Whether it’s a new product or service - the power of free goes a long way. Think about Sun Microsystem’s embracing of Open Source or VaynerMedia giving away all the assets and source code for a their custom FaceBook tab or bloggers like Seth Godin and Chris Brogan giving away actionable and inspiring info on their blogs every day. Think about HBO giving away the first episode (and soundtrack) for their new series How to Make It In America. All of these examples involve giving away some kind of intellectual property that already has intrinsic value. Whether its a platform, media or a comprehensive how-to - that stuff generates buzz and customers.
In the case of Sun, entire platforms are built and run on Sun’s technology. Giving away the tools helps people to build amazing things to run on Sun’s hardware. In the Case of HBO, giving away the first episode on YouTube as well as the soundtrack (which HBO does a great job of compiling throughout their different programs) generates a lot of buzz. Essentially it’s just digital sampling but it’s counter intuitive to their business model which is based around restricting access to its content. Did it make me want to check out the program? Absolutely. Did it make me want to purchase cable so I could pay to get HBO so I can watch episode two? No. But, did I inadvertently help them with promotion by blogging about the show? Got me there.
Now let’s look at Seth & Chris. Their blogs are two of the most read on the web and each day there are nuggets of great content, served fresh daily. Having that kind of expert share their insights via a blog is worth real cash. Does sharing that knowledge or those assets de-value their core products or services because they’re giving away the blueprints to something that they normally charge for? Hardly. Just because the code, the design, or the pointers that each of these examples give away is freely available doesn’t mean that everyone is going to take the time to deconstruct it and implement their own version. When push comes to shove, lots of people don’t want to mess with learning curves. They agree with the idea, but want to be lead.
I’d argue that this approach does two things. First, these businesses and experts can ‘afford’ to give that kind of quality content away, it makes you wonder how amazing their services are for the people who pony to pay for consulting or a custom strategy. Second, it is a great tool for generating what I’ll call ’soft money.’ Whether that’s fees for speaking at events or the cash people will spend to get their latest book (both Trust Agents & Linchpin are highly recommended by the way) - people will put money where they find value.
What do YOU think? What as a business can you give people to sample? Can you grow your business this way and will more leads be generated as a byproduct of this Thank You Economy? Which industries can get hurt or helped by this? Fire away in the comments!
There was a really interesting and insightful video from Gary V. about how the explosion of social media has changed customer expectations. He talks about how brands & celebrities are embracing the same social networks that we are, and that there is also now an expectation of interaction buy the consumer. If I think a product sucks and I talk about it, I could rightly expect that someone at that company is at least listening - and may respond.
The same is getting to be true celebrities, CEOs, and the like - John Mayer, Ashton Kutcher, Bill Gates and other top business peeps are on Twitter and (in theory) accessible. No gatekeepers for them in this medium. But can it last? And because of the openness we’re seeing now, will customers grow to have expectations that can’t be sustained?
Andrew Warner over at Mixergy had an interesting post arguing that it can’t. And I tend to agree, but don’t think it will be true for absolutely everyone. We’re in what I think of as an attention gold rush - where the tools are still new enough that barriers and gatekeepers aren’t a huge issue yet. As this builds (and it will) the competition for attention and competition for that conversation will start to exist, just like in every other medium. Gary is a good example of someone who works really hard to engage 1:1 and say ‘what’s up’ to a good chunk of his audience, but with every appearance on GMA, every new tasting with Jimmy Fallon, the audience grows and I’m sure it gets much harder to scale those interactions 1:1.
But, I think it all comes down to how bad someone wants a passionate online community. I get really excited any time someone like Gary (or Andrew, or Chris) responds to a question of mine or a blog I posted. Because it takes real time to respond directly, those discussions make people feel like they are a valued part of the community. Maybe down the road there will have to be another mechanism that can scale better, but at a basic level, I think nothing creates a brand evangelist or a fan like a conversation. Businesses and people will have to learn to better manage those interactions and scale them up, or customers and fans may become disenchanted if these new tools become the 21st century equivelant of fan mail.
