TRADE EXCHANGE MEMBERSHIP
YOUR BUSINESS MAY BE SITTING ON MONEY IT CANNOT SEE.
Not cash. Something else.
Empty rooms.
Unused staff time.
Unsold inventory.
Available equipment.
Advertising nobody bought.
Empty office space.
Idle factory capacity.
Professional hours.
Products waiting in warehouses.
ALL OF THAT HAS VALUE.
But here is the problem:
You cannot pay your bills with an empty hotel room.
You cannot buy advertising with an unused consulting hour.
You cannot purchase equipment with warehouse stock.
That is the problem a Trade Exchange is designed to help solve.
THE SIMPLE IDEA
TURN WHAT YOUR BUSINESS HAS INTO MORE OF WHAT YOUR BUSINESS NEEDS.
A Trade Exchange connects businesses that have something to sell with businesses that need something to buy.
You can potentially sell qualifying products, services or capacity inside the network, receive trade credit, and use qualifying trade credit to buy from other willing businesses inside the network.
THE THINGS YOUR BUSINESS ALREADY HAS MAY HELP YOU GET MORE OF THE THINGS YOUR BUSINESS NEEDS.
REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE
IMAGINE YOU OWN A HOTEL.
40empty rooms tonight
$250normal room rate
$10,000sellable capacity that may disappear tonight
Your electricity is already on. The staff is already there. The building is already open. The beds are already made.
Tomorrow morning, those unsold rooms are worth $0.
Now imagine you sell 10 of those rooms through participating exchange relationships.
10 rooms
×
$250
=
$2,500commercial value from otherwise unused capacity
You might then use qualifying trade credit for advertising, printing, professional services, technology, repairs, business travel, training or another product or service available from willing participating members.
You turned something that might have expired worthless into something your business can potentially use.
ANOTHER EXAMPLE
NOW IMAGINE YOU ARE A CONSULTING COMPANY.
You have 10 consultants. Each can bill 160 hours per month.
1,600total monthly hours
1,200hours sold
400hours unsold
$80,000unsold capacity at $200/hour
The month ends. Those hours are gone forever. Your salaries were still paid. Your rent was still paid. Your software was still paid. Your insurance was still paid.
This is not just a sales opportunity. It is a way to make an existing cost base work harder.
01
“WE NEED MORE CUSTOMERS.”
More customers solve a lot of problems. But finding them is expensive.
Google AdsFacebook AdsSalespeopleCold outreachNetworkingLead generationAgenciesTrade shows
Now imagine entering a network already populated by businesses that buy things, need suppliers, need services, need inventory, need contractors, need technology and need professional help.
Every relevant member can become another commercial possibility.
02
“WE HAVE TOO MUCH INVENTORY.”
Suppose you have $500,000 of slow-moving stock.
That inventory occupies warehouse space, ties up capital, can become obsolete, may need insurance and may eventually be discounted.
Now imagine $100,000 of that inventory is useful to businesses inside the exchange.
DEAD STOCK CAN BECOME ACTIVE BUYING CAPACITY.
Subject to actual buyer demand, exchange rules and transaction acceptance.
03
“WE HAVE SALES, BUT CASH IS STILL TIGHT.”
This surprises many growing businesses. Sales go up. Cash gets tighter.
Why? Growth consumes money before it produces all of its money.
$500Kexpansion budget
$150Killustrative qualifying needs sourced through exchange relationships
$350Kremaining cash requirement in this illustration
THE GOAL IS NOT “NO CASH.”
THE GOAL IS “USE CASH WHERE CASH IS REALLY NEEDED.”
04
“WE ARE SPENDING TOO MUCH CASH ON THINGS OTHER BUSINESSES COULD SUPPLY.”
Look at your expense report.
AdvertisingPrintingTravelHotelsConsultingITDesignTrainingMaintenanceEquipmentFurnitureProfessional services
$1Millustrative annual qualifying operating spend
10%illustrative portion sourced through appropriate exchange transactions
$100Kcash potentially preserved for expenses that require cash
Illustrative example only. Actual results depend on available suppliers, acceptance and transaction terms.
05
“WE HAVE CAPACITY WE CANNOT SELL.”
HOTELS
Empty rooms
AIRLINES
Empty seats
PRINTERS
Idle presses
LAW FIRMS
Unbooked hours
FACTORIES
Unused production time
MEDIA
Unsold advertising
WAREHOUSES
Empty space
TRAINING
Empty seats
The fixed cost already exists. The goal is to make more of that capacity productive.
06
“WE NEED SOMETHING, BUT WE DON'T WANT TO SPEND THE CASH RIGHT NOW.”
Imagine your company needs $50,000 of marketing. At the same time, you have $70,000 of capacity you could profitably provide without adding anything close to $70,000 of new cash cost.
SELLunused capacity
→
EARNqualifying trade credit
→
BUYmarketing from another participating member
You do not have to find one marketing company that wants exactly what you sell. The network separates the sale from the purchase.
07
“BANKS DON'T WANT TO GIVE US MORE CREDIT.”
A Trade Exchange is not a bank. Trade credit is not a conventional bank loan. Trade credit is not legal tender. And it cannot automatically pay every expense.
But not every business purchase has to use the same financial tool.
CASH
For expenses that require cash.
BANK CREDIT
For suitable conventional financing.
SUPPLIER CREDIT
When suppliers provide terms.
TRADE CREDIT
For qualifying transactions with willing participating businesses.
“Which tool is best for this particular transaction?”
08
“WE NEED MORE ADVERTISING, BUT ADVERTISING IS DRAINING OUR CASH.”
