Firstly we are not talking about giving 'all' your IP away for free. Even the basic freemium business model is about incrementally charging more for premium or value add products and services. The new model is more about reputation and trust developed over time so that the individual or companies value is about IP 'potential'
I coined a term on the Urban Dictionary a few months ago called 'trustonomics', meaning soon we will all place true value on brands/individuals based on trust - it will become quantifiable (see my last tweet on Marketing Charts influence - Global Multipliers for example). Example: If you are seen to be collecting IP from others, repackaging it and putting a price on it (which is what most consultants do ) that will have much less value in the long term than being seen to be the source. How do you show you are the source? Blogging, tweeting, white papering only go part way. Giving away things people can really use for their own benefit is what Laurel is doing in this case. It is analogous to not giving the man the fish to eat but the tools by which he can become a fisherman - far more value.
Your right that this isn't a short term bread and butter on the table solution but everyone needs to consider the two pronged approach in these hard times 1) showing your value by giving away 'useful' samples of your capability 2) charging premium for specific targeted services, live performances, strategic consultancy, specially written/composed/created works.
I don't think this is a particularly new concept as when you break it down to it's fundamentals it goes way back into history, especially principles of bartering and swapping services for products. Also most of this is echoed by Mr Long Tail Chris Anderson in his new'ish doctrine Free! Why $0.00 Is the Future of Business focused much more on looking at practical examples of music and product tasters etc:
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Firstly we are not talking about giving 'all' your IP away for free. Even the basic freemium business model is about incrementally charging more for premium or value add products and services. The new model is more about reputation and trust developed over time so that the individual or companies value is about IP 'potential'
I coined a term on the Urban Dictionary a few months ago called 'trustonomics', meaning soon we will all place true value on brands/individuals based on trust - it will become quantifiable (see my last tweet on Marketing Charts influence - Global Multipliers for example). Example: If you are seen to be collecting IP from others, repackaging it and putting a price on it (which is what most consultants do ) that will have much less value in the long term than being seen to be the source. How do you show you are the source? Blogging, tweeting, white papering only go part way. Giving away things people can really use for their own benefit is what Laurel is doing in this case. It is analogous to not giving the man the fish to eat but the tools by which he can become a fisherman - far more value.
Your right that this isn't a short term bread and butter on the table solution but everyone needs to consider the two pronged approach in these hard times 1) showing your value by giving away 'useful' samples of your capability 2) charging premium for specific targeted services, live performances, strategic consultancy, specially written/composed/created works.
I don't think this is a particularly new concept as when you break it down to it's fundamentals it goes way back into history, especially principles of bartering and swapping services for products. Also most of this is echoed by Mr Long Tail Chris Anderson in his new'ish doctrine Free! Why $0.00 Is the Future of Business focused much more on looking at practical examples of music and product tasters etc:
<abbr>Gary Hayes’s last blog post..Tribalization, Socialized TV & Games: Seriously</abbr>
I'll nip over and have a read of Ando's new doctrine - ta for the link. (I won't be reading it on a Kindle, but that's another story)
I am sloooowly starting to 'get it'... thanks for being patient :-)