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May 6, 2008 Written
by Bob Meyer, Editor of BarterNews
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From
the desk of Bob Meyer...05/06/2008
Builders Use Barter To Pay Bills
In Tampa Bay, Florida, one home builder is out of cash and
paying his contractors with vacant building lots, because he
has more lots than cash. (Some of the lots sold for $50,000
a year ago.)
Orange County Politician Wants
TradeAmericanCard Dollars
Larry Dick, owner of Riddle Appliances, is a 20-year member
of TradeAmericanCard and a Republican candidate for the 60th
assembly district. The former councilman and water
commissioner of Orange is actively seeking donations; he
gladly accepts TAC trade dollars.
Homeseekers Barter “Their Services” For Space
For 20 years St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center in Baltimore
(MD) has run a matchmaking service, helping Baltimore
homeowners with extra space find people looking for a room
to rent. They’ve made 1,180 matches—about 60 a year.
Homesharing can be a flexible arrangement. Homeseekers
sometimes barter services in exchange for rent. The St.
Ambrose Homesharing telephone is (410) 366-6180.
Economists See Banks’ Balance Sheets Dropping
$2 Trillion
At a conference sponsored by Brandeis University and the
University of Chicago business schools, two economists and
two academics estimated that about half the mortgages
losses, or about $200 billion, will be borne by banks and
other leveraged financial institutions.
For every $1 less in capital, a bank lends roughly $10 less.
Thus the $200 in mortgaged losses, will lead them to shrink
their balance sheets by about $2 trillion...lending less and
selling assets.
South Africans Barter Real Estate
Property developer Ian Meyer’s web site is where real estate
property listings will be given a minimum of 60 days global
exposure. For more information see:
http://www.propertybarter.co.za.
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* * ANNOUNCEMENT * *
25
Years Of BarterNews Issues Now In Digital Format
Welcome to the largest
repository of barter contacts, strategies, and barter techniques in
the world. All 64 issues of BarterNews now available in
digital format at
http://www.barternews-ezine.com.
ITEX
Exploring Strategic Alternatives
ITEX
Corporation (OTCBB:ITEX), a leading marketplace for cashless
business transactions in North America, disclosed that it has
retained investment bank Montgomery & Co. as its financial advisor
to assist ITEX’s Board of Directors and management in evaluating a
range of strategic alternatives and opportunities to enhance
shareholder value.
“As our
strategic and financial advisor, Montgomery will help us evaluate a
range of strategic options and update us regarding prevailing market
conditions for mergers and acquisitions,” said Steve White,
Chairman/CEO of ITEX.
“ITEX continues
to advance and execute well and we believe the time has come to
engage an experienced advisor to build on our success. With
Montgomery’s strong track-record helping technology companies, we
look forward to leveraging their experience to maximize shareholder
value,” he concluded.
No timetable
has been set for completion of the review, and there can be no
assurance that this process will result in any specific strategic or
financial transaction. ITEX does not intend to update its progress
or disclose developments with respect to potential initiatives
unless the Board of Directors has approved a definitive course of
action or transaction.
For more
information on ITEX visit
http://www.itex.com.
Montgomery &
Co. is a provider of merger and acquisition advisory, private
placements, and private equity for companies in the media,
communications, information technology and healthcare sectors. The
firm offers its clients in-depth industry knowledge, financial
expertise, access to key relationships and a high degree of customer
service.
For more
information go to
http://www.monty.com.
Changes In Corporate Barter
A new service
by eWorld Asset Trading will allow companies to list assets
discreetly online, and then receive realistic estimates of their
value in regard to media the company has historically bought. The
new service is a wholly-owned subsidiary of KSL Media, one of the
largest independent media agencies in the nation.
The eWorld
model brings simplicity and integrity to corporate trade. A simple
contract replaces the 30-page legalese documents that have become
standard in the field. All facets of a prospective client’s business
operation—from financial and marketing management to product sales
and distribution to advertising agencies and media departments—are
included in every aspect of the transaction from the beginning. And
all exchange-of-asset agreements are made in concert.
