BarterIssue 1, 2014For businesses who connect

MagIssue 1, 2014For businesses who connect

The Latin Store story From Ashfield to the QVB

Cash customers,Big Screens and big picture Winning cash contracts

The Big SpringsRiverina story Springing into new marketswith Bartercard

Swampdog

A 13 year partnership

Sustainable fish and chips on Bartercard!

Queensland Reds

Bartercard is with you. Bartercard offers national and international accommodation packages.

One of the many ways to conserve cash and improve your lifestyle...with Bartercard.

Whether you go for business or pleasure...

Welcome to Bartercard’s first edition of Barter Mag– for businesses who connect.

I am often asked when speaking with business people just how

Bartercard works and whilst I can give you a simplistic answer I find

that by sharing member’s stories, you will gain a greater understanding

of how it works in a practical sense.

I invite you to read through the various member stories, get to know

these business people and I encourage you to recognise challenges

that you may be facing in your business today. Each one of these

stories will give you an understanding of how Bartercard has been able

to assist each business owner. They are all from different walks of life

and different industries but Bartercard has been used strategically to

address many of the challenges they face every day.

If you have cash flow issues, stock you want to move, downtime, or you

simply want to grow, expand or improve your business then we would

love to work with you.

Over the past twelve months we have worked with over 20,000

Australian businesses that have conducted business through our

network in excess of $440 Million. This figure demonstrates extra

business generated and cash savings that businesses across the

country have achieved through barter.

Each month we welcome over 150 new businesses to Bartercard and

we thrive on helping them to grow, achieve their business goals and

improve their lifestyle.

As Founder of Bartercard my mission has and always will be to improve

the lives of our members by helping them tap into the unrealised

potential in their business. As we enter 2014, we look forward to

welcoming more new and exciting businesses to our network.

We believe in connecting businesses and connecting people – this is

what business is about.

Enjoy our member stories.

Best regards,

Brian Hall

CEO and Founder Bartercard International Group

From Painting to Publishing

- by accident 4

The Latin Store Story 5

What is Bartercard? 6

Swampdog - Sustainable fish

and chips on Bartercard! 7

Cash customers, Big Screens

and big picture 8

Cutting deals & ‘trading up’ 9

Top 10 Networking Tips 10

The Big Springs Riverina story 11

Could you Barter your

way to success? 12

Wet, wild and wonderful

in Cairns 13

Bartercard events 14

Queensland Rugby Union 16-17

The Bartercard Charity

Foundation…

a new way to give 18-19

Testimonials 20

Contents

Published by Bartercard Australia

Level 2, 121 Scarborough Street

Southport Qld 4215

1300 BARTER (1300 227 837)

bartercard.com.au

After operating a professional painting

business for 15 years, Nigel met

with an accident and snapped the

ligaments and tendons in his ankle. No longer

able to climb ladders or work at heights, Nigel

was forced to look at income alternatives.

Caroline had been staying home to care for

the children, and had to return to work. It was

a stressful time for them both. Recalling it

Nigel said “I’d been in the painting business

for 15 years and had 12 people working for

me. I didn’t know how to do anything else.”

Turning lemons into lemonadeClearly that wasn’t true, but it did take

several months for the couple to stumble

onto an idea that worked. After attending

a Dale Beaumont seminar where the topic

of online magazines came up, the idea

of Aussie Painting Contractor - the online

magazine for the Australian painting industry

- was born. It was an idea that allowed

Nigel to use his industry expertise and

Caroline to use her experience in education

and communication design. Together,

they set up Aussie Painters’ Network

and began to educate and disseminate

information to the painting industry.

The publication now goes out to a database

of over 10,000. It’s a free publication and

the income is derived from advertising and

from inexpensive website memberships.

It was a significant challenge in the

beginning as neither had much publishing

experience and the enterprise was starting

from scratch. Some months after start-up,

they joined Bartercard at the suggestion

of a friend. “It took us about six months

to get a good understanding of how to

use Bartercard effectively” Nigel said, “but

once we understood it, things took off.”

Aussie Painters Network offer advertising

space via Bartercard, offering members a

way to use their trade dollars to promote

their businesses, while building up the

publication. Nigel said “I had to start

somewhere. Big brands aren’t going to

advertise in a magazine until it’s established

and others are advertising. Now we

have some big names advertising.”

Building the brand on BartercardNigel and Caroline understood that the

best way to make their trade dollars work

was to use it in ways that built their brand

and brought cash clients to the business.

Through Bartercard, Aussie Painters Network

sponsors a football club and professional

Australian golfer, Jason Norris. They

also sponsored the 2013 Victorian PGA

Championship. This was able to build up

their brand and promote their product to

their target audience into the cash market.

Aussie Painters Network has already

graduated from a home office to commercial

premises and according to Nigel, “It wouldn’t

have happened as quickly if we hadn’t

used Bartercard the way we did”.

In addition to the sponsorships, printing,

signage, promotional items and other

marketing costs are put on Bartercard, along

with a portion of other regular business

expenses including phones, a cleaning

service, office furniture, data cabling and a

bookkeeper. Nigel estimates that they’ve

conserved over $100,000 in two years by

making good use of Bartercard. They’re

happy to accept Bartercard clients for

advertising in the publication, and for

their new App building business. “We

do about 25-30% in Bartercard trade,

and about 40% for the App business,

but we just can’t get enough. We don’t

have trouble spending it at all.”

Some people will always turn life’s lemons into lemonade. We suspect Nigel is one of them.

“It took me about six months to get a good understanding of how to use the Bartercard effectively” he said, “but once I understood it, things took off.”

Nigel and Caroline Gorman are well known to many Bartercard members in Brisbane, as the enthusiastic couple who run the Aussie Painters Network website and magazine, and (more recently) develop apps for businesses. What many don’t know is that had Nigel not suffered a serious injury 3 years ago, we may never have heard of them at all.

