Bartering is the New Green

Making ends meet can be quite a headache, particularly during difficult economic times. Paying for food, rent, transportation and the rest of that long list can really add up. Or perhaps you live with your parents, and just don’t have the same funds as you once did in years past (either from the ‘rents or as a result of your own hard work) to pay for stuff like clothes, travel and eating out at restaurants. It seems like, as a direct result of the recession, many of us are in the same boat.

I just checked out what you guys having been saying in the Cross Canada Dialogues (CCD) survey and so far 64.7% of you guys said that you spend less money shopping or making purchases and 62.2% of you eat out less. Interestingly, 447 of you look for specials when you’re out shopping and 285 of you guys use coupons. Here’s what you had to say about the issue of budgeting in our survey:

“I try to be more frugal in my spending, I had to pay rent late for the first time in three years last month. Everyone is feeling the pinch, tips are down and so are the hours. I’m spending all my time on finding money and less on school.” -Pinching Pennies

“I am more aware of how I spend my money. I'm spending less on useless items.” -Coin Conscious

“My behaviour has changed in response to the recession because I am now very aware of the value of money and have been watching my spending habits and shopping smart.” -Frugal with the Funds

“Due to the recession I have been doing a lot less spending on clothes and eating out less in order to save money.” -Rags to Riches

“Because of the recession I have been doing a lot less travelling.” -Stuck in a Rut

“I have not been spending as much money on clothes.” –Bringing Overalls Back

I guess the good news is that we’re all learning a thing or two in the department of budgeting our money wisely. The even better news is that there are alternatives to spending our hard earned dollars on some of the things we want and need. Throughout history (we’re talking long before the time of the invention of money itself) people traded things like beads, blankets, cloves and shells for the things they needed. Apparently, chickens were exchanged for newspaper subscriptions in the 19th century!

Today, the revival of the bartering system is becoming increasingly popular. And with the use of the internet as a tool to connect people wanting to exchange their stuff on websites like craigslist.com, barterbee.com and barterquest.com (at no charge), the opportunities are endless! If you have a skill like photography or fixing things around the house, you might even consider swapping your services for something you’re in the market for.

Just in case you’re scratching your head in confusion, here’s how the modern day online bartering system works. Say you need your broken laptop fixed but just don’t have the cash. You go to one of the bartering websites and find someone who’s a computer whiz offering their services. You read their posting and find out that they’re looking for a new desk. Perfect! You actually just got a new desk for your birthday and need to get rid of your old one that’s still in decent condition and that would have just sat in your basement collecting dust. It’s that easy.

It was clear from your responses in the CCD survey that many of you have been saving your money by not spending as much on clothes. With online bartering, you can even swap your ‘only worn once to my cousin’s wedding’ outfit or your brand new, never been used Coach bag from last season for exactly what you want.

Swapping items via the internet is a great way to shop for whatever you want (and get rid of what you don’t!) without spending a penny. It just may be time to clean out your closet and get bartering!

So what’s the first thing that you would want to exchange or receive in a barter swap? What are some of your creative ideas on how you’ve been saving money during the recession?

[This blog reflects opinions of Canadian youth expressed in the Cross Canada Dialogues survey and is funded by the Counselling Foundation of Canada. For more information on Johnny MacDonald, you can see his profile here.]