For a number of weeks, I, and many other professionals either in or directly connected to the barter industry have been following the “stories” of a new blog, BarterIndependent.com, which changed name recently to Barter Weekly.
My first experience of this site was when I discovered that a number of the stories and summaries that were being published on the site were taken from my work. I’m not a terrible stickler about my own copyrights, but I do like a link back to my story if you are going to use it, so I emailed the owner of the site, Eric, to ask him to either remove the articles or post a link back to my site. He apologized for the copy stealing and has stopped taking my content, but never put links back to my articles.
After emailing him, I took some time to wander around the site and do what discovery I could, particularly in the area of ownership of the site. I was curious to know who was responsible for the site and it’s content. From the site:
“Now Eric is a tireless advocate of barter, and is currently running the San Francisco office of Merchants Barter Exchange. For purposes of this project, Eric’s relationship with Merchants Barter will not come into play. This is truly an independent project. (http://barterindependent.com/we-are-we-doing-this)”
Clearly, the manager or broker or franchisee of the San Francisco office of Merchants Barter Exchange is responsible for the site. His name is Eric.
I am re-entering the barter world, right now, having been absent for 2 1/2 years, and I have never heard of Eric, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt, even using some of his content with permission and linking back to his site. In an email he sent me he explained the nature of the site and what its ultimate purpose is:
“3. Through the Year of Barter project, I’ll be very publicly living my life via barter. I’m showcasing how a local web designer (myself) is able to use trade credits in a barter exchange system to live completely and totally by barter. This blog project will be heavily promoted by GTWOC, and will include heavy use of social media including Facebook, You Tube, and similar sites. Through one of my sales reps, we’re working on getting featured on “Eye on the Bay” a local news program.
4. In conjunction with the Year of Barter project, I’m also working on the Barter Independent project. While Year of Barter (YOB) will seek to raise the visibility of the barter exchange world, the Barter Independent project (BIP) will help consumers to choose the right barter exchange to fit their needs. As I’ve been talking to various people in the barter world, there’s a concensus that the barter industry as a whole needs to “grow up”. This will be a sub priority of this site, and will highlight things such as cash/trade blends which occur in the industry, the poaching of other exchange’s members etc. As a (semi) former member of ITEX, I can tell you first hand that most of the members of ITEX are not happy, by talking with them and getting them to post their experiences on the site, we’ll be able to (hopefully) show that just being biggest does not make you the best. I predict based on early experiences with this project that the barter world is in for a rude awakening and a massive cleanup effort. Conversely, we should get the members of MBE to post their experiences at http://barterindependent.com/us-barter-exchanges/arizona/merchants-barter-exchange. I’m presuming that we have nothing to fear.”
Indeed, does Merchants Barter have anything to fear?
A quick search on Google suggests that they do have something to fear. An ex-employee suggests that, “When it came time to pay me, it was a fight to get my first paycheck, more recently the paycheck bounced, and they refuse to pay.” (http://www.ripoffreport.com/Small-Business-Services/Merchants-Barter-Exc/merchants-barter-exchange-merc-aa5ef.htm)
Do they poach other exchange’s members? Yesterday morning I received a phone call from a distressed exchange owner who insisted I was spamming her members. She explained that her member list is available to the public, and that someone going by Barter Weekly was sending her members unsolicited email. I assured her that the only email I send is to those that ask for it and to exchange owners about their directory listings. Is it a coincidence that Barter Weekly changed its name recently? I can’t say.
What I can say is that for a company that claims,
Unimpeachable ethical integrity. (http://merchantsbarter.com/mbe-difference)
Merchants Barter is sponsoring a media campaign for itself while attacking other exchanges in the guise of openness and love for the barter world. From the Barter Weekly site Eric says:
On a different note, I’m asking the barter industry to stop the infighting.
But then goes on to say:
…owners of trade exchanges are very paranoid people. …Perhaps someone can post a comment as to what everyone is so scared about?
If this blog intends on creating unity and transparency in the industry, why did they post the following about ITEX, saying it was news and a new change to ITEX rules, which have been in effect for at least a decade?
1.4. Credit Line Interest: If a Member’s account has a negative ITEX dollar balance at the end of any cycle, credit line interest of one and one-half percent (1.5%), or the maximum rate permitted by law, will be charged, in ITEX dollars.
Just as the original intention states, “we’ll be able to (hopefully) show that just being biggest does not make you the best.” I guess if you point out rules that have been in place since the beginning, that counts as news, right? Or maybe it’s just an intentional jab at ITEX, who right now is one of the best positioned barter companies in the world (See more here).
I spend a little time on Twitter, and MerchantsBarter direct messaged me with a link to a site, claiming to have been the top rated exchange in the United States. The link took me to a page on the Barter Weekly, a Merchants Barter sponsored website, where they had received 8 positive votes. But that’s not all…
The site itself explains:
Our ratings system only truly works when we have thousands of votes per exchange. (http://barterindependent.com/barter-blog/site-good-decisions)
But they don’t have thousands of votes…so why are they claiming to be the top rated exchange?
Only one thing is clear: Merchants Barter has sponsored a smear campaign against the barter industry. ITEX was the first and most celebrated target. Your exchange may be the next target of their smear tactics.
