November 23,
2004
Written
by Bob Meyer, Editor of BarterNews
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Michael
Touma’s Business Barter Exchange About To Become Australia’s
First Publicly Listed Trade Exchange
BBX Holdings
has announced an initial public offering (IPO), scheduled to open
November 24, of 16 million shares at 50-cents per share. The capital
raised will enable Business Barter Exchange (BBX) to expand its
existing branch and franchise network, as well as allow their sales
force and embark on an ambitious sales and marketing program.
Managing director
Michael Touma says the offering provides investors an opportunity
to buy shares of a company that is at the forefront of an emerging
and dynamic barter industry.
According to
Touma, “BBX has an excellent track record with a combined
management offering over 70 years of experience in the trade exchange
industry, backed by proven success in driving profitable acquisitions.
With continued growth in membership, we would expect the volume
of trading will increase at an even faster rate which will be reflected
in company profits.”
BBX, now in
its eleventh year, saw total trade-turnover of approximately T$120
million...in 2003/04 BBX booked a net profit of $1.23 million while
generating revenue of $8.07 million. For 2004/05 the company expects
revenues of $9.03 million and a net profit of $323,000 due to investments
in new resources and infrastructure in readiness for its expansion
program.
BBX has branches
throughout Australia and New Zealand. Its head office can be contacted
at 612 9476 6655.
Every barter company in the world is listed on our
web site, click through to our Global
List of Barter Companies.
IMS Continues Push Forward On Two Fronts
International
Monetary Systems (OTCBB:INLM) has announced its institutional-funding
agreement with Pavek Investments of Milwaukee (WI). The Pavek group
will serve as the investment banker for IMS, counseling and guiding
them in the preparation of a strategic business plan and in the
planning and design of potential securities offerings. Pavek will
also seek to obtain capital for mergers and acquisitions, assistance
in document origination, and other related services.
IMS has also
announced the launch of a next-generation web site for Continental
Trade Exchange (CTE), its barter network subsidiary. The site, www.ctebarter.com,
now allows members of the system to (1) receive online authorizations
24/7; (2) purchase scrip and gift certificates; (3) view up-to-date
account information; and (4) enter client-administered classified
ads.
Revenues
Up 20% For Third Quarter
IMS recently
filed its third-quarter 10-QSB financial report, showing a 20% increase
in net revenue over the third quarter of 2003. ($1,169,918 compared
to $971,944 for the third quarter of 2003.)
The increased
revenue was a result of the California Barter Exchange and Barter
Network acquisitions consummated earlier this year, along with the
additional internal growth of CTE. For further information see:
www.internationalmonetary.com.
Trade
Exchange Owners...
Build Rapport & Empathy With Your Client Base!!
The most powerful
marketing tool in the barter industry, The Competitive Edge
newsletter, is a monthly, ready to use, professional 4-page publication...no
work is needed! Click here.
Been
There, Done That?...You’re Hired!
Industry
Experience Outranks People Skills
Personality
may be a plus, but it won’t necessarily land you a job. According
to a survey by Robert Half International (the world’s first
and largest staffing service specializing in the accounting, finance
and information technology fields), 41% of chief financial officers
said industry experience is the factor most likely to tip the scales
in an applicant’s favor. Only 1% of executives cited people
skills, and 33% said individuals with software and technology expertise
have an advantage.
Get
New Money-Making Ideas And Valuable Contacts!
You can obtain
useful, informative ideas and contacts in every available back-issue
of BarterNews.
From
the BarterNews Archives...
Part
5: How To Use Radio To Increase Company Sales
Last week we
looked at “hard sell” commercials...keeping it simple
and not overloading your message with too much information. And
we pointed out the effectiveness of the straight sell. This week
we conclude our article:
Jingles.
. .
Jingles work!
Just ask Pepsi Cola. There are hundreds of thousands of people who
can still sing a Pepsi jingle that dates back to when the product
came in an eight ounce bottle and sold for a nickel!
We have found
that using jingles produces results that are about 30% more effective
than not using jingles. They can be expensive, on a trade or cash
basis, but if you select the right music and concept, it pays dividends.
Per
Inquiry. . .
