Like any business barter has its share of professional con artists. With the ability of the internet to create a virtual reputation, con artists stand prepared to take your goods, services and money. They also stand prepared to ruin your reputation with virtual impunity.
An organization released a press release on the 27th of July claiming to have suspended the membership of a barter exchange for failing to respond to an investigation into unspecified “charges”. The organization itself had built a virtual reputation through over a year of press contacts and has been quoted by print and online news organizations like Business Week.
The organization in question had made a big deal of requiring its members to have a “brick-and-mortar” presence and not merely an online presence. In this day and age, customer service requires any serious business to have an online presence; in fact an online presence is more important than an unverifiable address in a distant city for most customers. The organization itself has no online presence and only the unverifiable address in a distant location.
Following the lead of Yahoo News, PRWeb and numerous other news outlets, I’m removing the original story. Without naming either the organization that released the story or the barter exchange involved, I’m going to replace that story with these words of caution:
- Insist on a web presence whether for a barter exchange or anyone claiming to rate or monitor them. In today’s world, no web presence means a lack of customer service. In a barter exchange, it also means a much more limited selection of available barter partners and reflects an exchange that is not making best use of available technology. In a nonprofit organization it signifies a lack of organization and commitment.
- Insist on a customer service phone number.
- Check for complaints with the company’s local Better Business Bureau.
- Look for companies that are members of the IRTA or NATE, where it makes sense to do so.
- Ask for references.
- Find a company by personal referral where possible.
Attention: This post has drawn a large number of comments clearly intended to draw me into an ongoing dispute, of which there is no public record, creating potential legal liability for the site owner. Comments are closed on this post. Any attempt to circumvent the closing of comments on this topic will be considered an attempt to “hack” the site and will be reported to appropriate authorities along with full server logs. Such attempts may also result in referral to an attorney for civil action.
BarterBucks has an offer for BarterCard users:
Turn those lost BarterCard credits into found BarterBucks credits.
We will match Barter Card credits with Barter Bucks as follows.
The member must open two Barter Bucks accounts.
Barter Bucks account for new business. Cash fees 5% on the sale + 5% on the purchase
Barter Bucks-BarterCard This account will be used to place the BarterCard credits.
Cash fee 10% on the purchase. By keeping the BarterCard credits separate they are not
taxed as new income. IRS says you can trade credits for credits tax free.
When you spend all of your BarterCard credits we will close this account.
Barter Bucks will release BarterCard credits in equal amounts on the purchase.
Example- Member must spend ½ from Barter Bucks account & ½ from BarterCard account.
Fax a copy of your last statement from BarterCard.
www.barterbucks.us
BarterCard
Barter has hit the major media in a big way over the weekend as the news that Kyle MacDonald has bartered his way from one red paperclip to a free year rental on a house in Phoenix (with many many trades along the way). MacDonald has been able to trade on one thing most barterers don’t have - the notoriety and novelty of his quest to barter his way from owning a paperclip to actually owning a home - but has nonetheless shown the power of barter. He has simply applied the basic power of barter - that something we have a surplus of may be worth more to someone who doesn’t have any - through an extended and aggressive series of trades. And it’s a fun story….
“It’s totally overwhelming; I’m not going to lie,” he said by phone from Montreal, where he and his girlfriend, Dominique Dupuis, live with two roommates. “But I’m still trading for that house. It’s this obsessive thing.”
FOXNews.com - Man Trades Red Paper Clip for Desert Abode - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment
red paperclip,paperclip trader
The Company Doctor Scott Clark explains that carrying stale inventory is a poor idea for several reasons.
These shortsighted business owners maintain this aging, stale inventory without taking into consideration the fact that value of their obsolete inventory is diminishing over time, while the carrying cost associated with maintaining that inventory keep accruing. Therefore, at some point in time, the cost of maintaining obsolete inventory actually exceeds the sales value of that inventory, resulting in a negative impact on the company’s financial statements.
The best strategy according to Clark is to “dump stale inventory as quickly as possible” and one way of doing that is to barter away that inventory for things the company needs, either through a barter network or through direct barter. Clark also offers several nonbarter ideas for disposing of the aging inventory that you can’t barter away.
Washington Business Journal: Company Doctor
inventory,barter
Inventory Control with MerchantOS is easy. Use your web browser to manage your point of sale and inventory control. No more computer head aches.
Dallas-based Trade USA started a website as nothing more than an advertisement for their bricks and mortar barter exchange where clients traded on a 1,200 square foot showroom floor. They recently teamed with DoBarter software to take their exchange and their local clients online and international.
Before Trade USA had a Web site, clients visited a 1,200-square-foot showroom in Dallas filled with barter items. When the Wilbers joined with Do Barter, an international network of barter exchanges, their trade exchange went from the showroom, with about 300 local members, to an international network of 195,000 members.
Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Lakewood/M Streets News
international barter,Trade USA
