Stan Thomas believed that his truck-side marketing business wouldn’t survive in 1998. His truck-side marketing business that uses a special adhesive for vinyl ads, went deep into debt. It didn’t work to reduce payroll or expenses – but joining a barter network did.
Thomas was a smart businessman who used barter, which is a cashless way to exchange goods and services to grow his business. “I took barter from a casual asset to an integral part of my business,”Thomas says, “and it did save the company from bankruptcy.”Today, Magellan Transport Media (www.Magellan-tsa.com) is a leader in its market.
Barter, the oldest form of economic activity in the world, isn’t an outdated throwback. It’s a viable solution to today’s economic problems. Modern businesses pay commission fees to be part of sophisticated business-tobusiness networks. They are granted trade credit based upon the dollar value of their products and then can use these trade credits. “purchase”Services and goods purchased from other businesses. Businesses don’t need to have cash. This allows them to reduce costs and avoid accumulating debt, while still being able supply their customers.
Thomas joined NTA Trade, a corporate barter network.www.ntatrade.comInternational Monetary Systems (IMS) has a corporate barter division called ( IMS is North America’s largest publicly traded trader company. He opened a trade account with $50,000 credit and compared the prices of other companies within the barter network. Then he bought office supplies and travel certificates using his trade dollars. Thomas today uses barter for $500,000 worth of advertising, flights, hotel stays, and other expenses every year. Thomas’ company continues to operate normally, despite the fact that other companies may reduce advertising costs in times of economic difficulty.
It takes patience and time to learn how to barter in different business situations. “Barter is not a perfect world,”Thomas. “But we think barter all the time. When I talk to people about barter, I say, ‘If you can spend your barter, be happy. If not, spend your cash.’ Barter is another form of currency, and I always try to trade value for value.”
