We’ve all heard about trade by barter. Most of us practiced it as kids growing up with our siblings and classmates. Examples are a pack of cards in exchange for some shiny marbles or a doll for a diary. Perhaps it was because we didn’t have money to buy these things and so we we’re bound to get what we want using what we have. Some ladies have used the terminology and given it new meaning, but that is a different story still.
Trade by barter is a method of exchange by which goods or services are directly exchanged with a different set of goods or services, without using a medium of exchange such as money. No cash is involved in an ideal case. In such cases value is the preferred scale of measurement not price.
These days especially with the world economy just recovering from a recession, cash money seems to be hard to come by sometimes. But our needs as business owners are ever pressing as usual. Perhaps it is time to take a step back and look on ways to save precious cash money to pay your staff salaries and then cut on the overheads and major recurrent expenses through offering of your goods or services.
As a partner in one of the nation’s fast growing consultancy firms, we’ve quickly found out that the prices of organization’s services are usually overrated by firm’s who are more than willing to be more generous or agreeable when there’s no financial commitment by means of actual parting of cash. The brain registers a pain level during any cash expenses and individuals and corporations alike have a certain “pain threshold” they call a yearly working budget. However from experience I know most organizations if not all, will bust their yearly budgetary plans if a business proposal has no tangible financial obligations on their part.
A mechanic workshop would give us a year of free maintenance for our official vehicles in exchange for advertorials. A government agency would consent to us the use of their logo and brand value in exchange for publicity and a more favourable P/R within the community. For a free interactive website, we could have a free booking on an airline for a 6 month period, okay frankly we’re still working on nailing that but you get my drift.
In today’s current economy a solopreneur (a one-man business) or entrepreneur must be really creative and think laterally, drawing imaginary connecting dots and lines on the possible needs of others and how his services could satisfy both the need of another organisation and his/hers without any major debit entry on the balance sheet. Even big organizations and in cases countries with good bi-lateral ties partake it this practice of trade credit.
Now there are certain rules in this gentlemanly game of trade by barter that must be adhered to in order to develop a meaningful insightful relationship that lasts far longer than money can buy.
Rule 1: Don’t say what you can’t deliver: It’s easy to get carried away and make promises with an indefinite timeline that you’ll probably get tired of and getting out seems trickier than staying in; at least not without a legal wrangling. A media consultant offering free advertising for an event that’s supposed to come up within a month’s period may have some issues if the date is postponed by 6 months.
Rule 2: Keep it simple. State exchange terms clearly and in some cases if it’s on black and white, the better. A contract is there to avoid ambiguity and risk and is necessary even if the managing director of the other party is your golf buddy. One service for another equals value service in return; try not to bundle different sets of goods or services in exchange for a different set of equally unrelated goods/services which you may offer or have in stock. A legal firm might find it easier to offer its tax related services to a publishing house but would rather not extend their legal services if the publisher later comes with an expensive divorce case settlement.
Rule 3: Think of the other person’s needs and try to match it with what you’ve got to offer. Don’t go out there looking like a perfect clown by offering a company what they already have or worse don’t really need!
Rule 4: Have respect for the client and treat him/her as though they were your most valued partners. These clients from experience are going to be your best brand ambassadors and would give you referrals like they were hungry marketers working for a commission. You get far more than you ever bargained for!
Within the past year, using these guidelines we’ve managed to rack up invaluable media placements, goodwill and brand exposure using creative thinking and trade by barters with various organizations both great and small. It’s exciting and works beautifully if you only follow these rules! Imagine a free hotel front desk office in exchange for referrals for your upcoming conference or nationwide event. Or a few pages of advertising in exchange for designing a website for a new upstart magazine or newspaper. Or my best trade by barter scenario yet, a free pair of designer sunglasses each to the 33 brave miners in Chile by Oakley in exchange for over $44 million worth of media exposure worldwide! An eye for an eye!
So go ahead, dare to be more creative and imaginative and just give it a shot. You can thank me later.
Good Luck!
Ebuka J.P Anichebe is the Managing Director of Jean-Paul and Associates Consultancy. He has an uncommon approach to marketing media consulting, business development and brand building. He’ll like to hear your views on this article and more, write to him at ebuka@jeanpaulconsult.com or call 07040448749
