Neil Godin is the president of Neil Godin International and one of the first members of First Canadian Barter Exchange (FCBE), joining back in 1997. Having been in the barter movement since the late 70’s he was familiar with the barter industry and its benefits.
When asked why he decided to join FCBE, he recalls, “I had heard such great things about First Canadian. One of the key things that I was looking for was great customer service and I had heard that this company goes out of its way to help a client. I knew I had to join!”
Neil is a marketing and sales trainer, speaker and writer. He works with large clients such as Royal Bank, Telus, Shell and McDonalds, but his passion is working with small businesses.
“Most of my clients are healthy small businesses looking to get to the next level, but I specialize in helping troubled companies where sales need to sometimes be doubled or tripled immediately at a minimum cost. I help them increase sales rapidly at little to no cost.”
Neil has coached numerous FCBE members over the last 20 years.
He also recommends barter to a number of his clients as a way to increase sales at very little cost. He often uses himself as an example. If he is holding a seminar and there are seats left empty, he is missing out on potential revenue. Why not fill those seats with barter customers and generate barter dollars? In addition, the companies that attended using barter dollars can refer their cash paying friends who may also be interested in his services.
By using the barter dollars he’s earned instead of cash, Neil has been able to eliminate some key cash expenses for his business as well as get some great personal items.
“Accounting is one of my larger business expenses and I save lots of cash by paying for it with barter dollars. I have also used barter to get items for my home such as furniture.”
Neil Godin is well known to many FCBE members. He is a regular attendee and has spoken at a number of barter training events.
“I love attending FCBE social and networking events such as the Annual Dinner Cruise and Trade Show. My favourite events to attend are the training events. They are informational and really teach other members how to use barter to their full advantage.”
During training events, Neil has given new and existing members valuable information about selling strategies, marketing on a budget, ways to build your business and more.
So does Neil have any parting words?
“The team at FCBE is always there and willing to help and they go the extra mile for their clients. They give 110% with everything they do whether it’s getting me more clients, filling my next event or finding a local car shop for me to use on barter.
If you have extra time in your schedule, unfilled seats in your restaurant or excess capacity of any kind, barter is definitely a tool you need to consider.”