Two Lessons About the Gift Economy

Two Lessons About the Gift Economy

By Jim Sterne on Jan 16, 2021 in Articles by Jim Sterne
Two Lessons About the Gift Economy

I received two lessons in the Gift Economy back in the mid 1990's that have stuck with me ever since.

Back when The Cluetrain Manifesto was new, the concept of the Gift Economy was hard to wrap one's mind around. Today, it's old hat, but it's still hard for some to take it to the next level.

Of course you should blog and tweet and post so potential clients know who you are, what you stand for, and what you think is important. Of course you should be transparent as you can about your products and services.

But you should also be as transparent as possible about as much as possible in order to serve your customers and your prospects.

It starts with pricing.

price tag

"On no, we can't show people our price before we've had the chance to fully explain our value!"

If your value is not abundantly obvious, your problem is not your pricing, it's your proposition.

"On no, we can't publish our price because our competitors will see it!"

If you think your competitors don't already know your price you don't hold your competition in high enough regard.

Ask yourself; Do you already know their price? If not, your problem is not their secrecy but your lack of determination and imagination.

Lesson One: Automated, Real Time Disclosure

printing press

Lesson Two: Secret Sauce and All the Ingredients

sauce
Eric Ward
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The Free Hand Wins

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