Has your business ever used barter? If not, now may be a good time to start.
Barter — trading goods and services for other goods and services, instead of paying cash — can be a great way to get what you need without spending money for it. While you can arrange informal bartering deals — for example, trading your company’s marketing services for another company’s IT consulting — many business owners choose to join barter exchanges instead.
In a barter exchange, you pay a membership fee. Typically, you receive barter dollars or credits when you perform a service or offer a product to another member. Your barter dollars are used to “purchase” products or services from other exchange members.
BusinessWeek reports that membership in barter exchanges is growing. The exchanges receive commissions on each transaction. Belonging to an exchange gives you access to a much wider pool of goods and services than you would have access to on your own, and formalizes the exchanges so there is less chance for misunderstandings. As an added bonus, it opens you up to a new world of other companies that you could develop beneficial business relationships with.
One entrepreneur featured in the BusinessWeek article says he gets everything from letterhead and envelopes to security system installation via bartering, saving up to $25,000 annually. Another entrepreneur says he started out using barter to get “extras” such as hotel stays and gifts for his staff, but now has begun using it to get business equipment.
With cash harder to get than ever, there’s never been a better time to look into the power of barter.
If you have you used barter in your business, how has it worked for you?
Rieva Lesonsky