Another element
is the discreet source for quotes. A corporate officer simply fills
out a registration form online, lists type and volume of assets to
be valued, and their interest in specific media types. Within 48
hours, the eWorld team provides a realistic estimate of the asset
recovery value and a preliminary list of media offerings based on
the client’s historical buying pattern.
The estimate
establishes a starting point for a business relationship, with
eWorld facilitating trade transactions that reduce cash spending by
using certain assets.
This Week’s BarterNews Blog Featured. . .
-
Western
Sizzlin’ still pursuing ITEX...extends exchange offer again! (Click
here.)
-
“BARTER
INVESTORS” are early stage investors, often becoming wealthy in
the process. See the 7 characteristics of a barter investor... (Click
here.)
-
Attention
TRADE EXCHANGE OWNERS...thousands of visitor every month visit
our BARTER CONTACTS section on our web site to view the names &
addresses of barter companies in the USA. If YOUR exchange isn’t
listed, or the information is incorrect, you can correct the
situation by using the forms to the lower left of the USA map.
(Click
here.)
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Affluents Conservative In Spending
They may not be
struggling to gas up the Lexus, but even affluents are losing their
economic nerve, according to a new study, with 70% of them believing
the U.S. economy is on the skids.
Unity
Marketing’s Luxury Consumption Index fell to 54.4 points—its lowest
ever—with 41% of luxury consumers reporting that they plan to spend
less on luxury goods in the year ahead.
Unity, a firm
specializing in marketing to affluent consumers, says the latest
drop of 9.1 points this quarter follows a steep decline (23.8
points) at the close of the fourth-quarter 2007. While the
confidence index first began to tick downward last March, evidence
of plans to curtail spending didn’t crop-up until later in the year.
Now, the company says in its study, “we expect luxury consumers to
be conservative in their spending at least until the Presidential
election, when new leadership may provide an emotional lift.”
What that means
for marketers is that these consumers are going to be more resistant
to luxury messages. While 41% of luxury consumers say they expect to
spend less on luxury in the next twelve months, only 13% expect to
spend more. And 71% say the overall financial health of the country
is worse now than it was three months ago.
While the good
news is that the index detected an uptick in home luxury good
spending, which it says may indicate that the decline in confidence
is bottoming out, there are other signs that those catering to the
affluent are feeling a little pain. An AP report says that Blake W.
Nordstrom, president of Nordstrom, which has been one of the
strongest performing luxury chains, took a 36% cut in compensation
last year.
For marketers,
the trick is providing luxury goods so compelling that well-shod
consumers just can’t say no.
JustLuxe.com
recently introduced LuxeConcepts, for example, which combines a
personal-shopping twist with its web offerings, personally
introducing a prospective buyer to the specific vendor, whether it’s
a $220,000 yacht charter to the Greek Islands or a $6,500 handmade
handbag from a world-renowned designer.
The site has
about 500,000 unique visitors, and Gilbert Gautereaux, president of
LuxeMont, a vertical media company with a community of upscale web
sites, including JustLuxe, says he expects revenues to increase 40%
this year.
While Unity’s
study focuses on consumers earning $100,000 plus per year (with an
average income of $173,400 and age of 45.9 years) Gautereaux says
he’s seeing signs that the really rich—the 1% or so of the
population earning $1 million or more per year—are also feeling
constrained, but in different ways.
Even
millionaires are delaying their purchases, he notes. “That seems
particularly true if much of their wealth is based in real estate,”
he says, adding that people don’t seem that nervous about the stock
market’s volatility. “I think at this level, people really
understand the ebb and flow of markets, and their portfolios are
pretty well balanced.” At JustLuxe.com, for example, travel
continues to be the most searched and purchased area, followed by
yacht charters, and private aircraft.
And even among
the very rich, with $15 million or more, he says that while spending
isn’t down, people are tending to behave a little more
conservatively around their splurges, perhaps as much due to the
green movement as the economy. Private jets are repositioning
themselves as tools, not toys—appealing to consumers on the time
versus money equation.
The Real Reasons Employees Leave, And
How To Keep The Best
By Jim Welch
Why do people leave teams and organizations?
