U Exchange And Other Bartering Sites Benefit From The Recession

I've reported in the past about how bartering has made a comeback as a way for businesses to make cheaper transactions. That was about businesses trading each other's services for tasks for which they don't want to pay. But probably even more important is the boom in bartering for consumer services.

The Today Show reported:

As Lauer notes, Craigslist has seen a 100 percent increase in bartering since January.

Swapping site U-Exchange seems to be overwhelmed by interest in bartering. As I type this blog post, its website appears to be down.

This isn't all good news for small businesses. When somebody uses Craigslist or U-Exchange to obtain something, that could mean one fewer sale for a business. But it seems to me that in the end, more efficient ways for people to trade can only be good for businesspeople. After all, they are consumers too, and can (and do) take part in bartering.