From Painting to Publishing - by accident

Building a brand

BarterMag4

When Veronica and Patricia Avila joined Bartercard some 4 years ago, they had already established The Latin Store, selling South American products from colourful bags to lush alpaca wool blankets. It was a great idea and Veronica and Patricia had sourced some beautiful products – but the store was in a not-so-great location in suburban Sydney. Now, The Latin Store is adding some colour to the Queen Victoria Building (QVB) in Sydney’s CBD.

Using all their smarts – and the skills

of a very special Bartercard Trade

Co-ordinator (Account Manager)

named Katinka Zagon, the sisters

transformed their fledgling business into

a thriving success story. For Veronica,

being a Bartercard member has been

a journey filled with pleasant surprises.

While they joined for the purpose of

gaining new clients and moving more

stock, she soon discovered that they

could do so much more with their trade

dollars. “Every time I encountered a

challenge, it seemed Bartercard was

part of the answer. Now when I find a

challenge I immediately think ‘I wonder if

I can use Bartercard…’ and I call Katinka!”

From Veronica’s point of view, a major

benefit in joining Bartercard was that it

allowed their business to grow much

faster than they could have if they’d

had to rely on cash sales. She found

they were able to sell stock quickly

and easily on Bartercard, and had no

trouble finding ways to invest their trade

dollars. Purchasing accommodation in

trade dollars helped them to afford the

opportunity to exhibit their products

at major shows interstate including the

Brisbane Exhibition and the annual trade

shows in Melbourne and Adelaide.

While the sisters have been able to

purchase a number of useful items

with their trade dollars – printing,

photography, a cash register, signage

and more – their favourite purchase so

far has been the services of a high level

business coach who would normally

not have been available to them, even

if they could have afforded to pay cash

for his sought after services. Veronica

and Patricia weren’t seeking a business

coach at the time, but Katinka knew

where they wanted to take their business,

and she knew just the person to help.

Since then, The Latin Store has gone

from strength to strength. Veronica

and Patricia moved the store from

Ashfield to King Street in Newtown,

gaining better exposure. When their

lease on the Newtown store wasn’t

renewed they turned that ‘challenge’

into an opportunity – and upgraded to

a prime CBD location in Sydney’s QVB.

For Veronica, one of the best things about

being a Bartercard member is being

able to network and learn from other

members. It’s helped her learn how to

use their trade dollars wisely, and opened

up doors she didn’t know existed, and

the learning hasn’t stopped. “On a recent

Bartercard cruise I spoke to people who’d

bought multiple properties using trade

dollars. It was so interesting! I heard all

sorts of ideas that hadn’t occurred to me.”

Around 8-10% of The Latin Store turnover

is in trade dollars. With the help of Katinka,

Veronica and Patricia plan to enter the

UK market in the near future which will

enable them to continue selling winter

products like alpaca wool blankets during

the Australian summer months. Patricia

is happy to recommend Bartercard to

others and says you shouldn’t worry if

you get off to a slow start because “the

more you use it, the better you get at it.”

From Ashfield to the QVB

The Latin Store Story

Katinka

- or should we call her Ka-ching-kaWhen Bartercard Trade Co-

ordinator, Katinka Zagon met

Veronica and Patricia four

years ago it was a perfect

match. The sisters were full

of enthusiasm, ideas and

both had a positive attitude.

They both wanted to grow

their business and were

open to ideas and advice.

With a marketing and

public relations background,

Katinka immediately saw

the tremendous potential for

The Latin Store and knew

she could help Veronica and

Patricia achieve their goals.

A Trade Co-ordinator of

over 10 years’ experience,

Katinka has a reputation in

Bartercard circles for getting

things done. She believes that

members need to think big

when using Bartercard and

use it in ways that take them

closer to their business goals.

She’s disappointed when they

don’t. “When I ask someone

what they want to ‘do’ with

Bartercard, I always hope

the answer will be ‘I want to

expand my business’ not just

‘I want a removalist’. Sure, I

can find a removalist – but

it’s more exciting helping

people who have a vision to

achieve it. It’s in my nature.”

“Tell me what you

want to do and

together we will

find a way.”Issue 1, 2014 5

Business growth

1. More customersMost businesses employ sales people, advertise, reduce

prices or offer incentives to gain more customers. By using

Bartercard you gain more customers by promoting your

business directly to the membership base through the

many sales channels and by building relationships at the

networking events. It’s like having an extra marketing arm

in your business which directly results in increasing your

sales opportunities and creating cash referral business.

2. The power of Bartercard trade dollarsWhen you barter-trade using Bartercard you are

ultimately buying with your cost of goods or

services. Therefore, you are buying at the purchasing

discount that is inbuilt into your margin.

To put simply, if it costs you 35c in the dollar to

provide your product or service, then for every

$100 trade you spend it really only costs you $35.

So you are in fact buying at a 65% discount!

By understanding this benefit you may be starting to

grasp the power that Bartercard offers businesses.

3. Reduce cash expensesThe way to maximise your purchasing discount is to look

at all the current expenses that you have in your business

such as advertising, bookkeeping, legal, printing, graphic

designers, business lunches and so on and so on. By using

business members within the Bartercard network you can

pay for these expenses with trade dollars instead of cash.

To give you a snapshot - Bartercard currently has

500 advertising/media companies like radio and

magazines, 188 bookkeepers, 294 printers, 1,570

restaurants and cafes and 216 graphic designers! The

spending options for your business are enormous;

therefore your cash savings are also enormous.

4. Sell excess stockFor many businesses selling excess stock means

discounting, running dealer promotions or sadly writing

off the stock. The benefit with Bartercard is you sell excess

or discontinued stock at the normal selling price avoiding

the need to reduce your profit margins. You can promote

your excess stock to the 20,000 members on Bartercard’s

auction site, online store, promote your goods in the

eNewsletter or book a stand at the many trade shows.