The #1 reason people leave jobs is because they fail to connect with
their bosses as leaders and as people. People are rarely honest
about why they leave a company. Too many associates that depart
follow Jimmy Conway’s advice in the 1990 hit movie Goodfellas,
who told Henry Hill, “Never rat on your friends and keep your mouth
shut.”
There is no upside incentive for the employee
to be open and honest. Think about it! The primary reason people
leave companies is because of the relationship and lack of emotional
connection with their boss. However, it is almost never talked about
in the exit interview. Why? Who wants to burn a bridge with a boss
they may need for a future job reference? It is easier to talk about
work/life balance, moving on to build your skill sets, or the need
to make more money.
Salary is much further down the list as a
reason to leave than what is usually reported in exit interviews.
What is your current game plan to keep your best people? While most
companies talk a great deal about the need to retain the best people
to sustain growth, they lack an integrated game plan to create
retention momentum.
As a leader, you are personally accountable to
acquire and retain the very best people. It is that simple. If you
fail to recruit and retain the top talent, you will not sustain
growth over time. At the end of the day, the effective leader must
embrace a plan to retain the very best talent.
Emotional Connection Points
Emotional connections provide the fuel that
greatly enhance retention. It is driven by the trust and development
of your individual team members. It starts with building your
emotional connections with each team member.
The power of the “unexpected” is the most
powerful way to emotionally connect with another person. Think about
it! Do you get more credit with your significant other for sending a
hand written note when they least expect it? Of course you do! The
same concept applies to you as a leader. It is the “unexpected”
things a leader does that really make the difference. Some examples:
1. Write a personal, handwritten note or send a
greeting card to the spouses or significant others telling them what
a difference their partner is making to your business.
2. Take the employee to breakfast, lunch or
dinner (if appropriate), asking them what “really matters” to them
and what you can do as a leader to help them build their future
dreams
3. Take your entire team out together to
celebrate a special event. For example, when I was with Hallmark, I
would take my team out every year for a holiday dinner in the
private dining room of a local restaurant. I would go around the
room and say something special about each of the team members at the
end of the meeting. The primary message delivered in front of the
entire team focused on the unique skill sets each person brings to
the table throughout the year to make us all successful.
4. Place a call to a significant influencer or
key family member in their lives. You should make phone calls to
fathers and mothers if you believe it will make a difference to your
best employees. Always ask permission first if you are going to
contact anyone beyond the spouse. It is impossible to know without
asking whether a call to someone’s parents would be comfortable for
an employee or not. You also should follow any laws or rules
regarding employee privacy.
5. Create a surprise outing as part of a team
business trip. For example, I took my team on a business trip to the
West Coast. While on the trip, we made an “unexpected” stop at “The
Rock” (Alcatraz) in San Francisco. This created wonderful
experiences that directly enhanced team bonding.
6. Create local, enjoyable activities for the
team. These events are fun team activities that should be done
during regular business hours to truly be appreciated. Weekend team
activities that cut into individual personal time are almost always
guaranteed to land with a giant thud. Remember, your team wants you
to be a great leader. They are not looking for another weekend
friend.
7. Utilize your boss to deliver special praise
for a job well done in a one-on-one meeting with your team member.
If you are not a CEO, you can engage the person you report to, to
conduct a one-on-one meeting with your best performing team members.
Again, this meeting should be unexpected and
focus on results and accomplishments as well as the recognition of
the unique strengths of the individual. If you are a CEO, having a
key member of the Board of Directors call one of your best people
just to tell them how much they are appreciated will go a long way
toward retention.
8. Create an unexpected personalized memento
for individual team members celebrating the accomplishment of a
major event.
Retailer Connection
Ron Cox, an Ace TruValue Hardware owner in
Appleton (WI), represents a great example of emotionally connecting
with employees. Ron sent a handwritten note and gift card to the
significant other of each of his star employees, to let them know
how much their spouse meant to his store as a highly valued employee
and person.
