What forms of payment does SoWhat'sLocal accept?

SoWhat'sLocal accepts two methods of payment - credit card and PayPal.

Paying online with credit card

SoWhat'sLocal accepts online payments using the following credit cards: VISA and MASTERCARD. SoWhat'sLocal uses the latest industry encryption technology to protect your credit card details during an online transaction. 

Paying online with PayPal ®

SoWhat'sLocal accepts online payments via the PayPal payment system. PayPal is an account-based system that lets anyone with an email address send and receive online payments using their credit card or bank account. The advantages of using PayPal are:  

• Fast - Payments are made immediately;
• Convenient - You can fund your payment using existing balance in your PayPal account, or by linking to your debit card, credit card or bank account; and
• Secure - Because PayPal NEVER shares your financial information with anyone, you can transact with greater confidence.

Setting up a PayPal account is simple. You should also undertake PayPal’s verification procedure, which involves verifying two small deposits (made by PayPal within 3 – 5 working days) into your nominated bank account. Verification aims to ensure that all transacting parties are who they say they are, thereby creating a safer community and it is all done in the interest of your own security. Having a verified PayPal account also helps to lift your spending limits. If you'd like to find out this or any other questions about PayPal, visit www.paypal.com.au. Once it's up and running, you'll find it's a fast, safe and easy way to pay!

Disclaimer: The PayPal service is provided by PayPal Australia Pty Limited (ABN 93 111 195 389) which holds an Australian Financial Services Licence, number 304962. Before deciding to sign-up for or use the PayPal service you should consider the Product Disclosure Statement, available at www.paypal.com.au

 

 

 

 

What is SoWhat'sLocal's security policy?

When purchasing from SoWhat'sLocal your financial details are passed through a secure server using the latest 128-bit SSL (secure sockets layer) encryption technology.128-bit SSL encryption is approximated to take at least one trillion years to break, and is the industry standard. If you have any questions regarding our privacy policy, please contact our customer support centre - general.enquiries@sowhatslocal.com

What does it cost to use SoWhat'sLocal?

There are three membership types as well as a non-member option as follows:

• Guest - a non-member with limited access to the SoWhat'sLocal website services and no personalised searching
• Personal Member - a registered member of Sowhatslocal with access to personalised searching, voting on your local community page, access to your local community blog and the ability to register events / promotions
• Business Member - a full page of images, logo's and text to promote your business and access to the event / promotion registration service
• Charity / Not for profit Member - the same benefits as a business but with no registration costs

A full list of current charges can be found here.

Will I be able to use SoWhat'sLocal when I travel overseas?

One of the great things about SoWhat'sLocal is that you will see the same familiar look and feel wherever you are in the world making it easy to find what you are looking for. However, content will only be loaded for a pilot location in regional Australia initially. Following the pilot, SoWhat'sLocal will be rolled out throughout Australia and then throughout the world.    

How do I become a SoWhat'sLocal Community Coordinator?

First you should read the Community Coordinator information on this website. Then, if you think you would make a good Sowhatslocal Community Coordinator click here or on the "Contact Us" link and tell us why.

Do you really provide a share of the profits to the charity of my choice?

Yes! When you login to MyPage, please take a few minutes to personalise your profile and select one of your local charities to be the recipient of a share of the profits generated by your use of the site. If your chosen charity isn't there - simply tell them to go to www.sowhatslocal.com and register.

What can I list as an Event / Promotion?

SoWhat'sLocal was designed to help you to find out what is going on around you where ever you happen to be. Therefore our definition of an event / promotion is "anything that is happening that has a start time and an end time." Here are a few examples:

• A retail store sale
• A movie showing at the local cinema
• Charity fund raiser
• Special offer or promotion
• A garage sale
• A musical showing at the theatre
• The local football team are playing at home

What do I get on my Personal member page?

Whether you are a Personal, Business or Charity / Not for Profit member you will have your own personal page called "My page". From then on, when you log on to www.sowhatslocal.com you will be taken straight to your "My page". There you will be able to set up and change your preferences, go directly to your community page and search the Sowhatslocal database of events / promotions and businesses. 

What do I get on my Community page? 

SoWhat'sLocal breaks up the whole world into small community areas. When you register as a Sowhatslocal member you will automatically become a member of your local SoWhat'sLocal community. Every SoWhat'sLocal community has it's own community page where you will find images and information about the local area, local weather and links to local services and events. This is also where you will be able to access local blogs and votes.

How much does it cost to use Sowhatslocal?  

It is completely free to register with SoWhat'sLocal as a Personal member. Your free membership gives you access to your "My Page", your local "Community Page" as well as access to the SoWhat'sLocal database in your community and around the world. 

A full list of current charges can be found here.


I’m a business owner, what do I get with my Business membership?

When you register your business with SoWhat'sLocal you will be guided by a user friendly process to upload images, company logos and text about your business. You may edit these details at any time to ensure that your SoWhat'sLocal page always provides current, up to date information about your business. You will receive a URL (Website address) to your SoWhat'sLocal Business page effectively giving you a free website if you do not have one already. Your Business membership also entitles you to register one event per month free of charge. All Business pages will share the same format making it very easy for your prospective customers to find what they are looking for. 

Who can use the site for free? 

SoWhat'sLocal is a community website and in line with our company values, membership for all educational facilities, not for profit organisations and charities is free. You will receive all of the same benefits as our business members but with no subscription charges plus you have the ability to raise extra funds! 

How does SoWhat'sLocal help me raise funds for my Charity / Not for Profit organisation?

Verified Charities and Not for Profit organisations that register with SoWhat'sLocal will be selectable by Personal and Business Members as their chosen charity. A share of profits generated by Personal and Business Members will be returned to their chosen organisation. 

How much does it cost for a business to register with Sowhat'sLocal?

In line with our company values SoWhat'sLocal provides a low cost service to many rather than a high cost service to few. Our pricing is structured in such a way to appeal to all businesses providing a very cost effective way to help your prospective customers to find you.  

A full list of current charges can be found here.


How much does it cost to register an event with Sowhat'sLocal?

In line with our company values SoWhat'sLocal provides a low cost service to many rather than a high cost service to few. Our pricing is structured in such a way to be affordable to all. A single event listing may be purchased which may appeal to people holding a garage sale for example. There will also be event bundles available right up to an unlimited package making the service available and affordable for all.

A full list of current charges can be found here.

How does the SMS service work?

There are two ways you may interact with SoWhat'sLocal via SMS, the first is SMS Alerts and the second is SMS requests. 

SMS Alerts

SMS Alerts automatically send you an SMS whenever an event is registered with Sowhatslocal that matches your SMS Alert profile. You can set up an SMS Alert profile when you log in to MyPage. Your profile may be very specific or quite general, for example: 

• Send me an SMS if my favourite shop registers any event at all; or
• Send me an SMS only when my favourite band is playing at my favourite venue

SMS Requests 

SMS Requests allow you to send an SMS to us requesting information. You can SMS the name of a specific business that you are looking for and we will send you their contact details or you can SMS one of our key words and we will send you related information. For example, if you were looking for somewhere to eat you may SMS the key word “cafe” and we will send a return SMS with the details of a few cafes in your area that serve the type of food that you like according to your personal profile.