Why "Barter's Horn"

What is barter? And why toot Barter's Horn, right?

Well, Barter, as it happens, is an excellent way for small businesses to save money by spending less of their liquid cash as well as a brilliant and easy way to attract new clients and new customers.

Why brilliant? Brilliant in that your new customers come to you by the best avenue for new business that any of us in business know about. Yes! You guessed it! Referrals!

How referrals? Through a Barter Exchange, such as Crescent City Trade Exchange, in New Orleans, Louisiana, customers exchange goods and/or services for trade credit, and, in the process, build up a reputation among the membership. When the relationships are strong and the reputations of the trading businesses are good, fellow Trade Members are sure to refer their friends and contacts. The why is fairly obvious...Contributing to the growth of fellow trade organization members has a trickle down effect in that the better the business for each member within the trade exchange, the better it is for all. Or...All for one and one for all, right! (Members must remain in good standing in order to achieve this benefit with any regularity)

We all know that referrals are the best source of new business, thus the growth of such paid membership organizations as BNI and the ReferralInstitute, as well as local Chamber of Commerce organizations.

Referrals work.

Easy? Why easy? Well, again I'll use Crescent City Trade Exchange as an example, when a new member signs up, a Flash email is sent out to all members of the exchange proclaiming the services that the new member provides. The information in the Flash is culled from the new member's website and business information supplied by the business. These flash emails provide all the information existing members need to know that this is a company they needs to know want to begin conducting trade immediately.

Also, the method of trading credit is easy, as well! Trade is conducted with the use of a Trade Exchange Membership Credit Card, as pictured above. All trades are kept in account in the Exchange. Trade is viewed same as cash by the IRS so everything that is tax deductible in cash is also tax deductible in trade, and vice versa with all that is not eligible for tax deduction. Records are kept at  the exchange organization offices so that all members can report their trade credit exchanges at the end of the year. Easy!

Trade networks, such as Crescent City Trade, also provide additional flashes upon request by member businesses should they wish to inform the network of a new hire or a new service or product.

Such services as Plumbing, Electrical, Construction,

Media, Dental, Medical, Legal are often done on trade. Restaurant and Catering is widely available and highly sought after as a trade tool. It's also possible that employers can offer trade credit to their employees as bonuses. So, it's easy to see how trading services/goods/products may allow are large amount of cash to be freed up.

Trade or Barter...It's Easy and Brilliant, no?