Lawn Care Almost Free
 

This last spring I was really concerned about having to mow and trim my large corner lot myself in the thick of a hot Ozark summer.

I got to talking with my lawn care professional who was a retired industrial sales rep who wanted to do lawns because it gave him more freedom.

We talked and I found out he wanted some more customers, so I offered to help him get some more business in trade for his services. It turned out that he came over one time for me to take pictures and I created a brochure and two postcards for a summer of lawn mowing and trimming. That alone saved me a couple of hours each week, not to mention the getting changed, cleaning up and just being tired from the work.

Why am I mentioning this?

I am looking for some good trading or barter stories I could use on the radio from people that do this from time to time in the course of their daily lives. I am NOT looking for stories of barter clubs or barter dollars.

Has anyone has any experience in this type of trading?

Millard Grubb

Re: Lawn Care Almost Free
 

Hi Millard:

I periodically do a bit of bartering....2 years ago when my aging riding lawnmower up and died, I bartered painting a kitchen, hall, and bathroom for another riding lawnmower. Right now I am negotiating a barter for a snowblower (needed for this winter) -will either be for an old 91 auto that hasn't been driven for 5 years, or drywalling a family room....the snowblower owner hasn't decided which he wants.

Cornell

Re: Lawn Care Almost Free
 

I traded my services as a flight instructor for a pile of rock and crusher fines. The deal was free instruction for all the rock and fines I could haul. I hauled a bunch of it too. Enough rock to build my house and coat my road and airstrips with fines, and I still have a big pile of rocks left over. The student pilot received about $2,100 worth of flight instruction towards his private pilot license. Yep, he passed first rattle out of the box.

Re: Lawn Care Almost Free
 

Hi Millard, I don't think I told you about this before but when I was working Don Alms “Video Case Ads” program back in the 90’s I would often barter with my ad buyers. I still charged a set up fee that would cover all of my production costs but I would sometimes trade out the $25 per week ad fee for products and services.

I had restaurants delivering food to me every night. Traded out for videos, a VCR, Movie tickets, a gym membership, hair cuts, tanning and the use of a car from the local Rent-A-Wreck outfit. I even traded with a River Rafting outfit to shoot the rapids once a week during spring when the river had a bit of white water!

The advertisers loved it and I loved it because I would have spent the cash on many of the products and services anyway. It’s surprising at how often a no will turn into a yes if you offer to accept barter instead of dollars.

Cheers,

Steve Shulenski

Re: Lawn Care Almost Free
 

Steve,

I imagine there are thousands, if not millions, of people doing a little "Horse Trading" from day to day. Back in the 90's I was trying to get a restaurant gig for about two years. This was me performing guest table-to-table or while they were waiting to be seated.

Anyway, I could not get the restaurant to hire me at seventy-five dollars an hour. However, once I mentioned doing the gig for half cash and half restaurant script, the restaurant said OK. I performed there for two tears.

In another case, I was ready to pay after a meal at another restaurant and saw a few tables with kids. I asked the manager if I could make a few balloons for the kids as a gesture of good will. Turned out the manager gave me my meal for a few minutes of balloon twisting.

Bartering has always been fun for me and as long as both parties are happy, I am game to do it all the time.

Cheers,

Millard