5 Blank Postcards to 5 Partners - July 2023 (USA)

I'm so excited! This will be my first swap and I've got all my envelopes ready. It's ok if I add some extras like stickers right?

Yay, I'm so excited you've joined my swap! Yes, a few extras like stickers are OK! Don't feel obligated to add extras, though - five good postcards in an envelope is plenty to fulfill the swap requirement, everything else is gravy!

We have some newbies in this swap (yay!) so for the newbies, here is how it will work: I hope you are getting your envelopes ready now, because when partners are assigned you’ll only have a couple days to put addresses on the envelopes and mail them to your assigned partners. Once you start receiving swaps from the folks who are sending to you, don’t forget to rate! If you’re having trouble finding anything on the site don’t be afraid to reach out to me!

Newbie here! I signed up from a video I saw on Tiktok. I have my envelopes ready, but I'm curious how many forever stamps this typically takes? I think 1 but maybe 2? My completed envelopes weigh about 30 grams. Thanks for making this accessible to new users, I'm so excited!

Hi! I have been a member of swapbot for awhile, but have not utilized it. Just signed up for this swap. I filled all my envelopes and they are ready to go. Looking forward to sending them out, and seeing what I receive. :)

Hi @HIsnapp great question about postage! It depends how thick your cards are, but here's a guide:

1. Make sure the envelope is at least a little bit bendy or the post office will say it is a package. For 5 cards this should not be an issue at all.
2. You should always be safe with 2 forever stamps
3. You can probably get away with one forever stamp and one additional ounce stamp if they're standard size postcards and not too thick (envelope 2oz or less)

Hope that helps!

What do you mean by rating?

hi @heidihyer welcome to swap bot! The rating system on swap-bot is how we know whether someone is a trustworthy swapper or not.

After the swap due date, a new link will become available for you to rate your partners. When your partners' swaps start arriving in your mailbox, click the link on the swap to rate them a 5 (add a heart if they went above and beyond, which many do!) to thank them. It's more than just a thank you, though: it lets other people know this is a trustworthy person on swap-bot.

Two weeks after the due date on the swap, all the ratings will open up: 3s and 1s. If your partner sent something that doesn't meet the swap requirements, or sent it really late, mark them a 3. If they never sent you anything at all, reach out to them (maybe something get lost in the mail - it's good to give someone a chance to re-send when that happens and not jump straight to the 1 rating which will torch their reputation). If they never respond back give them a 1.

People who have too many 1s get shunned and then deactivated, since receiving swaps without sending them is breaking promises and stealing!

I open my swaps up to newbies, who have no ratings yet. We all have to start somewhere, right? So one thing I do as a host to reassure everyone else in the swap is "angel". This means that if someone turns out to be a bad swapper, I send out envelopes to all that person's partners at my own expense to make sure they don't experience a loss.

Mine are all sent out. For anyone else trying to assess if they need additional postage - one "forever" mail stamp will cover 1oz. I had to get additional postage because mine were about 1.2 oz.