5. Capture lost revenueMost businesses have a certain amount of downtime,

be it on certain days or at certain times of the year with

the flux of seasonal trends. Bartercard’s goal is to assist

you to gain additional customers to utilise business

downtime. For example, hairdressers may fill empty spots

in their diaries, restaurateurs may fill empty tables, hotels

may fill empty rooms, and professionals may fill empty

appointments with additional Bartercard customers.

By filling downtime you are effectively gaining revenue

that you would otherwise have lost or missed out on.

6. Interest free line of creditBartercard members receive an interest free line of

credit ranging from $5,000 to $25,000 trade dollars

which allows them to make purchases immediately

upon joining the Bartercard network. This interest

free line of credit allows you to continue to grow your

business even during times when your cash flow has

slowed, without incurring crippling interest rates.

6 benefits for business...

What is Bartercard?Bartercard is a business network made up of over 20,000 members in Australia and 55,000 around the world. It is designed to assist businesses to improve cash flow and reduce cash expenses through the use of modern bartering.

Gone are the days of swapping a cow for a pig or a chicken for a goat. The power of modern bartering is that you can conserve cash and reduce expenses by using our virtual currency, known as a trade dollar, to swap your goods or services indirectly with any business within the Bartercard network.

Could any of these benefits help your business? We would love the opportunity to help you to achieve your business and lifestyle goals.

Contact our friendly team

on 1300 BARTER (1300 227 837)

or visit www.bartercard.com.au/contact-us

And how does it work…

BarterMag6

Every now and again we come across Bartercard members who are so inspirational that we’re particularly proud to be associated with them.

Chef, Richard Webb certainly

qualifies. He owns and operates

Swampdog Fish and Chips in

South Brisbane and it’s a fish and chip

store like no other. A strong believer in

sustainability, Richard serves up a feast

of lovingly prepared local seafood

that’s as fresh as it gets and specifically

chosen to support sustainable fishing

activities. Starting up just two years

ago, Swampdog took off within weeks

– based entirely on word of mouth.

So what exactly is sustainable fish?While we’ve been busy dining out on

Ocean Trout, Salmon, Barramundi and

the like, tasty local fish that are often

more abundantly available have been

largely ignored. Richard is one of a

number of Australian chefs who are

striving to broaden our ideas and our

palates when it comes to seafood.

He actively supports The Good Fish

Project run by the Australian Marine

Conservation Society and is one of

the chefs featured on their website.

Wanting to educate consumers,

Richard stepped out of the

restaurant business over two years

ago and into the Swampdog fish

and chip shop – a move that could

have been a serious challenge

for a less tenacious individual.

Clever use of Bartercard helped Richard make the move

Richard made excellent use of

his interest free line of credit with

Bartercard to set up Swampdog. He

was able to purchase $15,000 worth

of deep fryers with trade dollars along

with freezers and refrigeration units

and about $12,000 of signage for

his new store. There were smaller

purchases too – printed t-shirts and

the like, that helped along the way.

Not only did this save him cash,

but it also reduced his stress levels

knowing that he would easily repay

this debt with Bartercard sales.

Currently, approximately 4-5% of

Swampdog’s turnover is in Bartercard

sales but Richard would like to see

that increase by a few percent. While

he can’t buy his fish supplies on

trade (yet) he is able to purchase

fruit and vegetables on trade, and

all of the shop’s coffee supplies.

Richard enjoys being a Bartercard

member and has just two tips for

members who want to make the

most of their trade dollars. The first

is focus on using trade dollars to

benefit your business. The second

is to network and build relationships

with other Bartercard members – ask

every Bartercard client what they

do with their trade dollars and what

their best buys have been. “You can

gather some excellent sales and

spending ideas from fellow Bartercard

members. They’ll tell you what works

and what doesn’t” says Richard.

Richard plans to continue using

Bartercard. He dreams of one day

using it to take a fly fishing holiday

to the Cook Islands but says “I’ve

become so good at spending my

trade dollars on the business that

I doubt there’ll ever be enough

left for my fly fishing holiday!”

Sustainable fish and chips on Bartercard!

Swampdog

Richard made excellent use of his interest free line of credit using over T$27,000 to set up the Swampdog Fish and Chip store.

7

Interest free line of credit

Initially seeing the possibility of gaining

additional sales through screen hire to

Bartercard members, Martin Pettifer,

from Big Screens Australia has discovered

an excellent way to use Bartercard

to gain new cash clients who might

otherwise have chosen a competitor.

Q. What does your business do?Big Screens Australia manages the ‘big

screen’ requirements for events including

rock concerts, festivals, sporting events,

rodeos, truck shows and more. We travel

far and wide to events, transporting a

substantial amount of equipment and a

camera crew to each new location. We

also produce TV commercials and video

productions for a range of purposes.

Q. How do you use Bartercard in your business?Bartercard allows us to offer a failsafe deal

to potential cash clients in a competitive

environment. We offer them the possibility

of paying for a good portion of our services

with tickets to their events instead of cash.

It’s a great offer that works for both parties

– a client’s biggest challenges are almost

always sticking to budget and selling

tickets, so our solution helps with both

of these challenges. For us, we’re able to

sell the event tickets easily on Bartercard

and it puts us a head of our competition

to gain the business for the event.

Q. Why do you find Bartercard effective?I’m a firm believer in the concept of

bartering and saving cash for better

uses and I believe that using Bartercard

has helped us to keep ahead of the

competition and improve our business.

Every business is a little different,

so it stands to reason that they will

use Bartercard in different ways.

We now primarily use Bartercard

to win cash contracts as it’s an

effective method to close a deal.

Some methods are always more successful

than others but I believe there are two

crucial components to succeeding – (1)

get to know how Bartercard works

so you understand it, and (2) work on

learning to use it well for your business.

