selling, hoping to trade or giving away. The page can also be used to ask for specific items that someone needs which can be abbreviated ISO (in search of).

1. Whenever someone comments or posts something to this group you will get a Notification (on the little globe icon at the top left of your Facebook page) so I won't have to create new posts telling everyone that someone has something to sell / trade to alert the members.

2. If you are NOT interested in receiving update notifications on a specific post you can click on the "unfollow post" link.

3. Instead of having to re-post items to get them to the top again all you have to do is comment on your post to "bump" it to the top (you can just type 'bump').

4. You can create a Facebook Photo Album with all the items you are selling or trading then post a link here for other to see (I'll post specific directions soon).

Quick tip: If you would like to directly contact a person about their item(s) (via Facebook) you can mouse over the user's name then click on the blue link of their name which will take you to a new page that has a message feature in the upper right corner. It will show up in their Facebook e-mail / message so you can communicate privately to exchange personal info.

Here are some tips that I have posted to the page but wanted to put them here so they can be easily referenced

How to post your items for sale, trade, barter or free:
If everyone follows the same format it will make scrolling through the page easier & will lead to less questions. If you are unable to take a picture of the item please describe it well. For example: provide measurements, color, brand, etc. If you can find it for sale anywhere on-line with a picture you can post the link to it so a picture will show up on the page along with your post. Here is the format to use for posting items.

PRICE
CITY - Major cross streets
CONDITION
ITEM SIZE (if necessary)
ITEM DESCRIPTION including brand, age guidelines (for toys, etc.) or measurements
You can include the price you paid, the price the item is selling for and/or the price on the price tag if the item still has one
Remember that the more info. you include in your post, the better chance of someone being interested.

Some basic ways to use the page:
1. You have an item or items you no longer need & want to give it/them away to someone for free

2. You have an item or items you would like to sell to make some extra $

3. You have an item or items you no longer need & would like to trade for something else

4. You are looking for an item but can't find it at stores or you would like to find it at a lower price or free

Some specific ways to use the page:

1. 1. You have an open package of diapers or outgrown clothing & would like to sell or give them away.

2. You have some coupons that you won't be using & you'd like to give them away or trade with someone else who may have coupons you can use.

3. You have some CDs or DVDs that you no longer want so you decide to sell or trade them.

4. You have a storage room of items that you no longer need so you'd like to give the a new home or sell them to make some extra $.

5. You just got something new (upgraded) & no longer in need of the other item(s) but they're still usable so you make a post on the page to either give it / them away or sell it / them

A few more ways this page can be used to help each other:

1. You make things & would like to sell them

2. You work at or own a store & would like to offer a discount to local customers to help with advertising

3. You would like to offer a service like cleaning, baking, etc. in exchange for cash or items

Lastly, here is a short message you can send to your local friends / family members who you think would be interested or benefit from this new GROUP:

Hey everyone,

I just found a new GROUP on Facebook where Arizona residents can post things or services they are giving away for free, selling or would like to trade or barter.

It would be great if you would 'join' it & spread the word so we can help each other out, especially since Christmas is quickly approaching & many people are having financial difficulties. Unfortunately, Santa doesn't bring along any extra paychecks this time of year so I'm hoping this will help. http://www.facebook.com/groups/AZBuySellTradeorFree/

I sincerely hope that this GROUP fills a need to help people make the most of what they have & allows them to help each other in the process. If you have any suggestions please let me know because this is a new venture for me & I am learning as I go.

Thanks for your support!

Tonya
AZ Money Savin' Mama Facebook page owner
& AZ Money Savin' Mama's Buy Sell Trade or Free Facebook group owner