If you’d like to set up (or update) a Buy Nothing private group on any social media platform. Here's a road map that will guide you through the process. By "private group," we mean an online group that's set up and maintained by an individual who gets to set the group name and rules, and who also has the responsibility to add people and educate and guide people to understand and respect the rules and the group's culture.
If the process below looks like more work than you bargained for, you can stop after step 2 and then visit our Build page to become a Community Builder. You can focus on building your Buy Nothing using our free custom-built app, which will have Private groups soon. You can start connecting there today, building connections and community right away without having to go through the entire process below. Our app is designed to make it easier to Buy Nothing, there's no need to load documents, images, or links in order to get started.
You can become an even more powerful force for good as a Community Builder, using the resources on our Build page.
If you'd like to set up a Buy Nothing private group on a different platform, please carry on with this timeline! All of the steps below this one are specific to Buy Nothing communities and private groups on other platforms.
Each platform has its own directions, rules, and specifications. Each social media company will walk you through the steps to setting up a group on their platform. Our document, Buy Nothing Project Private Group Growth Resources, will help answer your Buy Nothing-related questions about naming your group, growing your membership, and defining your community footprint. This document is useful for all social media platforms and also for Buy Nothing communities that connect offline.
Your personalized Group Description
Your copy of the 10 Rules
Your link to All About the Buy Nothing Project
Copy and paste each of these into the appropriate spot in your group and you've got all the resources your group needs to start growing!
Create a Welcome post for your group. If the platform you're using allows for pinned posts, you can use that to keep this post handy for new group members to see it. Welcome people to your Buy Nothing group, introduce yourself, give them any information you’d like to share about your local version of the Buy Nothing Project and include a link to All About the Buy Nothing Project.
Your welcome post can be simple, for instance: "Welcome to Buy Nothing (your group's name here)! I'm (name) and I'm starting this group for our community because I want all of us to be able to connect to Give, Ask and share our Gratitude, Buy Nothing-style. Here's a web page with loads of info about how all of this works: www.buynothingproject.org/all-about-the-buy-nothing-project Please let me know if I can answer any questions or help in any way. I'm so excited to get this started - Please post a Give, Ask or Gratitude of your own! Thanks for joining this group!" You're welcome to copy and paste this as a template to get you started, or you can write your own post up from scratch.
Please visit our Build page, www.buynothingproject.org/build for more resources, including a link to our Community Builders forum. We created this resource library forum to support Buy Nothing Community Builders with resources and information to help all Buy Nothing communities. We also have a Forum Topic devoted just to private groups' specific issues and concerns.
If the process below looks like more work than you bargained for, you can stop after step 2 and then visit our Build page to become a Community Builder. You can focus on building your Buy Nothing using our free custom-built app, which will have Private groups soon. You can start connecting there today, building connections and community right away without having to go through the entire process below. Our app is designed to make it easier to Buy Nothing, there's no need to load documents, images, or links in order to get started.
Download the BuyNothing app and set up your profile. This will connect you with the BuyNothing community that's already growing around you and help you build connections. Our app is here for iPhone and here for Android, then visit this page for tips on putting our app to work for your group.
App Tips for Private GroupsIf you'd like to build a Buy Nothing community on the BuyNothing platform, you can stop here. We built our platform from scratch to make it easier for everyone to join Buy Nothing and start posting Gives, Asks, and Gratitude. Nothing brings a Buy Nothing group to life better than active posting by people who are excited to Buy Nothing & Share Everything!
You can become an even more powerful force for good as a Community Builder, using the resources on our Build page.
If you'd like to set up a Buy Nothing private group on a different platform, please carry on with this timeline! All of the steps below this one are specific to Buy Nothing communities and private groups on other platforms.
Set up a private group on your preferred social media platform. By "private group," we mean an online group that's set up and maintained by an individual who gets to set the group name and rules, and who also has the responsibility to add people, guide people to follow the rules, etc. Each platform has its own directions, rules, and specifications. Each social media company will walk you through the steps to setting up a group on their platform. Our document, Buy Nothing Project Private Group Resources, will help answer your Buy Nothing-related questions about naming your group, growing your membership, and defining your community footprint. This document is useful for all social media platforms and also for Buy Nothing communities that connect offline.
A group description is the public information that will help people find you and identify your group as part of Buy Nothing. This page walks you through the process.
Get Your Group DescriptionsThe 10 Rules document is the short and sweet guide to Buy Nothing that will guide your group as it grows. You can get your own copy from this page.
10 RulesWe've made it easy for your group to connect with the Buy Nothing hub: All About the Buy Nothing Project is an online link tree we maintain to direct Buy Nothing participants to all of the important Buy Nothing Project resources. Connecting your group to this will give your entire Buy Nothing community quick access to all sorts of helpful information. Simply copy the link to this foundational page and paste it into a post in your group, then it will be there as a reference as people join. This is the only Buy Nothing Project page you’ll need to link to, making it fast and easy to provide your group with all of the documents it needs for daily Give-Ask-Gratitude action.
All About the Buy Nothing ProjectYou're ready to load these foundational resources into your group:
- Your personalized Group Description
- Your copy of the 10 Rules
- Your link to All About the Buy Nothing Project
Copy and paste each of these into the appropriate spot in your group and you've got all the resources your group needs to start growing
You’re welcome to download the Buy Nothing banner, to signify you’re part of the global Buy Nothing network. The banner was given to us by Crescent Moegling for use in Buy Nothing Project gift economies. Do not modify the banner in any way if you choose to use it. Scroll down to the bottom of this page for the banner.
Once your group has up-to-date documents in place, we'd love to add you to the list - Being listed will help your group grow! Fill out the form on this page to add your Buy Nothing group to the worldwide list we maintain. This resource is a primary source of information used by people searching for local Buy Nothing gift economies.
Create a Welcome post for your group. If the platform you're using allows for pinned posts, you can use that to keep this post handy for new group members to see it. Welcome people to your Buy Nothing group, introduce yourself, give them any information you’d like to share about your local version of the Buy Nothing Project and include a link to All About the Buy Nothing Project.
Your welcome post can be as simple as: "Welcome to Buy Nothing (your group's name here)! I'm (name) and I'm starting this group for our community because I want all of us to be able to connect to Give, Ask and share our Gratitude, Buy Nothing-style. Here's a web page with loads of info about how all of this works: www.buynothingproject.org/all-about-the-buy-nothing-project. Please let me know if I can answer any questions or help in any way. I'm so excited to get this started - Please post a Give, Ask or Gratitude of your own! Thanks for joining this group!" You're welcome to copy and paste this as a template to get you started, or you can write your own post up from scratch.
All About the Buy Nothing Project
You're ready to invite people to join your group, to start Give-Ask-Gratitude Buy Nothing-ing! Invite your neighbors to join you. Visit our Build page for resources and tips that will help your community grow. We have flyers you can use to invite people to download the app and to join your private group - Use all of our tools to connect and grow!