Q. What do you spend your trade on? With regular accommodation requirements

for multiple team members, I’ve had

very little trouble spending the trade

dollars generated from our winning

cash contracts strategy. We also uses

trade dollars for other regular expenses

like bookkeeping and car detailing, for

occasional expenses like spray painting,

and the occasional case of wine.

I also keep a keen eye on the Bartercard

online auctions and marketplace – in the

past I’ve been able to purchase a brand

new 27 inch Mac computer and other items

of equipment needed in our business.

Q. What are you future plans? A new production studio thanks to

Bartercard. In the near future, I plan to build

a new production studio on my property.

It’s not a cheap exercise as the studio will

include a green room and soundproofing.

But I’ve estimated that I can cover

80% of the costs using trade dollars.

Expanding the capacity of his business

will also allow Martin to attract and retain

good freelance workers by helping to

ensure he can offer them increased work

opportunities – and that in turn will help

his business to improve and grow.

with Bartercard

Big Screens Australia uses Bartercard to sweeten the deal and win cash work in a competitive environment.

Cash customers, Big Screensand big picture

Winning contracts

BarterMag8

Judy Bartlett from Rapid Response First Aid Training joined Bartercard some five years ago and saw an opportunity to negotiate deals with larger clients that might otherwise overlook her Sunshine Coast based business in favour of bigger competitors.

Rapid Response First Aid Training

conducts first aid training for

individuals, and for businesses

that are now required by law to have a

number of staff members accredited

in first aid. It’s become a highly

competitive industry in the past few

years. It’s not easy to stand out from the

crowd. So what’s Judy’s secret? Flexible

thinking and a little determination!

Trading in work for a holidayTravelling is not easy, logistically or

financially, when you have four children.

However, when you have initiative

and audacity to cut a deal with large

clients, the world is your oyster.

Judy’s first big success was winning

the business of the Hyatt Regency

on the Sunshine Coast. She offered

to exchange her services for a one

week holiday package of equivalent

value. The deal would save the Hyatt

several thousand dollars in cash so

they were happy to ‘trade’ a luxury

deal that included the executive

suite, meals and golfing for two.

With the Hyatt in the same area as

Judy, there was little point in her

utilising the package. Instead she sold

it through Bartercard which allowed

Judy to purchase a holiday for her

whole family in the Cook Islands.

Following that successful trade,

Judy negotiated a similar deal

with a rainforest resort in Northern

Queensland and again sold the holiday

package on Bartercard. “These funds

will go towards a family holiday to

Vanuatu” says Judy. “There are some

really great packages available on

the tourism page of the members

trading portal, the hardest decision

will be deciding which one to go for!”

The benefits of that deal didn’t end

there – the resort continued to engage

Judy’s services in the years that

followed, but began to pay in cash.

The deals didn’t stop there. Through

her networking Judy was approached

by a local school on the Sunshine

Coast after a parent had paid their

child’s school fees in Bartercard gift

certificates. Knowing that Judy was

a member of Bartercard, the school’s

principal offered to pay Judy their

initial training services requirements

in Bartercard gift certificates.

Judy says “…all of these deals have

contributed to increasing cash

business. It’s good to have major

businesses and schools on my client

list. It gets my name out there.”

More flexible thinking - tax deductible trade spendingJudy enjoys using her trade dollars

to satisfy her travel bug, but she does

recognise the value of using them

in a way that benefits her financially.

As the owner of an investment

property, she spends trade dollars on

services for the rental property that

are tax deductible and also allow her

to offer a well maintained property

to maximise cash rental returns –

including pool cleaning, gardening

and painting services. She also

purchases advertising and marketing

related items for her business.

Where to next? Vanuatu. Judy hopes to make the

trip with her kids in 2014. She plans

to purchase the accommodation

through Bartercard and is just

waiting to spot the right deal.

Judy’s message – “Don’t limit yourself

to selling just your products or services

on Bartercard. Engage in a little

flexible thinking and offer to accept

payment in your clients’ products

or services and then on sell these

through Bartercard. You too could

then indulge in a family holiday!”

is all in a day’s work for Judy Bartlett

“It’s good to have major businesses and schools on my client list. It gets my name out there.”

Business & pleasure

Cutting deals & ‘trading up’

Issue 1, 2014 9

Top Ten Networking Tips1. Be approachableIf you are nervous about approaching

strangers at networking events, make

it easier for others to approach you. It’s

so much easier to approach someone

you don’t know if they are smiling and

look happy to be there. Happy smiling

people actually attract others to them.

2. Wear a name badgeNot only does it make you look

more professional, but it helps

others to remember your name. If

you have a name tag made with

your branding, it also assists your

marketing and advertising and makes

your brand more memorable.

3. Always offer a business cardI’ve had people tell me that they don’t hand out

a business card unless someone asks them for

it. I’ve had others tell me they don’t ask for a

business card, because if the person wants them

to have one, they’ll offer it. See the problem? I

always offer a business card and it often acts

as a conversation starter. Don’t be shy, you’ve

got more to lose by not offering your card.

4. Stand where people are likely to congregate. (Bar/trade display)It’s so much easier to make conversation

with someone who is already standing

beside you waiting for a drink or browsing

a display table. You have an array of

conversation topics in front of you; all

you need to do is take the first step.

5. Ask people about themselves and their businessShow a genuine interest in others. Not only are

you learning about their business, it will help you to

understand what people could be good contacts for

them. Plus, the more you know about someone’s

business, the more it helps you understand how

your business could be of assistance to them.

6. Ask open ended questionsDon’t ask questions that can be

answered with a YES or NO. For

example”, Did you have a good

holiday” should become “How

did you spend your holiday” or

“Tell me about your holiday”. It’s

far more inviting and personal.

