Introduction

Congratulations on your decision to become a Liberty Merchant and increase your business and profits and serve your community, all by accepting the Liberty Dollar! Your decision will have far-reaching benefits not only for yourself, your business and your family, but for your entire community.

The Liberty Dollar, since it is not commonly accepted (yet) by banks and large corporations, is a natural tool for building local commerce. As a Liberty Merchant, you have taken a giant leap toward bringing value back to local shopping. As the Liberty Dollar gains recognition and grows in circulation (100,000 users and climbing), you'll notice other positive effects, such as:

• A return of the community spirit,
• A growing circle of customers who are also your friends, and
• An increased awareness that the local merchant is no longer just one of the businesses in town, but an indispensable part of the community, just as it was before the arrival of the "Super Stores"

In short, the honest-value Liberty Dollar, being based on real value in contrast to the country's current debt-based, inflationary, corporate monetary system, brings its merchants and the customers they serve closer, by allowing them to share in forming real wealth within their local economy.

Who Is a Merchant?

Since the introduction of the Liberty Dollar in 1998, there has begun a sort of revolution in the United States… a revolution of businesspeople who are tired of being overrun by great multi-national corporations with thousands of locations, tired of being forced to cut prices and profits to the minimum in order to barely survive in this economy. These people are the small-business-folk who built America, who have watched as foreign products sold at devastatingly low prices by marketing giants have funneled vast sums of money away from their community. They are Liberty Merchants.

Liberty Merchants recognize the need for returning to their communities local values that are superior to low prices at the cost of quality products and services. This is made possible by using the Liberty Dollar because it is:

1. backed by a historically-valuable commodity such as silver,
2. not depositable to banks and multi-nationals as it is not accepted by the Federal Reserve System,
3. a physical currency, so by its very nature it remains in local circulation,
4. available to the public at a discount that allows them to actually gain additional spending power each time it is used.

Far sighted businesspeople like you have given their communities a reason to come back to values that have been lacking for over forty years.

Liberty Merchants are the Mom and Pop stores, the local restaurants, the auto parts shops, the hardware stores, the gas stations… Liberty Merchants are the local folk who choose to run their own businesses and offer their experience and services to their own communities. Money spent with them stays in the local economy, increasing the amount of true wealth in their communities. Doing business with them fosters the old community spirit that has been slowly fading since big box retailers became the common place to buy goods and services.

Liberty Merchants are the pillars of their communities because they are dedicated to the good of their communities by using the Liberty Dollar.

Why Should I Become a Liberty Merchant?

The first and foremost reason why most businesses become Liberty Merchants is simply this: it is good for your business. By accepting the Liberty Dollar you will make more money. Let's take a look at how your profits will increase with the Liberty Dollar.

Businesses that choose to accept the Liberty Dollar do so voluntarily. They are aware that it is not accepted by banks, which they explain as they hand it out to their customers in change. So the currency will be spent again at their establishment or at a fellow local Liberty Merchant for the advantage of the community and for increased sales. This process enriches the community and leads to more business with other Liberty Merchants.

The question to become a Liberty Merchant is often more than an easy yes-or-no decision, but after some thought and a small amount of education about money that can be used to benefit a community, many businesses become Liberty Merchants. Check the growing list at the NH Liberty Dollar website.

Accepting The Liberty Dollar

Here is how you can use the Liberty Dollars in your business. The following simple rules will work with any business when properly employed in the sale of quality merchandise or services, and will ensure the growth of sales and profits.

If you're among the first Liberty Merchants...

Start by using the $5, $10, or $20 Silver Liberties made out of real silver! We recommend that the first Liberty Merchants start out by using and accepting the Silver Liberty. Just remember that it is not a "coin", that is something issued by a government, the Silver Liberty is a private local currency.

The Silver Liberty is beautiful to look at and pleasant to hold, especially when "dropped" into the hand of the customer. The weight of one troy ounce of .999 fine silver pleases the customer who wants to look at it before agreeing to take it, so ask your Liberty Associate to show you and your staff how to "Do the Drop"!

Silver Liberties tend to excite the customer, whether he remembers the old real silver coins we used to know and use or not. Many of your customers will show them to their friends and family, and you'll actually have people coming in just to buy one from you, or spending money just in the hope of getting one with their change!

Accept the Liberty Dollar with a smile!

Each of your clerks must be aware that the Liberty Dollar is now accepted at your business and should be instructed to accept it with a smile. Make the customer aware that you are glad he is spending the new value-backed money, because it is good for the local economy, not just for your business!

Offer it in change!

Whenever a customer offers payment in US dollars, offer the Liberty Dollar in change! Be sure your employees know that it is not accepted at banks or issued by the government: "Would you like one of the new Twenty Dollar Silver Liberties in your change? [while holding one up for them to see, and "Doing the Drop" when they reach for it to look it over] It's not from the government, it's really an ounce of silver, and the banks won't take it yet, but you can spend it in the local community!" Please memorize that simple phrase as it easily explains the nature of the new money, and eliminates any concerns by the customer.

Know who your fellow Liberty Merchants are!

Ask your Liberty Associate for the current Merchant Directory of all the merchants who accept the Liberty Dollar in your area (also available at the NH Liberty Dollar website). By telling your customers where else they can spend the money they get in change from you, you are supporting your local community; and as other Liberty Merchants tell their customers about you, you will all gain new customers that have never shopped with you before! This will result in a "circular promotion" that will help to keep money spent locally and help each of you to see significant increases in sales!

Don't hesitate to buy them back!

No matter how well your employees explain the new money, there will always be the occasional dissatisfied customer. Anytime one of your customers comes back and insists that you take back the Liberty Dollars he got from you, do so with a smile! You'll find that he will soon return and spend one he got from someone else, as the Liberty Dollar becomes more widely known in your community.

The important point is to make sure that anyone who wants to get his US dollars back can do so with a smile because for every customer who is dissatisfied with the new money, you'll find that you'll gain hundreds of customers who will be pleased and excited by them! The number of happy customers will inevitably grow as long as you always buy them back with a smile!

Decide how you want to make money with the Liberty Dollar.

There are three ways to make additional profits as a Liberty Merchant.

The first is to get them with a commission from your RCO (such as NH Liberty Dollar) and hand them out in change. Imagine going to a bank, handing them a $20, and getting $21 back!

The second is to hand out the Liberties as change. When your customers hold it in their hand, you will have strengthened their desire to do business with you, creating the kind of customer loyalty that increases sales.

Both ways will see an increase in your profits, and buying them with the Liberty Merchant commission will make you more money. There is a third way! The third way is to sponsor a Liberty Associate yourself and earn $100 every time you do!

Training Your Clerks

While there isn't really a lot for your clerks and cashiers to know, there are a few important things they should be made aware of.

• Coin: the government claims usage of the term 'coin' for themselves, so anything not produced by an official government entity cannot legally be called a coin. We all know that in the common usage of the term, the silver, gold, copper, and platinum Liberties are "coins", but using the term is frowned upon. We prefer the term Liberty or Liberties, such as "Silver Liberties". A few associates and merchants also call them "rounds".
• These cannot be deposited into banks that are part of the Federal Reserve System (which probably covers all the banks you are likely to encounter). This is actually an advantage because it means the customers who receive them will need to use them at stores, like yours, that accept them.
• Each Silver Liberty is of a different size and weight, corresponding to its face value ($5, $10, $20), so you may need an extra slot in your cash drawer for them, perhaps one for each as more and more customers use them.

You can always talk to your RCO if you need help with using your Liberty Dollars. The team at NH Liberty Dollar is here to help you make your business a success.