Most everyone
in barter, sooner or later, finds out about per inquiry (P.I.) advertising,
and they want to convince the local stations to take their advertising
and pay them a percentage of sales.
I probably get
twenty calls a week from prospective clients who want help producing
a spot for a product they are planning to get stations to take on
a P.I. basis. One out of the twenty might have a chance of getting
a P.I. deal. (They usually have paid ten bucks for a “list”
of so-called free stations in the back of one of those opportunity
magazines.)
First of all,
no matter what the stations will tell you, per inquiry is alive
and well, but your chances of getting a local station or a network
to go along with your idea is almost nil!
There are precious
few that will admit to working on that basis. Hardly any do it for
local accounts. Almost none will do it without an ad agency involved.
I spent two
years studying per inquiry and how it works. I know the names of
the people at the radio and TV networks who make the decisions about
what accounts get approved for per inquiry. Mind you, these people
don’t exist, if you talk to the sales manager of the station.
Here’s my advice to those wanting to try per inquiry:
Sometimes the
stations carry P.I. commercials, but they are actually on a network
and the station is obligated to carry the spot. However, the network
is responsible for the ad.
Sometimes the
advertiser is actually paying for inquiries! (Not sales.) An example
is a well-known discount stock broker, who pays $6 for every person
who calls the “800” number assigned to the stations
or network asking for free information.
I used to get
$90 an inquiry for leads on a security, if the prospect bought or
not. The company knew exactly how many leads would convert to sales
and at what cost.
Don’t
expect the local station to trust you to “source” leads
by asking customers where they heard the ad. It doesn’t work
that way. Besides, sometimes when radio is working best, the listener
doesn’t know where they heard the ad.
The most effective
commercials are the ones that reach the subconscious, without the
listener knowing he is being sold. (Sourcing is a whole different
story. Remember the people who thought they saw a cartoon of the
little old lady in the car wash?)
What you can
sometimes get a station to do is accept an order based on producing
a certain number of leads. For example, I pay you $100 a week for
ten leads, or $500 a week for 50 leads. Sometimes the station will
take you on, and if you don’t get the prescribed number of
leads they’ll run extra spots until you do!
The key is trust.
They must know and believe you and have confidence that your product
has appeal. Your chances are much better going through an established
media company or ad agency. Plus, your spot must be very well-planned
and professionally produced.
Who trades for
media? Most all media will trade, because the increment cost of
using unsold inventory is very low. Again, however, the media must
have confidence in you and the fact that you will maintain confidentiality.
Nothing blows a media trade quicker than some loud mouth trader
boasting about his latest “score.”
(End
of five-part series.)
Next
issue we will cover how a trade exchange can barter with the local
media. We’ll discuss the three basic services needed to “sell”
the station as well as the advantage of trading through a trade
exchange.
BarterNews
issue #63 is now available... get your copy now!
Orders are shipped within two business days. Click on Order Form.
(If you are
not sure if your subscription has lapsed, e-mail your name, address,
and zip code to bmeyer@barternews.com.)
Barter
Fairs & Holiday Expo's. . .
December:
New England
Trade will hold their 8th Annual Barter Expo on Wednesday, December
1 at the Danversport Yacht Club at 6:00 p.m. For more information
call (781) 388-9200.
The Barter Company’s
Annual Trade Show will be held on Saturday, December 4 at the Cobb
Galleria in Atlanta from 12 noon to 5 p.m.. Over 36,000 sq. feet
will be dedicated to the trade show. For more information call (770)
591-4343.
The oldest and
largest BXI fair is the Orange County Holiday Fair at the Costa
Mesa Orange County Fairgrounds in Bldg. 10 (same location for 24
years). Scheduled for Sunday, December 5 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information call (714) 847-5477.
Continental
Trade Exchange (Santa Rosa, CA) Holiday Expo will take place Sunday,
December 5 at Santa Rosa Veterans’ Memorial Building, 1351
Maple Avenue, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information call (707)
585-7722.
Trade Atlanta,
Premier Barter, and Barter For Less are cooperatively staging a
Holiday Festival on Tuesday, December 7 in Gwinnett, Georgia, from
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call (678) 793-9463.
