Buying and selling some of your shit around campus is a great, easy way of making money, but it can also be a huge pain in the ass. Although we still do it, nobody really wants to be posting in their class or the Free & For Sale Facebook pages. Thankfully for us, Erica Polle, a senior Communications major, and her sister, Karen, just made this easier with their startup, a website called GivTake.
GivTake allows users to easily buy and sell things around campus. Although there is no app, it is mobile–friendly. GivTake is a one–stop shop, which eliminates the need of having to scroll through a bunch of different Facebook pages to find a certain couch. When you register for GivTake, you can either register as a student, student organization or a business. This gives you the options to sell things individually, or to sell apparel or tickets as a fraternity/sorority, etc. Once you register and make a profile, you can filter what type of items you are looking for. After picking an item you want to buy, you select if you want to pay via cash, card or PayPal and then if you want to meet up with the person or have the item delivered to you. For increased security, GivTake has its own in–site messaging system, which allows for communication between buyers and sellers without having to disclose email addresses or phone numbers. Also, GivTake has sole discretion over any items posted, so don’t try to use it to sell drugs or vital organs or any other shit that belongs on Craigslist. They haven’t experienced any trouble yet so don’t fuck it up.
GivTake is unique; if you are selling something, you can pay a small fee to have your item listed as featured. This means that it will be on the front page, which will attract more views to your item. You can also shop for items at other campuses. Currently GivTake is at Penn, Temple, Northeastern, Maryland and Penn State. If you order something from another campus, you can either have it delivered to you or you can pick it up from their campus.
Interestingly enough, Erica and Karen founded GivTake very organically. As Erica goes to Penn and Karen goes to Yale, one winter break they both came home and both complained about how there isn't an effective and efficient way to buy and sell things on college campuses. Erica explained that once they talked to their friends and realized that many people felt this way, the whole idea of GivTake “snowballed.” The beta phase of GivTake launched at Penn on Aug. 28, 2015, and it has been growing steadily. They started the school year with 800 users and now have over 870. GivTake is currently trying to expand by marketing on social media, partnering with local businesses such as HubBub and Schmear It and hosting events and giveaway contests. These local businesses are promoting themselves by offering free items for using GivTake. They are also looking to expand to different campuses.
GivTake is an up–and–coming, easy way of buying and selling items for college students. So next time you need to buy an AC unit or sell your old lamp on campus, instead of being that kid posting in all of the Facebook pages, give GivTake a go.
