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Bartering can be an ally to
small business owners looking to expand. Normally a business
owner would have to go to the bank for a loan or save enough
to finance the project. Barter is a way businesses can use
the value of their own products and services to fund company
growth.
Bartering enabled Fritz Morris, owner of Fritz Mo’s Auto
Repair in Houston, to furnish his facility with new office
furniture, a new telephone system, and a fax machine. With
the remaining trade dollars in his account, Fritz found a
computer company to develop a customer database, as well as
design and create a Web site. "I was surprised by how much
new cash business I generated simply by making a trade
decision to have a Web site designed", Fritz said. "I was
able to list all of my products and services, and even had a
system where customers could schedule their appointments
with me by e-mail. My decision to use my trade dollars
really paid off with this venture. I have new trade
customers, not to mention new cash customers, and I didn't
pay cash for any of these services". - Auto Repair issue |
| "The barter customers that
ATX delivers to me have allowed me to expand my market and
increase my revenues and profits while I still maintain my
current base of cash customers", says Chuck
Davenport, owner of CD's PCs. "Best of all, barter helps to
cushion my operating budget. I barter for such things as
office furniture, printing, advertising, a delivery service
... even trips for my sales contest winners.
"These expenses can really add up, but by using
barter, I keep the cash I would have spent on these items in
my checking account. Barter has really helped to improve my
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| Teresa McKnight, owner of Teremac Gifts
in St. Louis, says her barter clients tend to purchase upscale gift
baskets and specialty edibles from her shop, and do so year round, not
just during the holidays. Teresa has also noticed a sizeable increase in
new cash customers who patronize her shop as a result of referrals from
her trade customers.
"I recently sent a large gift basket, on behalf of one of my barter clients, to a friend who was hospitalized after undergoing heart surgery – a friend who was not part of the trade exchange," Teresa said. "The person in the hospital was the president and CEO of a large company. He was so impressed with the basket I sent that he had his secretary contact me to see if I could do 250 holiday gift baskets for their company. I'm now filling regular orders for this company, and they have become a profitable new cash customer." – Gift Basket issue |
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