Bartering With a Trade Group Or on My Own?

Barter groups will tell you that they will bring inrecommend that you do some haggling with any
business that you probably wouldn't get becausebarter group that you're looking to join.
of the geographic area they can cover. Which isDepending on what industry you're in will also
pretty much physically impossible for you to do.make a difference as the the effectiveness of a
They'll tell you that they can save you time... timebarter group versus private barter deals.
training, time pounding the pavement, timeIf you're in any of the above mentioned
managing the barter deals you make & timebusinesses, you can, with just a little learning
coming up with ways to spend your Barter dollars.& practice, make a huge difference in your
All of this is basically true. There are however,bottom line profits with a small amount of
some things that you need to be aware of thatbartering that you could put together on a local
may alter the effectiveness of a barter group.basis.
For the record... I am an advocate of barterThere's a very inexpensive service that offers
groups as long as they fit certain criteria. So youtemplates to help you present an offer to
shouldn't assume that I'm advocating privatebusinesses and also includes live training/idea
bartering over barter groups as a blanketgenerating webinars. If you'll check out Barter For
judgement. They both have their place.Cash Flow dot Com (without any spaces) on the
Here's my reality about barter clubs. PRO: Theyweb, you'll find there service to be very complete
do open a much greater geographical base ofand VERY inexpensive. They're a consulting
potential clients for you (sometimes nationally).service and don't get any commissions or
They do make it easier to make barter deals IF,residuals for what they help you do. They
you have a good rep working for you. They DOspecialize in helping you use Barter to increase
make managing your trade dollars easier if you'reyour cash flow, just as their name implies.
an active barter business. If you're new to theThe learning curve for effective barter isn't big. It
barter concept, barter groups are a decent waydefinitely is something that you get better and
to learn.more effective at with time and practice, but it
CONS: If you're not an active barterer, they'recan be easily learned. And it doesn't take a lot of
expensive. the sign up fee, in my humble opinion ismaintenance, once you understand how to create
usually too high, especially if you have a highlybarter deals that perpetuate themselves. It also
barterable business. (such as restaurant, furniture,doesn't take many trades to make several
carpet cleaner, massage therapist, hairdresser,thousand dollars difference per year to your
printer, Dr. of anything, lawn maintenance, tobusiness.
name a few).If you're going to join a barter group, you might
If you know how barter on your own you havetry "haggling" for a better price. Some will work
an advantage... in that, the barter group needswith you and others won't... kind of like everything
you more than you need them. So, I wouldelse in life!