7. Listen!Listen with the intent to understand, not the intent to

reply. We are often so busy forming our responses in

our heads; we are not really listening to what is actually

being said. It’s also good to listen more than you speak.

You’ll never learn anything while you are talking.

8. Befriend first timersWe all know the uncomfortable feeling of walking

into an event for the first time. Imagine how

relieved you’d feel if someone took you under

their wing and introduced you around to others.

Doing this for others will not only help you to be

remembered, but will make you feel good as well.

9. Use people’s names oftenPeople love the sound of their own

name. If you use someone’s name often,

it helps to build a connection with the

person and also helps you to remember

their name. Just don’t go overboard or

it will sound forced and not genuine.

10. Follow up!Approximately only 1 in

10 people ever follow up

with people they’ve met

at a networking event.

Be one of the few and

not one of the many.

Happy Networking!

Terri Cooper

Bartercard Member

Terri Cooper Events

www.terricooper.com.au

It’s all about building connections and relationships and each little thing

you can do towards this makes a huge difference in the quality of your

connections. It’s another link in the chain of being remembered.

So, be sure to attend the various networking functions that Bartercard and its members host.

Business networking events are one of the many benefits offered to Bartercard members. These

events provide you with the opportunity to meet fellow traders and promote your business to

gain Bartercard sales and cash sales. There are Bartercard events happening every month!

BarterMag10

Being based in rural Wagga Wagga hasn’t stopped Greg Hanson and Big Springs Riverina from growing their business and making use of Bartercard to expand and export.

Q. What does your business do?Establish in 1994, Big Springs Riverina

supplies bottled water. The core

of the business has always been

the sale of water coolers and large

bottles of water to fill them.

Q. How has Bartercard helped your business?Expanding into the market of small

bottles for individual consumption was

always going to be tough – with multi-

national competitors able to offer prices

that are difficult to match. I however

was not deterred from entering the

market and I thought Bartercard may

help me to do it. I contacted our local

Bartercard office, to help us to promote

our bottled water interstate to gauge

interest. The local franchisee, Dean

Freeman, went one step further and

contacted the Tourism and Hospitality

Manager at Bartercard National office.

Big Springs Riverina now supply

bottled water to hotels and restaurants

interstate as well as to two large resorts

in the Cook Islands, allowing the resorts

to spend their trade dollars, and us

to spread the Big Springs Riverina

name and product further afield.

Q. What’s your most memorablepurchase on Bartercard? Most of the services our business uses

are local, so we knew that if we were

going to generate more trade dollars from

these new contracts, we’d have to look at

more creative ways to spend them. We

looked for – and found – an excellent way

to convert our trade dollars to cash. We

were able to purchase two aged care units

as an investment, using some T$30,000

per unit towards the purchase price. The

units net a rental income in cash, but as

the units increase in value, the investment

of the trade dollars pays off in asset

value that could be turned into cash –

so rather than a simple dollar to dollar

conversion, I effectively used our trade

dollars in a way that should eventually

return much more than $30,000 per unit.

I see a lot of potential in this strategy.

In fact, I’m keen to accumulate more

trade dollars that I can invest in

artwork and property in the future.

Q. How do you use Bartercard toreduce your cash outlay?Big Springs Riverina now utilises

Bartercard member businesses for vehicle

maintenance, security services, pest

control, gift vouchers for staff incentives,

and to host staff Christmas parties – this

year, the team will be enjoying a dinner

and a weekend away on Bartercard.

These cash savings are certainly a

great benefit of our membership with

Bartercard but what we also realised

that due to the increased turnover that

Bartercard provides us, we are now in a

position to negotiate better deals on raw

commodities and to justify improvements

to the plant and equipment.

Q. Would you recommend Bartercard?Despite the challenge of being in a

rural location, I’m happy to recommend

Bartercard to others who are looking

to get increased access into a new

market. You’ve got to put yourself

and your product out there, together

with honesty in trading and an active

Franchise manager, Bartercard is the

perfect vehicle to help you do that.

Put yourself and your product out there. Bartercard is the perfect vehicle to help you do that.

Springing into New Markets with Bartercard

The Big Springs Riverina story

Issue 1, 2014 11

Expand & export

Q. What does your business do?Hydrokleen began as a single Gold

Coast based business with a niche

service – cleaning and servicing air

conditioning units. Initially, there was

a major challenge to overcome –

many people were unaware that air

conditioning units should be cleaned

and serviced annually, and others

didn’t realise such a specific service

was available. We joined Bartercard

hoping that it would help the business

to gain exposure and increase brand

awareness. It did, and along the way

we found many more ways to make

Bartercard work for the business.

Q. How did you gain new clientson Bartercard? New clients spread the word.

I threw myself whole-heartedly into

being a Bartercard member. You can’t

join Bartercard and then not be active

– it defeats the purpose. Advertising

to the Bartercard database and

attending networking events quickly

resulted in new Bartercard clients, and

in cash paying clients that Bartercard

members referred. My strategy to

educate consumers and increase

brand awareness began to work.

Q. How do you use Bartercard?As Hydrokleen grew and I decided to

franchise the business, our expenses

grew and this is where Bartercard

became instrumental in assisting to

reduce our cash outlays and aid the

expansion. We found numerous ways

to use our trade dollars including:

» Printing and flyer delivery

» Hiring training rooms

» Purchasing promotional products

including pens and stubby holders

» Purchasing and hiring ice sculptures,

entertainment, guest speakers and

other items for annual conferences

» Purchasing memorabilia and other

items that could be auctioned at

conferences to raise funds for charity

to raise the profile of Hydrokleen

» Rewarding staff for their efforts

with dinners, massages, hampers

and other incentives

In fact, many of our purchases were

ones the business would not have been

able to afford if cash was required. I

can see even more uses for our trade

dollars in the future. With our plans to

expand overseas, trade dollars will be

used for overseas accommodation.

