Those of you who are already members of the South Sound Barter Alliance have probably noticed that we've been very quiet for the past few months. Frankly, we decided to go back to the drawing board and completely rethink how our trade exchange operates and is marketed.
We've decided on a number of changes. First of all, we are changing the name from South Sound Barter Alliance to SS barter. We did this partially because it just sounds better, but also because we have plans to grow our barter exchange beyond the South Sound.
Secondly, we have totally changed our fee structure. Most barter exchanges charge a combination of an initiation fee, a monthly maintenance or accounting fee, and a transaction fee, which is a percentage of the value of the trade that is taking place.
We are lowering our initiation fee. Home-based businesses can now join the barter exchange for only $99. Larger businesses will pay only $198. This is 50% lower than our previous initiation fee.
Next, we are eliminating the monthly fee. Your only charges will be the 5% cash transaction fee and a small annual renewal fee of $49. We believe this will make it easier for more businesses to join our barter exchange.
Finally, we have now added a trade broker dedicated to making sure our exchange functions smoothly.
We believe that these changes, in addition to our brand-new website, will give us a strong kick start into 2010.
