Member Help

Simple instructions for how to do common time trade related things. These are all for members who have accounts on our web site and have already been activated. If you need help with something not listed here, contact Louisa for help.

• Editing your profile info
• Posting a service offer or request
• Stopping a service offer or request
• Browsing other members' offers & requests
• Recording a trade
• Checking your account balance
• Tips on getting people to notice your services
• Finding people to time trade with
• Adding a photo to your profile
• Searching services by neighborhood

Editing your profile info

You are welcome to post (or not post) whatever contact and other info you would like, and none of it is mandatory. Info posted is not public but is viewable to all TTC members so post whatever you are comfortable with.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "my account" tab at the top right.
3. Click "My Profile" near the top left.
4. Click "edit personal info" at the right.
5. Make any changes you would like. The system requires you to put something in the address field but you can put n/a if you like.
6. Click "update my profile" all the way at the bottom of the page.
7. Look at your profile and see if that is how you want it to look.

Posting a service offer or request

To find people to trade with, you will browse other people's posts as well as post your own offers and requests.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "my account" tab at the top right.
3. Click "My Services" near the top left.
4. Under that, but in the middle, click "add new offer."
5. Fill out the form.
6. Choose the service category you think fits best, but don't worry if you're not sure.
7. Use a clear title and explain your service as best you can - include any info that would be useful to potential trading partners.
8. Click "preview service ad" at the bottom right.
9. If everything looks accurate, click "confirm" at the bottom right.
10. To post a request: From the My Services tab, click "My Requests" then "add new request" and fill out the same form.

Stopping a service offer or request

If your request has been fulfilled, or you no longer want to offer a certain service, you should stop the outdated post.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "my account" tab at the top right.
3. Click "My Services" near the top left.
4. Your offers are listed here. If you want to stop a request, click "My Requests."
5. Find the post that is no longer current and click the "stop" button.
6. This will not delete the post from your account, but it will stop it from showing up in listings and searches.
7. If you ever need to post this service again, your text is saved. Click the "Inactive Ads" button, the click "start" on the ad you would like to post again.

Browsing other members' offers & re quests

To start trading, you'll want to look through other members' offers and requests and find services you're interested in.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "give & receive" tab at the top right.
3. Click on any category to see both offers and requests listed under that category.
4. Or, click "All Requests" or "All Offers" to see the latest posts in any category.
5. Or, click "Search for Services" to search by keyword. If you do that, be sure to search for all variations on the relevant word (i.e. try "bike" or "bicycle").
6. When you find a service you're intersted in, you can fill out the message on that page to contact the person.
7. Or, you can click the person's name to see their profile page, then contact them directly be email or phone if you choose. Whatever you're comfortable with is fine.

Recording a trade

In most cases, the person who received the service (got help) should record the trade. If they cannot do it, then the person who gave the service may record it.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "my account" tab at the top right.
3. Click "My Hours" near the top left.
4. Just under that, click "Deduct Hours." (This is for the usual case where you received the service. If you performed the service, click "Add Hours.")
5. Fill out the form.
6. Click "preview" at the bottom right.
7. If everything looks accurate, click "confirm" at the bottom right.

Checking your account balance

You can always check and see how many Timebank Hours you currently have in your account, as well as your trading history.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "my account" tab at the top right.
3. Click "My Hours" near the top left.
4. Your current account balance is shown on the right.
5. Your Timebank Hours earned and spent are listed separately.
6. If you don't see all of them, use the pull-down menu on the right that says "Last 30 days" and change it to "All." Then click "view" next to it.

Tips on getting people to notice your services

If you are hoping that people will take you up on your offers, it's useful to think of your post on the website as an ad. Here are some things you can do to encourage people to notice your services.

• Explain your service! Give as much detail as you can, including examples and reasons people might want it. Many people will simply pass over services that just have a title or a phrase.
• Add a picture! Find one online or upload your own, and get the URL of the image. Then in the body of your post, just include the URL surrounded by IMG tags like this: [IMG]http://www.example.com/image.jpg[/IMG] If you want more help on this, there are members that offer computer help as a time trade!
• Put it in the email update! If you have a time sensitive request, or just want to get the word out, tell the coordinator about your service. We can put it in the email update which people that don't often browse the site are more likely to see.
• Post a profile photo! Posting a photo of yourself in your profile often makes your profile, and therefore your services, seem more inviting. See below for instructions.

Finding people to time trade with

There are many ways to connect with people and make matches.

• Search by category: Once logged in, click the "give & receive" tab at the top right. Many categories are listed.
• Search by keyword: Once logged in, click the "give & receive" tab at the top right. Then click "Search for Services" near the top. You can enter any word and find posts that contain that word. This is not always most effective because people may not have used the exact word you search for.
• Browse all services: You may not come across these pages on the web site, but they provide a basic list of all services which can be fun to skim - you never know what might pique your interest! Browse all offers or browse all requests.
• Read the email updates: The coordinator sends out periodic email updates which often include new or highlighted services from other members. You never know what you'll be able to help with or what mgiht interest you, so keep an eye out.
• Go to potlucks and other events: TTC events are the best way to meet other members and hear about services you might not know about. Having already met the person can also give you a good idea of whether you'd like to trade for that service.

Adding a photo to your profile

It's nice to let people see you before they meet you and it often makes your profile seem more personable. If you need help taking or preparing a digital photo, there are members that offer computer help as a time trade!

1. First you will need a digital photo of yourself saved on your computer. It can be either .gif or .jpg format and it must be under 200kb.
2. It's a good idea to crop it to about 130 x 200 though the site will resize it for you.
3. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
4. Click the "my account" tab at the top right.
5. Click "My Profile" near the top.
6. Under that click "Change Picture."
7. Next to "Upload picture from your computer" click "Browse" and find the photo on your computer.
8. Click "upload new picture" on the bottom right.
9. Check your profile to make sure it looks how you expected.

Searching services by neighborhood

You can search by various criteria, one of the most useful of which may be neighborhood.

1. Log in to your account at community.timebanks.org. (Enter email address and password on the right.)
2. Click the "give & receive" tab at the top right.
3. Click "Search for Services" near the top. This is where you can search for certain keywords within categories.
4. Click "Advanced Search" near the bottom right. More options will appear below.
5. You can choose a neighborhood from the drop-down menu, type in a city, or try any of the other options.
6. You must type something into the "Keywords" field at the top. If you are looking for a certain service, type that. If you are looking for anyone in that neighborhood, just type a * in the box. Then it will give you all services by people in that area.