Q. How do you help otherBartercard members to grow?I’m very conscious of the true spirit

involved in the time honoured concept

of bartering – giving and receiving

for mutual benefit. I’ve established

a new business – Sharon Jurd

Events – to help others improve and

expand their businesses by offering

business coaching and mentoring

services. My book entitled – “How

to grow your business faster than

your competitor” provides first hand

insights into how to create more

time, more money and more life.

Sharon’s tips for membersThe more Hydrokleen grows the

more uses Sharon seems to find for

her trade dollars. Here are some of

Sharon’s tips on how to make the most

of your Bartercard membership:

» Treat your Bartercard clients the

same as your cash clients

» Get involved – network

and use Bartercard to get

your name out there

» Use the mobile APP – wherever

you happen to be, the APP will

show you which Bartercard

businesses are nearby

» Consider Bartercard as an additional

income stream – it’s one of the

easiest ways to get new clients

sharonjurdevents.com.au

hydrokleen.com.au

Could you Barter your way to success?

Sharon took Hydrokleen from a single business

to a franchise with 23 outlets in 3 years.

A member for just 3 years, Sharon Jurd from HydroKleen, has used Bartercard to help make the shift from operating a single business on the Gold Coast to becoming a Franchisor with 23 franchises, an author, and a business coach.

Sharon Jurd did!

BarterMag12

Cash savings

Cairns based members Steven and Leanne Davison talked to us about the challenges of running a business, and the little things that make it all worthwhile.

Running a business in a remote

area is almost always a challenge.

Running two can be double

trouble. For Steven and Leanne Davison,

owners of Coral Coast Cartridges and

Cairns Label Centre, the challenges are

largely offset by the opportunity for a

relaxed coastal lifestyle in a beautiful

location, far away from the hustle, bustle

and peak hour traffic of major cities.

Steve says they try to remember that

when challenges arise – like the time

flooding in the wet season resulted

in road closures that prevented them

receiving stock for eight weeks! More

often though, the challenge is that while

their businesses aren’t directly related

to tourism, the entire Cairns area relies

heavily on trade from tourists – and when

tourist numbers are down, business for

many is slow and the effect is passed on

to those who supply those businesses.

A Bartercard member for about six

years, Steve and Leanne attract some

$6,000-$7,000 a month of additional

business by selling to other Bartercard

members. They are also able to use

trade dollars for some regular business

expenses including accounting services

for the two businesses, signwriting, and

even a small amount of supplies.

Most of all, they enjoy meeting other

members in the Cairns area. “It’s

given us an excellent opportunity to

network and get to know more local

business owners” he said. “I think

that’s one of the biggest benefits.”

A surprise weekend in the wildLast year Steve decided to create a

surprise weekend of Leanne’s birthday.

He managed to create an entire weekend

of enjoyment and relaxation using their

trade dollars. The weekend kicked off on

the Friday evening with dinner at their

favourite seafood restaurant, Tha Fish.

Next morning, it was breakfast at Mama

Coco before heading to the Daintree

Wild Zoo where they were booked in for

the weekend. “Staying at the B & B at the

zoo is a great experience – you can walk

through the zoo at any time” says Steve.

In the evening they dined at the Zinc

Restaurant. Sunday included a full tour

of the Zoo followed by a little crocodile

spotting on Bruce Belcher’s Daintree River

Cruise. They made purchases in the gift

store and were treated to a complementary

lunch before heading towards home. But

the weekend wasn’t quite over – Steve

and Leanne managed another stop at the

Shannonvale Tropical Fruit Winery, tasting

wine and liqueurs and leaving with a few

purchases for themselves and friends.

Steve was chuffed. “The only cash I spent

the whole weekend was for fuel. As small

business owners it is hard to find time

to get away, never mind the expense.

We now also have a few new Bartercard

customers from the places we visited.”

A $12,000 cash saving surpriseThe weekend away wasn’t the only surprise

that’s involved Bartercard. Having searched

high and low for a particular piece of

equipment – a second hand cartridge dust

extraction unit – Steve concluded that he’d

have to spend $12,000 in cash to purchase

a new unit. He was about to place the

$12,000 order when he received an email

from Bartercard listing a cartridge dust

extraction unit for sale in trade dollars.

He could scarcely believe his luck. “Within

5 minutes I’d made contact with the

seller and purchased the unit for around

T$5,000. It was in excellent condition.”

While they’ve been able to make good

use of their trade dollars to date –

they’ve rarely had a surplus – Steve and

Leanne now plan to ‘save’ more trade

dollars and look at putting it towards

an investment property. But it’s a fairly

safe bet they won’t be able to resist the

occasional weekend away to enjoy the

scenery, wildlife and culinary delights to

be found in tropical North Queensland.

Wet, wild and wonderful in Cairns

Steve was about to spend $12,000 in cash on an equipment purchase when a surprise email from Bartercard saved the day – and $5,000!

Issue 1, 2014 13

Business expansion

Bartercard Events

17 trade shows

Over 1,000 businesses exhibiting

Over 8,000 shoppers!

$7 million traded

Trading Extravaganzas 2013!Trade shows are Bartercard’s biggest events for the year. They give

businesses the opportunity to showcase their products or services to

the Bartercard community and is a fun day out for the whole family.

Members use the relaxed environment to network and

go on a shopping spree using their trade dollars.

Every year the events get bigger and better with 17 Trade Shows being

held in 2013 across six states. The business owners in Bartercard traded

in excess of $7 Million Dollars which is really all in a day’s work for our

members. Trading and creating new business contacts is what it is all about.

This is only the beginning for Bartercard Events. 2014 will see our Trade

Shows and member events grow and expand. We will be introducing

new networking opportunities to help members get the best out

of their business. This fits with our mission to improve the lives of

every member around the world by helping them to create value

and opportunity from the unrealised potential in their business.