$20Kmonthly advertising spend
$240Kannual advertising spend
If participating media, marketing or promotional suppliers can accept trade credit for part of that requirement, your cash position can change.
SELL EXCESS CAPACITY.
USE SOME OF THE VALUE TO BUY GROWTH.
09
“WE NEED NEW MARKETS.”
A broader exchange can potentially introduce your business to new industries, companies, suppliers, geographical markets, referral relationships, strategic partners and business communities.
One membership can open another commercial door.
10
“WE RELY TOO HEAVILY ON A FEW CUSTOMERS.”
Imagine 60% of your revenue comes from three clients. One leaves. Your business immediately feels it.
Exchange participation creates another potential source of customer relationships.
It does not replace your existing sales strategy. It adds another one.
11
“OUR SUPPLIERS ARE TOO EXPENSIVE.”
Membership creates another question:
“Who else inside the network can supply this?”
You may discover alternative vendors, new pricing, different transaction structures, unused capacity from another supplier and companies eager to win new business.
12
“WE HAVE TO GROW, BUT GROWTH COSTS TOO MUCH.”
Imagine opening a new office.
$50KFurniture
$25KIT
$40KMarketing
$20KDesign
$30KProfessional services
$35KTravel & launch
$200Ktotal illustrative expansion cost
$60Killustrative amount potentially supplied through agreed exchange transactions
That can change whether an expansion happens now, later or not at all.
13
“WE HAVE AN ASSET THAT IS COSTING US MONEY WHILE DOING NOTHING.”
A truck sits idle. A warehouse is half empty. A meeting room is unused. Machinery operates four hours instead of eight. Commercial property has vacant space.
It may still be consuming insurance, maintenance, financing, rent, depreciation, utilities and management time.
“Who in the network needs what we already have?”
14
“WE WANT TO BUY AN ASSET WITHOUT USING ALL OUR CASH.”
Some counterparties may be open to mixed consideration.
CashSeller financingOther assetsEarn-outsEquityTrade creditCombinations
The exchange does not guarantee that any seller will accept trade credit. Transaction terms must be voluntarily agreed by the parties.
15
“WE ARE PAYING PEOPLE TO SIT IDLE.”
$200Kmonthly team cost
75%capacity being used
25%capacity potentially available for additional business
THE OBJECTIVE IS NOT JUST TO CUT COST.
IT IS TO GET MORE OUTPUT FROM COSTS YOU ALREADY HAVE.
16
“OUR MARKETING GENERATES ATTENTION, BUT NOT ENOUGH TRANSACTIONS.”
Traditional networking often ends with: “Nice meeting you.” “Send me your card.” “Let's stay in touch.”
A Trade Exchange has a different foundation. Businesses participate because they have things to buy, things to sell, problems to solve and resources to use.
It is not just a network of contacts. It is supposed to be a network of commerce.
17
“WE ARE TOO SMALL TO NEGOTIATE LIKE A BIG COMPANY.”
One small business buying $5,000 of a service does not command much attention. But a supplier able to reach hundreds or thousands of businesses through a network sees a very different opportunity.
AGGREGATED COMMERCIAL DEMAND CHANGES THE CONVERSATION.
18
“OUR BUSINESS HAS MORE VALUE THAN OUR BANK BALANCE SHOWS.”
Suppose your bank account contains:
$80,000
You may think: “Our available resources equal $80,000.”
But your company may also have:
$500Kinventory
$300Kunused service capacity
$1Mequipment
$150Kadvertising capacity
$250Kproduction capacity
$2Mproperty
YOUR BANK BALANCE IS NOT THE FULL MEASURE OF YOUR BUSINESS'S ECONOMIC CAPACITY.
THE SIMPLEST WAY TO UNDERSTAND IT
WITHOUT A TRADE EXCHANGE
You sell something. You receive cash. You spend cash. If you do not have enough cash, you stop, borrow, wait, raise money or lose the opportunity.
WITH A TRADE EXCHANGE
You may have another path: sell qualifying products, services or capacity, receive trade credit, use qualifying trade credit with participating businesses and preserve cash where possible.
It does not replace cash. It gives your business another way to do business.
TWO COMMERCIAL ENGINES
ENGINE 1
THE CASH ECONOMY
Sell for cash. Buy with cash. Finance with cash and conventional credit. Keep it. You still need it.
ENGINE 2
THE TRADE EXCHANGE ECONOMY
Sell additional capacity. Earn trade credit. Use qualifying trade credit. Meet businesses. Find suppliers. Find customers. Preserve cash where possible.
TWO COMMERCIAL ENGINES ARE POTENTIALLY MORE POWERFUL THAN ONE.
THE REAL QUESTION
NOT: “DO WE NEED TRADE CREDIT?”
“HOW MUCH VALUE IS OUR BUSINESS ALREADY LOSING BECAUSE WE CANNOT USE EVERYTHING WE HAVE?”
How much inventory sits unsold?
How much capacity disappears?
How much cash leaves unnecessarily?
How much equipment sits idle?
How many employee hours are unused?
How much advertising capacity expires?
How many customers never discover you?
How many growth opportunities are delayed?
YOUR BUSINESS ALREADY HAS ASSETS.
YOUR BUSINESS ALREADY HAS CAPACITY.
YOUR BUSINESS ALREADY HAS SOMETHING OTHER BUSINESSES WANT.
SELL MORE. WASTE LESS. PRESERVE MORE CASH. FIND MORE CUSTOMERS. FIND MORE SUPPLIERS. USE MORE OF WHAT YOU ALREADY OWN.
Put more of your business to work.
JOIN THE TRADE EXCHANGE →