BXI Savannah
& BXI Georgia 2004 BXI Holiday Trade Fair will be held at the
Crosswinds Golf Club Clubhouse, 232 James B. Blackburn Drive, in
Savannah on Tuesday, December 7 from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Dinner will
be served to all attendees. For more information call (912) 355-2555.
TradeAmericanCard
2004 Barter & Business Expo on Sunday, December 12 at The Grove
of Anaheim, 2200 E. Katella Avenue, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. For more
information call (714) 532-1610.
BXI Northern
California/Nevada’s Holiday Trade Fair will be held on Sunday,
December 12 at the Clarion Hotel at the San Jose Airport, 12 noon
to 4 p.m. For more information e-mail ron@bxinorcal.com or phone
(650) 592-2929.
BXI Southern
Arizona’s Tradefair is scheduled for Sunday, December 12 from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information call (520) 325-2929.
(Barter
companies: Send your holiday trade fair information to: bmeyer@barternews.com.)
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Here
& There...
- Consulting
firm Customer Growth Partners, in New Canaan (CT), reports that
malls have lost much of their retailing prowess. More than 80%
of consumer shopping dollars, excluding purchases of food and
drugs, are now spent in locations outside of malls. (That compares
with about 60% in 1995.) Six of the nation’s largest retailers—double
the number in the late 1990s—are not associated with malls.
- Earlier this
month we reported that “direct selling” in the USA,
which totals $30 billion annually, accounts for 1% of all nationwide
sales. Although we don’t have current worldwide figures,
we can expect it will soon take a jump given the news coming out
of China.
The government there,
which had banned direct-sales in 1998, is now issuing positive
rules that will ensure a legal basis and long-desired legitimacy
for selling goods or services through salespeople rather than
via retail stores. Interestingly, only a handful of domestic
companies are expected to qualify because of both stringent
capital and sales requirements. (Amway, Avon, and Nu Skin are
among those that meet the new rules.)
The change, along
with the acceptance of direct selling, came about because of
a pledge made upon entering the World Trade Organization that
would allow direct-marketing companies to operate in China.
- David Malpass,
chief economist at Bear, Sterns, reports that the world economy
is growing at its fastest pace in 30 years—up 5% in 2004
according the International Monetary Fund, with a robust 4.3%
real growth rate expected in 2005. Malpass says there is a broadening
of global growth, emphasizing the power of freedom and markets
over the past weight of communism, world wars, the 1970s inflation,
and the late 1990s deflation.
- While the
world economy is growing, as reported, the U.S. economy is heading
in the opposite direction, according to the Conference Board out
of New York City. The private research group says its Index of
Leading Economic Indicators has fallen for the fifth consecutive
month, providing a clear signal that the economy is losing steam.
-
Have
you signed up to receive a summary via e-mail of the
Tuesday Report every week? If not, go to the top of this
issue (right hand corner) and sign up!
-
Two industry
trade associations join forces...no, it’s not in the commercial
barter industry, but in the consulting and training professions.
The American
Society for Training & Development (ASTD), founded in 1944
and now boasting 70,000 members from more than 100 countries,
is embracing the Independent Consultants Association (ICA) formed
in 2003 to help independent consultants develop more successful
practices. The two professional associations will share many
resources as well as merge their annual conferences.
-
U.S. consumers
ranking of big companies reputations show some “icons”
are losing luster. The focus of survey respondents’ anger
is shifting from the notorious accounting scandals of the past
three years, to workplace and compensation concerns that hit
closer to home. Now they are increasingly disgusted by super-size
executive compensation, shabby treatment of employees, and outsourcing
of American jobs.
-
If Wal-Mart
were considered a nation, they would be China’s fifth-largest
trading partner...importing $15 billion manufactured items from
China in 2003.
-
Forty-two
college presidents at private colleges and 17 at public universities
earn more than a half-million dollars a year. For the past 25
years the price rises for colleges have annually outpaced the
consumer price index by more than 3.5%. The main factor causing
this is the limited market discipline that universities face
because they lack a clear metric of performance, such as profits.
- If you've
missed any of our weekly Tuesday Reports the past five
years we have an archive of issues for you at the bottom of this
week's letter...check it out!
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