We hope to see you at our next event!

Visit www.bartercard.com.au for more details on our events for 2014

the facts...

BarterMag14

Pay another member

Process sales

Locate Bartercard offices

Search favourite members

View your available balance

The Bartercard mobile

app makes it easy.

Trade anywhere, anytime.

Go mobile withour award winning app

Find members close to you

Now onWindows Phone

Download for Apple, Android and Windows. Search for ‘Bartercard’

1300 BARTERmembers.bartercard.com

Queensland Rugby Union shows us howBartercard works for large corporations

Bringing the ruckus to BartercardBecoming strategic

With over 200 community

rugby clubs and 500 plus

schools to support, a little

strategic planning goes along way

for Queensland Rugby Union (QRU).

Over the last 3 years QRU has been

busy establishing an impressive

aggregation strategy model to build

strong sustainable secure partnerships

that deliver a return for the game

and a return for their partners.

The goal of building their model was

essentially about creating a common

ambition for rugby in Queensland

and bringing all of QRU stakeholders

together to say this is what we can

deliver as a sport. “One of the things

we did very early on was identifying

what our volume was” says David

Hanham, QRU’s Chief Operating Officer.

“We undertook a comprehensive

audit across our head office and

community clubs of what we spend

in various industries to identify what

the volume represented. We used

volume to build partnerships with

organisations that wanted to increase

their market share within our state,

and also associate with a highly

visible brand; the Queensland Reds.”

In 2013, Super Rugby had a worldwide

viewing audience of close to 100

million people including an Australian

subscription audience of over

8.5 million. The Queensland Reds

attracted over 300,000 spectators to

their home games including around

20,000 corporate supporters. QRU

has 18 development officers that are

state wide. Their role has evolved

and developed from being Sport

Educators to Business Development

Managers. They are the conduit

between head office, the partnerships

and the local community clubs.

“We’ve applied this model across all

areas of our business such as food

and beverage; electricity, insurance

banking and finance, playing apparel,

medical services and other sectors,”

explains David. “We’ve built those

partnerships and we want to continue

to build on those partnerships.

Through this strategy we’ve been

able to generate nearly 3 million

dollars of benefits for our community

clubs over the last 3 years.”

BarterMag16

Strategic partnership

Queensland Rugby and Bartercard So, where does Bartercard fit in to all of

this? QRU’s role initially is to increase the

public awareness of Bartercard through

its association with Queensland Rugby

and then to drive opportunity with their

market through research and education.

“Our responsibility at QRU is to ensure that

our clubs are economically secure and

sustainable. Bartercard is a key partner for

us to be able to achieve that outcome” says

David. “At QRU we are very encouraged by

the number of avenues Bartercard creates

for us and the new relationships we can

form with suppliers and new sponsorship

partners. We’ve been able to use Bartercard

trade dollars to ensure our clubs gets

infrastructure growth and benefits.”

QRU provide ‘Bartercard grants’QRU have a state-wide strategy where their

community clubs can apply for a ‘Bartercard

grant’. “We look to align trade dollars to

some of our clubs key operating expenses.

We work with Bartercard businesses and

say, you will be our preferred suppliers for

capital improvements and we will connect

you to the clubs through a centralised

process of procurement. Through this

we’ve been able to ensure the clubs can

get the best result,’ explains David. “We

meet with our clubs to understand what

their operational expenses are for the

year. We then identify which Bartercard

members we can use for those required

services and then we connect the dots.”

In 2012, QRU worked with a Brisbane based

Rugby Club involved in the Aggregation

Program to reduce expenditure in field

maintenance. Working with the local

Bartercard member, Green Machine

Mowing, a trade arrangement was

negotiated for various works on a weekly

basis to support the club. The creation

of this partnership has resulted in club

volunteers having piece of mind that their

fields are consistently maintained at a high

standard and importantly this partnership

has reduced operational expenditure by

over $10,000 per annum for that club. With

this partnership now in place, QRU has

referred this trade member on numerous

occasions which generates further weekly

cash business for Green Machine Mowing.

Bringing in new businessIn addition to approaching existing

Bartercard members, QRU regularly

approach businesses that are not members

of Bartercard and suggest to them that

if they want to be a part of rugby and

get access to their aggregation model

and clubs they will need to integrate with

the Bartercard system. “We encourage

companies vying for our business to

join Bartercard and accept Bartercard

trade dollars as payment. Bartercard

has therefore become an important

negotiation tool with our partners to

win our clubs business,” says David.

“We consistently tendered out for our

merchandise, signage and cleaning and

asked all applicants to demonstrate

how they could use Bartercard within

their businesses. All have, as part of this

process, met with our procurement

officer and Bartercard to uncover

the potential of Bartercard within

their business,” explains David.

“Trade Dollars significantly help the

bottom line,” says David. “Our procurement

officer works closely with Bartercard to

generate opportunities for all parties

and generally we find business owners

are encouraged by the potential of

Bartercard and want to know more.”

Implementing a rewards program to motivate community clubsThe usage of Bartercard doesn’t stop

there. “We’ve also used Bartercard to

reward our clubs use of QRU aggregation

model,” says David. If a club is compliant

to all aggregation partnerships, QRU will

unlock a certain amount of Bartercard

trade dollars for that club. “The clubs

are then motivated to recognise our

partnerships and our overall visions, and at

the same time they are getting rewarded

with Bartercard trade dollars,” says David.

“Using Bartercard as a loyalty strategy

for our aggregation program helps them

improve their local community club and

improve their infrastructure,” says David.

Bartercard Australia has been a partner of the QRU and a sponsor the Queensland Reds since 2000. It is a partnership that grows stronger every year.

