Ever wonder how people acquired items before money was invented? They bartered for them. This process has been around since ancient times, when workers would exchange their services for food items. Bartering simply means trading goods or services without using cash – it’s the basic principle of “You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours”. Bartering is a popular type of transaction between many business owners, and for good reason – they can make barter dollars and unload excess inventory without using cash. To find out if bartering is right for your company, keep reading:
If your business requires goods or services but lacks the cash to buy them, you can barter for them instead. There are some products your company might need that are out of your reach. For example, maybe you need a website redesign, a new logo, or furniture for the office. These are all important assets that run a high price tag and might be too much for a small business to afford. To offset this cost, consider trading instead. Do you have unused time slots that you can use to barter with? Kill two birds with one stone – make use of your unused resources and gain barter dollars in the process.
With a B2B barter network, the process of trading is easier than ever. You aren’t limited to bartering with the one business that traded with you – instead, you can view other companies on the website to find what suits your needs. Imagine a trade between a computer technician and a hairstylist. The hairstylist might need repairs on their laptop, but the technician might not be interested in a new hairdo. With a bartering network, the technician will receive barter dollars for their services that they can use elsewhere. Everyone in the transaction gets what they want, without comprising. That’s the advantage of barter dollars – they’re more versatile than direct trading.
Businesses that benefit most from bartering are those with perishable goods. Items with a limited shelf life are best unloaded quickly – when they can’t be sold, barter with them instead. A few examples are food items that will expire or vacant hotel rooms that will go unused. Without bartering, these resources would go to waste. The ability to trade means that you’ll maximize revenue for your business. Not only does bartering save you from spending cash, but it prevents you from losing it, too.
Do you have piles of unused inventory gathering dust? Some items are hard to move after they’ve sat in your store for too long. But they might be exactly what someone is looking for on a bartering network. During slow quarters, it’s hard to make sales, especially if you offer seasonal services like lawn care or air conditioner repair. How do you stay afloat when customers are busy elsewhere? In these cases, bartering is very profitable. It allows you to make sales when you wouldn’t have otherwise.
Bartering works best when it’s used for surplus inventory and open time slots. Businesses like plumbing services can benefit from bartering. When everyone’s toilet flushes and their taps run smoothly, it can be difficult to operate a plumbing business at full capacity. Sitting around and twiddling your thumbs as you wait for calls to come in is a waste of your time and resources. When bartering services, your business can make full use of its inventory and availability. A plumber can fix a clogged drain and receive something they need in return, like advertising time on a radio station.
Does your small business need more customers? Start-up companies often struggle to stay afloat during the early years, simply because they have a limited amount of clients, cash, and exposure. By joining a bartering network, your services will be exposed to a wider range of people. The prospect of paying cash to a company with a limited history can be intimidating – with a bartering network, this obstacle is bypassed, as other businesses can barter for it instead. After they have good experiences with your company, they’ll be likely to pass on good referrals through word of mouth.
Joining a bartering network provides a form of advertisement for your company. Without the funds for marketing campaigns, many new businesses struggle to get the word out about themselves. There is so much competition that it’s hard to set yourself apart. When people aren’t familiar with your company, it’s hard to get your foot in the door. You can use bartering to grow your business. It gives you a reach across the entire bartering network. As other companies search for ways to spend their barter dollars, they’ll come across your business and will see what you offer. This will raise recognition of your brand name.
Bartering can be a great help to many businesses, but it’s not the best option for everyone. Trading is not meant to replace cash flow altogether; instead, it’s a way to supplement it. Ideal candidates for bartering are companies who have excess inventory and unused resources, like food suppliers and service providers. If your business matches this description, then bartering might be perfect for you.
