It is a very difficult service to rate for several reasons. One is their “pricing” model. For one, a price is mainly (if not only) connected to trade, else the notion of “price” won’t even exist. Second, in order to get their services you have to either pay what you want (so yes, a trade), or they will give you a “free pass” card https://www.directory.trade-free.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/PYv5pmU.png. What if you do not want any of that? And you simply want their services but do not care about the free pass or do not want to pay them anything? Can you do that? Why isn’t there a way to just access the services without any conditions?

Second, they offer multiple services that seem completely unrelated: WEBDESIGN (Hosting, Programming, Designing, Marketing); CONSULTING (Coaching, Problem Solving, Business Strategies); TALK STORY (Happiness, Depression, Anxiety, Success). And these services are only offered via private means such as email. We can’t check any of these.

I personally think that if they rely on some trades as explained above, this will create an imbalance of power and a bad incentive. What if the ones paying will be prioritized over those who do not!? I do not trust any such schemes since I’ve seen countless of times how they lead to bad outcomes. In my view this is not a trade-free service since they do allow for some voluntary trades that will, in time, influence their priorities, and second we can’t even check if what they offer is trade-free since all it is done via private means such as email.

If they would want to provide webdesign tutorials or help, they could make videos about it and post them for free online at archive.org or similar trade-free services, or if they would want to provide all kinds of “talk” services such as discussions and consultations, they should do so without sending people their free pass cards or asking them to pay what they want. They would simply provide that and if they would need financial help they would simply ask for donations, which are voluntary contributions regardless if you request a service from them or not.

W.A.I.T. – What Am I Trading? Well, it’s a bit confusing, since the website asks you to pay either nothing or pay what you want (https://99power.org/pricing). I find this in contrast to offer something without asking anything in return and relying on donations with a donation page, where you can donate if you want. What if the website gets 5 e-mails about using the service and 2 of those use the pay nothing option and 3 of those use the pay what you want option. Will everyone get the same service? What if one of those 3 who pay something pays 10€, the other one 50€ and the third one 300€? Will the one with 300€ get a better or faster service? I think that could be a slippery slope.

Another thing that confuses me is the offering of “business advice” (https://99power.org/about – https://www.directory.trade-free.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/sPf4mPn.png). This is in striking contrast to the trade-free idea as well, since business is all about the game of trade. But if the offering of business advise is trade-free, then it is a trade-free service. Similar to offering a bible as trade-free, even though the bible is bullshit and non-scientific.

Therefore I don’t know exactly what to do with this one. I’d say, if they want to provide “webdesign, coding, programming, business advice and general consulting” as a trade-free service, they should just offer that and create a page where they accept donations and that’s it. No confusion, no bullshit – just the trade-free service.

I also want to mention the trade-based networks on the website at the bottom (https://www.directory.trade-free.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/dzPEBnr.png). But there seem to be no trackers on the website.

For now I’d give 3 of 5 blocks and I would like other people to comment on this to see their arguments.