“Bartercard is more than just a business tool for QRU – it’s a stand-alone business strategy that effectively benefits all levels of the code, from the elite and flagship Queensland Reds team all the way through to the community clubs at the game’s grass roots” says Daniel Herbert, Chief Commercial Officer.

Issue 1, 2014 17

Australian businesses now have a new way to give even if they don’t have the money to provide cash donations to charities. The Bartercard Charity Foundation is a newly established enterprise providing alternative ways for Australian businesses to support Australian registered charities. Recently endorsed by the Australian Tax Office with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status the Foundation is able to accept donations of cash, trade dollars or goods or services exceeding $5,000 from any business irrespective of its size. So, giving to charity just got a whole lot easier.

The Bartercard Charity Foundation raised

T$100,000 for the Buy a Bale Campaign

In June 2013, Richard Norris, General Manager of the

Foundation received a grant application from Aussie

Helpers for the Buy a Bale Campaign targeted at helping

farmers in need. He immediately jumped at the opportunity

to help by pledging to raise T$100,000 in support.

The Buy a Bale Campaign is a joint venture between

Aussie Helpers and the Give Back Campaign to help

the Australian farming community that have been

hard hit with both flood and drought over recent years.

According to Aussie Helpers founder Brian Egan, “Many

farmers won’t just fail financially, but may become

victims of depression through no fault of their own”.

All the money raised helps to buy the essentials

our farmers need such as feed for their stock, diesel

to cover the enormous freight costs, donations for

family essentials, or just volunteering to help.

Richard is happy to advise, “We’ve achieved our

goal of raising T$100,000. We had a really positive

response from the Bartercard businesses community

to our appeal for assistance and donations.”

The Bartercard Charity Foundation’s T$100,000 grant

will be used, amongst other things, to help lift the spirits

of our farmers and their families by giving them a well-

deserved break by providing holiday accommodation

packages, via the Bartercard membership base, to

visit coastal locations in Australia. Some of these

children may not have even seen a beach before.

Brian Egan said “This is a great contribution to the

campaign. We have plans to use this money to

make some real differences to our farming families

and appreciate the Bartercard Charity Foundation

contribution. Not only will we be sending some families

away for holidays but we will also be purchasing some

materials to help us fix damaged fences, dams etc.”

If you would like to help Australian charities with their

worthwhile causes, you can donate trade dollars, cash

or products and services to the Bartercard Charity

Foundation. For more information and/or to donate

please visit

www.bartercardfoundation.com

The BartercardCharity Foundation…a new way to give.

BarterMag18

Charity

About The Buy a Bale Campaign

Aussie Helpers is a charity founded by Brian

and Nerida Egan in 2002. It operates with

volunteers in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and

South Australia. Aussie Helpers is strongly

supported by local communities including

citizens and small businesses many of which

have donated and supplied goods and services

to enable Aussie Helpers to achieve its goal

of “helping to fight poverty in the bush”.

www.aussiehelpers.org.au

To make a donation, please visit www.bartercardfoundation.com

About The Give Back Campaign

The Give Back Campaign assists charities

and non-profit organisations to raise funds

through point of sales (POS) purchases and

online rebates from over 600 partners.

www.thegivebackcampaign.com.au

Pictured is Brian Egan from Aussie Helpers being presented with a cheque for T$100,000 in Richmond by Richard Norris from the Bartercard Charity Foundation, watched on by Sunrise presenter Eddy Bartholomew.

Issue 1, 2014 19

1300 BARTERbartercard.com.au

“Our Mission is to enhance the lives of people by creating value and opportunity from the unrealised potential in the business of each member around the world.”

Bartercard has allowed us to grow & expand without using up all our cash resources.

We’ve been surprised by how many different types of businesses there are and what you can do on trade... We always look for a trade option before spending any cash and it has literally saved us thousands! Katrina EcoWise LED www.ecowiseled.com

Bartercard is a constant flow of life and business improving activities and events. The

staff and members are fun to be involved with, all of us enjoying the wonderful community that we are a part of. I would strongly recommend Bartercard without hesitation to anyone. Alex Moss Visual Magic Productions www.facebook.com/visualmagicalex

Bartercard is fantastic. Signing up with Bartercard is one of the best business

decisions we ever made. We have done so much that we could never have done without the extra business that Bartercard has brought to us. The team is always helpful. Love it!Katherine Quirke One Stop Loans Store www.onestoploans.com.au

T hrough Bartercard we have offset some of our expenses which has saved our cash flow

and added new clients to our existing portfolio. With strategic use of the service it can prove very useful and also very practical. I highly recommend it. Thank you Bartercard, we hope to be a Platinum member soon. Chris Lappos Managing Director - Neotech Information Technology www.neotechit.com.au

We just love Bartercard! Bartercard has given us access to new customers and suppliers,

and helped us to grow our business. The mobile app and website are very easy to use, and we especially appreciate the time our Trade Co-ordinator has invested into helping us to market our business. Jeff McNamara Jumping J-Jays - Aspley www.jumpingcastlesaspley.com.au

I would like to compliment the beautiful staff at Bartercard for their continued assistance,

nothing is too hard for them, they go out of their way to help and advise the best way to use Bartercard. My Trade Co-ordinator helps me with ideas and options for promoting my store. So thank you Bartercard, and keep up the brilliant work! Julie Munno Angels Realm www.angelsrealm.com.au

I highly recommend Bartercard to anyone that wants to grow their business, save cash and

wants all the extra spoils in life that they thought they couldn’t afford. Angela Stanford Skinny Noodles www.skinnynoodles.com.au

I have been in Bartercard for years. I love the professional service and the lead generation

that I get out of being in Bartercard in cash and in trade.

If you’re not in it you’re not getting ahead.

Jodie Balfour Isis Beauty & Day Spa www.isisbeautysalonwarwick.com.au

BRIAN HALLBartercard Founder and CEO

connecting businessconnecting people

What our members are saying...