With the fast-paced technological advancement and the constant rise of social networking, it is apparent that social engagement has definitely grown out of the pits of its once nomadic endeavors and into the podium of search engines and online posts. And with the emergence of this different wave of communication culture, people—especially the youth—are able to enjoy the perk of having almost everything they need or want with just a click.
A testament to this is the online Facebook group called DLSU Bids to Pick. Everything from wholesale clothes to skin care products, even to the smallest of knick-knacks—name it, it’s there. This unexpectedly conspicuous group page created on Facebook seems to cater to anyone looking for a bargain. The best part? There’s no need to get angst about lining up to a counter or having to go around in circles trying to find your right shirt size.
But while another influential contrivance such as this marks its place in Lasallian culture, let’s dig further into how the acclaimed bidding page came to be and further acknowledge the beguiling impact it has suddenly blown to the Lasallian community.
A brilliant idea
When asked about how, Alex Reyes (IV, OCM-LGL), the brains behind this now renowned business page group on Facebook, says that the phenomenon started from an impulse. She recounts that the day she made it; she was out with friends waiting in line for a film. “I started thinking ‘bidding’, being a hype and all, could die anytime. So, I just created the group, made a post and said to myself, ‘what can go wrong, right?’ If no one joins, then no one joins.” Yet Reyes was proven wrong when a grandiose number of people came flooding in, just waiting for that one click of approval granting them their page membership.
A couple months thereafter, the group now boasts a whopping 15,015 members, and that doesn’t include the hundreds more waiting to be accepted rather than choosing to scrummage in malls and stores. The sheer number of members trumped Reyes’s previous doubt and now, her brilliant idea became the source of an eventually smart turnout.
A self-sustaining economy
Surrounded by a diverse mass of sellers or “bidders” and an array of consumers anticipating spend-worthy posts of different things, it is no surprise that this platform has shoved itself into the limelight of the Lasallian capitalist society. Though brought about by a random and offhand conception, the page has definitely won a spot in the trading market due to its social media-induced system.
“Online selling has been around for quite some time now and Bids to Pick was just an extension of that phenomena,” Reyes says. She explains that people nowadays were settling for online means because of the convenience it generated. She explains, “People could just wait for messages while doing other obligations in real life, [rather] than having to resort to garage sales which was far more time consuming and taxing.”
Reyes’ also admits that the DLSU Bids to Pick page, a prized piece of idea, was an ever-evolving monster with its continual growth taking her aback. “I was scared with how it grew rapidly each day when it started out,” she states. “My team of admins and I had to keep up with this development; and also I was amazed with how it became ‘a self-sustaining economy’ within the Lasallian community where people managed to earn for themselves and at the same time, clear up their personal spaces which also became a form of therapy.”
Pick and bid; meet and greet
Reyes knew that she had created a platform where the Lasallian community and even outsiders can engage in the art of selling and buying. Yet after a seven-month period of constantly observing the development of her online page group, she knew there was more to it than just the perpetual exchange of conversations and rising numbers. “Teachers, students, admin, alumnae, parents of students just became part of this. And as I witnessed meet-ups within campus, I can say this eventually became part of the Lasallian culture.” Reyes points out.
Although online platforms such as this facilitate a virtual kind of interaction, it is still able to facilitate social interaction nonetheless. Reyes’ page—where people pick the right bid or bid on the right pick—compels people to engage with others, may it be stranger or friend. And with the surge of an online platform like DLSU Bids to pick, that growing need to satiate one’s consumer-driven lifestyle is also put at ease through the convenience offered by online buying and selling. Amendments may still have to be made and maintained in this progressing platform, but one thing’s for sure—it has definitely become a component of a society that is ever-changing and a testament to the thriving business acumen of the Lasallian community. Not to mention, everyone loves a bargain.
