It would seem that barter and the Internet
would offer a near perfect blend of business and
technology. However, online barter is in its
infancy. The volatility of the online universe
is reflected in the volatility of online barter
companies.
For example, in the October 2000 issue of Inc
magazine, a panel of experts reviewed six online
barter sites. Today, only one of the six sites
still exists. Bigvine.com, the only site
recommended by the panel, was absorbed by
Allbusiness.com, then transferred to yet another
Web site, Barternet.com, in December 2001.
The bottom line—proceed cautiously with online
barter. If you’re not careful, you could end up
providing a large amount of goods and/or
services to a barter company that may go out of
business. Even with that caution, there is
undoubtedly a bright future for online barter.
It’s just a question of when that future will
arrive.
With the tremendous volatility in the online
barter marketplace, it’s important that you do
your research before you start bartering online.
Things to check on the various sites include:
-
Length of time in
business
-
Trade volume
-
Fee structure
-
Simplicity of
application and enrollment process
-
Available
inventory
-
Customer service
(can you call a real person for help?)
You’ll find a list
of online barter services and references in the
Resources section at the end of this article.
Visit all of the sites and learn as much as you
can about barter before making a decision about
which service is best for your business. And
don’t be shy about contacting the service to get
referrals to existing members.
At some point in the future, online barter sites
will be able to offer many of the same benefits
as national barter exchanges. At the present
time, however, the online world is so volatile
that small businesses might be better served by
sticking to bricks and mortar barter, especially
when first starting out in the trading game.
