If you've ever informally traded goods or services with friends or other businesses, you understand the most basic kind of barter (e.g. "I'll paint your restaurant if you give me meals there in return.")  That works fine as long as the painter can find a restaurant who happens to want painting done, and the restaurant is willing to trade the same value in meals.

But let's suppose the painter wants to trade to eat at a restaurant but the restaurant is not looking for painting?  That's where Exchange Enterprises comes in!

When businesses become members of Exchange Enterprises they agree to trade with each other using "barter/trade dollars," with EE acting as the bank.  Each member business has an individual account in the Exchange banking system and a debit card to use for their transactions.  EE then records all their trades, sending the members monthly statements of their transactions and trade balances.

Exchange members do business with each other using the same dollar-for-dollar values as they would in the cash world outside EE.  (When trading, $1 in trade is valued the same as $1 in cash.  So goods or services typically sold for, say $50 cash, would be sold for $50 in trade.) 

When EE members buy or sell goods or services the transactions are subtracted from the buyer's EE account and credited to the seller's EE account.  The transactions are performed using EE debit cards—similar to the bank debit cards you use in the world outside EE.

So, to follow up on our earlier example, the painter may now do work on trade for any other Exchange member, charge Exchange barter/trade dollars for the transaction, then use those barter/trade dollars in his account at a member restaurant—or anywhere else within the Exchange membership. (As well as with hundreds of other businesses across America who trade with The Exchange, too!) Or in another example:

Exchange Enterprises also provides one more major service:  we send our members business.  We match buyers with sellers.  So we help the painter find someone who needs painting, or the restaurant who wants to fill more tables, or the dentist who wants more patients.  Or any of our many other members find opportunities to buy and sell.

We're in daily telephone and email contact with our membership, helping them find barter opportunities.  We are also one of the few trade exchanges that publishes a regular, open, membership directory.  We trust our members and they trust us.

EE members quickly discover that whenever they want to buy something it pays to discover if they can trade for it, before they pay for it in cash outside The Exchange.  So they look to the Exchange membership first.  This built-in demand is what motivates customers to come to your business—when you are a member of Exchange Enterprises.

All kinds of businesses trade.  Barter is a fascinating and constantly changing menu of opportunities.  You never know what may be available today or tomorrow! 

To see samples of products and services typically available on trade, click here: What Can You Trade For?  To find out if barter may be right for your business contact us any time!