swapitshop.com > Reviews > SwapitShop - An eBay World For Kids

Author's product rating:   

Layout & Design	Excellent
Navigation	Good
How fast is this website?	Fast
Quality of the Content	Good
Range of Services / Products	Very complete

Advantages:	Large range of items available to buy, free to swap your items, easy to use .
Disadvantages:	Have to pay double postage, there can sometimes be scams about so be careful .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

SwapitShop - "Things You Want For Things You Don't".

www.swapitshop.com

I've been a member of this website for almost two years now. Basically SwapitShop is a website aimed at 18's and under where you can sell items you don't want in exchange for points called Swapits. With these points, you can then bid on things you DO want that other swappers are offering!

Each item up for 'sale' has a auction style bidding feature very much like eBay, and some items also have a 'win now' button where you can win the item straight away for a set amount of Swapits. Unlike eBay however, it's free to list your items!

You can swap most things, but some items are restricted due to the main users of the site being children. Items disallowed on the site include food and drink, sexually explicit items, items that are dirty or broken...you get the idea. Although the site is AIMED at children though, there is absolutely no restriction on adults using SwapitShop - I am 20 years old now and have had no problems or restrictions using the site!

In addition to normal members selling items, SwapitShop as a company themselves also offers items on the site. Additionally they sometimes partner with other companies too who carry out so called 'frenzies' where lots of the same item are available. Items offered by SwapitShop themselves have in the past included iPod Shuffles, Nintendo Wii and DS Lite consoles, and Xbox 360 consoles....as well as smaller things such as LED torches, Funkeys and Mopods etc.

As well as having lots of great items available to buy, please also be aware of the scams out there. Swappers get given a star rating depending on the amount of completed and cancelled swaps they have achieved - white stars are new swappers and gold stars are experienced swappers. Be wary of white and red star swappers when buying an item, and read the description very carefully. I have regularly seen people selling what looks like a top of the range games console for only 1000 Swapits, when really they have written ''great picture'' in the description. The winning swapper of this swap will only be sent a picture of the item, and this is an example of the type of scam that can take place.

When you sell one of your items, you don't post it directly to the winning bidder - this is why SwapitShop is very safe for children to use. You have to post it to the SwapitShop Post Room within 14 days where it is checked and then sent on to the winner's address. Unfortunately this means that you have to send double the amount of stamps in order to send in your item - one lot for it to reach SwapitShop, and another lot for SwapitShop to forward it. When swapping items on the site therefore, take into consideration when deciding on a price how much your item will cost to post.

There is usually a lot of discussion about how many Swapits are the equivalent to the ££. I personally don't go by a guideline, but others have said that between 300-500 Swapits is the equivalent to £1. A lot of people when starting to sell on SwapitShop don't realise the value of Swapits, and can end up selling high value items at very bargainous prices. I can count numerous times where I have found things such as games and Top Trumps for around 100 Swapits win now! Of course if the swapper is happy with that amount then that's fine, but I would advise you to check out other peoples prices before making your own.

In the two years of being a member, I have bought loads of things and resold them on eBay - that is my reason for using the site! Overall this is a brilliant website for both children and bargain-hunting adults to use...I'll continue to use it for years to come I'm sure!