These emotional connections will be transferred
to the customer as Ron’s staff “pays it forward.” In the 2000 movie
Pay It Forward, Kevin Spacey indicated that sometimes the
smallest things make the biggest difference, and by using random
acts of kindness you can “pay it forward.” This will work very well
from you to your employees, and in turn to your customers.
Big
Foot
I have always had a habit as a leader of
stomping my feet when I walk down the hallway. People could always
hear my size 12 loafers before we made visual contact. This habit
has followed me throughout my career. During my early years I was
counseled to walk slower and talk lower if I really wanted to move
into senior management ranks.
My teams always had fun with my foot stomping
on a regular basis. In fact, I was given the unexpected gift of a
“big boot” from my team that was placed on a plaque with the
inscription “Big Foot…Keep on Stompin’.” Everyone had a great deal
of fun with this award at my expense. I loved it!
Combine all of these emotional connections with
self-effacing humor. Always remember, humor at the expense of your
team almost always removes deposits from the emotional connection
bank. Take your job seriously, but go crazy making fun of yourself.
Your team will love it. Humor also relaxes your team and reduces
tension. Why was the movie and television series M*A*S*H so
successful? They conveyed humor that was so necessary to maintain
sanity in a horrific situation.
Home
Turf
Don’t forget how the little things can make a huge
difference. For example, instead of always having your people meet
with you in your office, go visit them on their home turf. It is a
sign of mutual respect. The ironic part is that by going to their
home base, you give up your legitimate management authority to that
person. They will actually see you as a more confident and caring
leader. The location of the meeting is a little thing that makes a
big difference. You will increase your effectiveness as a leader
when you visit your people’s home turf regularly.
Make Time To Connect
Remember, people do not usually leave
organizations. They leave their leaders. If you lose enough good
people, your organization will be unable to grow. The effective
leader understands that emotional connections to the leader are the
most powerful retention devices in the tool kit.
If this is all true, why do leaders so often
fail to build these emotional connections with their people? Because
it takes time and places many leaders outside their comfort zones,
thus increasing their vulnerability. It is easier to tackle those 85
e-mails sitting in your in-box.
What many leaders fail to realize is that they
are actually more vulnerable if they choose not to invest the time
to do it. How does the time needed to replace all your top talent
compare with the investment you need to make to emotionally connect
with your people? You need to invest every day.
Jim Welch is
founder and president of The Growth Leader, a business leadership
consulting firm, and principal owner in LeadershipFuelNow, working
with Fortune 500 clients and entrepreneurs. Welch was previously
Senior VP of Marketing at Hallmark, and played a key sales role in
the marketing of products for Procter & Gamble.
He is the
author of Grow Now: 8 Essential Steps to Flex your Leadership
Muscles. His web site is
www.thegrowthleader.com.
Hotel
General Managers
Work With Audio/Visual
Vendor On Barter
Collect cash, as usual, from the guest accounts staying at
your facility that require the use of professional AV
services. And rather than shouldering your ongoing employee
costs, or your current vendor’s cash agreement for AV
services, here’s a much better alternative:
Work with a proven national vendor (a sterling 25-year track
record) who will provide all of the AV services for your
hotel on a 100% TRADE BASIS! (Payment to be in the form of
trade dollars.)
Your hotel’s annual AV billings must be a minimum of
$200,000, and this offer is available only in the
continental United States.
For a confidential introduction contact Bob Meyer via
e-mail:
bmeyer@barternews.com.
Attention Trade Exchange Owners:
If your member hotel(s) have a minimum of 10,000 sq. feet of
meeting space and annual billings of at least $200,000 for
AV services this is a great opportunity to earn substantial
cash service fees on the hundreds of thousands of trade
dollars your hotel member will be paying the vendor. Contact
Bob Meyer at the above e-mail. |
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The Growth and Use of Secondary Capital (New Money) Creates
Unprecedented Wealth In Today’s New Age Of Possibility
There are
many forms of secondary capital—which can be defined as any
financial instrument that measures and communicates value in a
common language. Would you like to see and learn more about the many
forms of secondary capital?
We have 70
free, informative and inspiring, articles for you in our “Secondary
Capital Section.” Check it out...
www.barternews.com/secondary_capital.htm.
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