In several recent posts we’ve talked about the ways that Stockpile fast free inventory system can save you money and help you save on storage space as well. Sharing items across your neighborhood can be a win-win for everyone. You get the specialized tools you need, without having to purchase and store them yourself. Your neighbor gets the gratification of seeing that tool that’s been gathering dust being put to good use again. The benefits of using Stockpile within your neighborhood, or any other community you choose to create, go beyond potential tool sharing.
These days it seems like everyone is looking for ways to save money and ways to turn their unwanted items into cash. Craigslist and other similar services are very popular for this reason. There are some issues associated with using sites like these however. Creating a post takes time and there is no guarantee that you will be contacted by any interested parties. Even receiving that first e-mail isn’t a guarantee of receiving payment. Many people report being stood up by the prospective buyer or seller. Now you’ve wasted your time waiting for someone who didn’t show. There is also the security risk associated with agreeing to meet someone you don’t know and conduct a cash transaction for merchandise. There have been numerous instances where someone has reported being robbed or assaulted when attempting to buy or sell items. When you consider all the potential downfalls, it hardly seems worth it for the few dollars you plan to make from the sale or hope to save by not buying retail.
What do you do with unwanted items? Creating a Stockpile community to share these gently used pieces can be a great idea. This would be perfect for student groups, sports teams, and the like. Each member can create a location and list the items that they would like to share. Then other members of the group can simply access the community ‘store’ to see what is available. Items can be offered as a temporary loan or as a permanent trade. This would be a great way for members to share books, toys, sports gear and other items that fall out of use long before they are worn out.
How often has your group been working on a project only to discover halfway through that someone else already had the item you just purchased or recreated? It’s frustrating, it costs your organization time and money and could be completely avoided if there was just a central repository to track these things. For instance, one person may be a painter who would be willing to donate partially used paints for a project. Someone else could have a supply of unused yarn or other craft material lying around. I have a friend who has a machine that allows her to create custom vinyl stickers in her living room. Knowing this could be very beneficial to certain organizations that she belongs to. While she doesn’t keep it a secret, she also doesn’t go around advertising this fact, either. It is only through personal conversations that others have learned that she is more than happy to create customized bulletin boards, name tags and a variety of other items for her children’s school and soccer teams. Using Stockpile fast free inventory system to offer these services and materials could provide considerable benefit for these organizations.
As a member of a local service organization I can’t count the number of times I have heard people getting the runaround when trying to check out an item from the group “shed.” All items available for member use are supposed to be stored in the “shed” a small closet in the local office. The problem is that there are more items than the shed can reasonably hold so things are a bit jumbled. Since none of the members who are borrowing items actually work in the office, people often keep items long after they are finished with them hoping to find someone who is heading that way who will be willing to return them. Often the person who borrowed the item has passed it on to someone else who in turn handed it off again before it ever makes it back to the shed. The result? No one is sure what is still in the shed’s inventory, what is actually currently in the shed and where the missing items might be. It is not unusual for someone to spend days e-mailing and calling others trying to locate an item. In many cases the need for the item passes before it is located. Using Stockpile would eliminate the runaround. It would be easy to see who checked an item out last and whether or not it has been returned. The detailed description and picture could also help members decide whether the item will meet their needs or not before they go to the trouble of tracking it down and checking it out.
Make the Most of Your Associations with Stockpile Fast Free Inventory System
Finding new and better ways to share items and save money is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the ways that Stockpile can help you create a better community. Don’t take our word for it, try Stockpile today and see for yourself!