Their web designer is also running their San Francisco office. Is he doing design work full time and bartering on the side?
As the focus of this post, I thought I’d point out a couple of points:
1. Copyright infringement. We have two “similar” articles on this site and my own. The only similarity is the title. You and I actually shared emails back and forth about this, and you gave me permission. Two items can have the same headline and not be copy stealing.
2. Relationship to MBE. I am a franchise owner of the San Francisco office. Apparently I’m doing an adequate job of disclosing that, as you found the information easily.
3. Rip off report. posting. That posting is by someone (from many years ago) who was unhappy about us. It’s well before my time with the company, and did not involve me personally. It’s interesting to note that after 8 years in business, the worst someone is able to come up with (if we treat that as a credible report, which I am unsure of the facts behind it) is that a check bounced. Where’s the followup? Was the person issued a new check? Has the situation been handled? No one knows of has reported on that, and probably never will. This gets filed under personal dispute between two people. Nothing more, nothing less.
4. BarterWeek name change. Site is still available at the original URL (barterindependent.com) and always will be, we changed the name on the site to make it easier to remember and type. Once the site “officially” goes live (sometime next week) it will be updated weekly, which is why the name barter week was chosen.
5. Members poaching. MBE has a corporate policy which states that franchisees and sales people are not allowed to specifically target another exchange’s members. Typically speaking, MBE will not accept for membership members of other barter organizations. It would be a waste of a salesperson or franchise owner’s time to solicit the members of another exchange, as they would most likely not be accepted as members.
6. ITEX rule change. I was mistaken in that the rule was new, and the site was updated within hours of the posting to reflect that is was an old charge. Perhaps what I didn’t clearly get across was my point that a barter exchange should not have hidden fees buried in 12 pages of legalese. I’ve looked at the membership rules of many bartering organizations in the process of setting up the site, and don’t recall any other exchange charging these types of fees. I could be wrong (someone will find one out there just to prove me wrong), but it’s certainly not standard industry practice.
7. I am doing both web design and bartering at the moment. In fact, right at the moment I have two clients, both secured through ITEX. I am doing these jobs to bring my negative ITEX balance to a positive ITEX balance. At no time have I mentioned with either of these clients the existence of MBE. Through a mutual decision between ITEX and myself, I am leaving ITEX. I did not wish to leave with a negative balance, as that would not render me a good player in the industry, just as I shouldn’t leave a bill unpaid somewhere. If I left without contributing my fair share, that would be the same thing.
8. The overall site. On Monday, the site will be very different, and many postings will actually be removed to go back to the original purpose of demonstrating that a person truly can live their entire life by barter. We’re sending out a press release next week announcing the site, and I don’t want the industry’s disagreements to be the story, rather the positive benefits that barter can bring.
I state all these things as my own personal responses, and in no way should these responses be considered an official view of MBE corporate.
From Ripoffreport.com (http://www.ripoffreport.com/Small-Business-Services/Merchants-Barter-Exc/merchants-barter-exchange-merc-aa5ef.htm) updated December 6, 2009 <60 days ago.
Another from April 2009:
Another from March 25th:
Eric, are you sending unsolicited email to members of other exchanges?
To the best of my knowledge… no.
How, then, do you explain the explosion of email subscribers and the unsolicited emails from your email address that are going to other exchange’s members?
About the ITEX rule: all exchanges have small print. Just like any other service oriented industry. Instead of focusing your efforts on showing the world that, “that just being biggest does not make you the best”, perhaps you could focus your efforts on reporting your life on barter. In defense of ITEX, if they were doing a poor job overall, perhaps they wouldn’t be the biggest in North America.
My original point (which was lost in the discussion over wheter or not the fee was new (I was wrong… it was an old fee)
ITEX TOC: 13310 Words
Transmedia Trade TOC: 2074 Words
National Tradebanc TOC: 306 Words
IMS TOC: 1476 Words
Southern California Marketing TOC: 658 Words
I could continue. Is there a reason that a single barter company (large or small) needs 10 times as many terms and conditions as their competitors?
Yes, you were wrong.
It will be interesting to see if the “year in barter” will be based on a credit line in MBE or with actual earned credits as a web designer. But of course he is also selling ad space on his site on trade. I guess he’ll charge MBE as much as necessary to meet his needs - which is the same as giving himself a line of credit.
Strangely enough, the first credits earned and used will be ITEX dollars. I’ll need to use up my remaining credits.
Second credits to be used are from a company who happens to be using the DoBarter system.
I will be earning credits through MBE by doing web design (have two projects going on right now) the way that any member contributes, by providing services (or goods) to other members.
MBE pays no more or less than other members on the site.
It’s interesting that you are focusing so intensely on ITEX. Why not doBarter or IMS? Why ITEX? What did they do to you? (Besides close your account)
I make no assumptions, but that is a very interesting question…
You guys are arguing about the wrong things. Lets cut to the chase and let everyone know straight away that Merchants Barter Exchange is a criminal enterprise identrified by many victims all over the internet as a front for an identity theft ring. If you doubt this, just do some Googling with key words of the company name and “scam”, “fraud”, “Problem”, “Legal” “law”, and “investigation”.