Your thoughts? Is there a good way to scale your social interactions if you’re a major brand or celebrity that hasn’t been talked about? Will interactions and expectations consistently increase or will they bell curve? Hit me in the comments…
Some of the bigger guns in Social Media have taken a pit stop recently into the more traditional scene and published books on their areas of expertise. Chris Brogan and Julian Smith put out Trust Agents recently (my review of the book coming soon) and Gary Vaynerchuk just released Crush It (currently reading).
Both have gotten a bit of criticism for jumping into a traditional method of disseminating information (the hardcover book) when their ‘business’ is talking about online communities, business, and social media. Furthermore, both Chris and Gary give away an enormous amount of kick-ass information, action items, and insight through both their blogs, and in Chris’ case, much of the basic principles served as the foundation for Trust Agents.
So why did I buy (and why will I continue to buy) their books when I can get a lot of the same content for free, online? First it’s about saying Thank You. It’s the same reason I became a member of my local NPR station. They give away the content, but I find value in it, so I choose to support it. For another reason that made sense to me, I have to bring in Seth Godin. Below check the embed of a talk that he gave to book publishers about the different methods he uses to publish his books and how they were received.
The short of it is that guys like Seth, Gary, and Chris are a bit different since they’re not in the book business. They’re in the building relationship business, the speaking business and the building community business. They give talks, put out great info for free on their blogs, and create experiences. The books are souvenirs. Now, of course for people who aren’t familiar with their online work, the books are a gateway, a CD sampler, an appetizer. But for the rest of us….souvenirs.
It’s part of what Gary V. has called the “Thank You Economy.” and it’s something that I also think is here to stay. So, thanks Chris and Gary for the great content, the videos, the blogs, the interaction and the community.
So the Facebook vanity URL goldrush is on… In case you don’t know what I’m talking about, Facebook has basically announced that since this past weekend you could log in and get a username. Instead of getting to my FB profile with a long-ass url, you could hit up. www.facebook.com/ryanmiller315 - easier to remember, right? It fits on a biz card, or an email signature.
That’s the upside. The downside is that its first come first serve (not really a downside I guess) but once you choose your url, that’s it. You can’t change it. EVER. So before you decide you want your FB url to be BigSexy99, think again. Its like getting a really bad tattoo. My friend Katie has a good post on this as well that I caught as I was writing…
But inevitably there are going to be lots of Ryan Millers out there so the chance that I would get my own name was slim to none. Alas, I’m stuck with something less than ideal.
Where there has been a lot of excitement is when it was announced that brands (fan pages) can also get a vanity url. I could hit up www.facebook.com/cnn - again, easier to remember. The downside? You need to have at least 1,000 fans to qualify. So I really can’t get the hook up for my indie music fan page. That sucks.
But is this huge news for brands? Gary V. did a quick video about this announcement and thinks its a game changer. But I have to disagree. Sure, its convenient and for brands that are already playing in that space, its a nice addition and a welcome tool for establishing a presence on the network. But I don’t think its earth shattering.
Here’s why…
First of all, I think FB is a much better platform than MySpace was, in terms of organization, applications and visual layout. One of the reasons I think people left MySpace in droves was because it was almost too open. I couldn’t deal with dancing hamster backgrounds and Tide Detergent adding me as a friend when I wasn’t a fan to begin with. Facebook however, isn’t nearly as customizable as it could be and while its a good platform to interact with fans that are already on that platform - as a brand I have much more flexability for design and features on my own website (should I have the time and budget to invest in building what I want).
I’ve also read that this will be great from a marketing standpoint… But why would I market my facebook URL as a brand? I know its the next ‘cool thing’ but if you’re a business that is doing work in social spaces, marketing on Facebook alone isn’t going to cut it. Maybe you have a blog, a Twitter account, and a Facebook account… Why then would you market the Facebook page? I think its a better idea to get people to your website and link them off to the platform that they prefer. That’s not to say you shouldn’t be doing outreach on EACH platform, but to pimp your FB page on a billboard isn’t a battle plan.
So how could a brand still capitalize on this if they dont’ have 1000 followers or got beat in the gold rush? My advice is to standardize and redirect. If you’re a business and don’t own a domain name, (ryancmiller.com) spend the $10 and get one. You’ll be glad you did. Then I would make sure that all my pages on social networks are easily accessible from my main website or blog. And finally, if you want to pimp your facebook url but didnt’ get a vanity url - just build a simple redirect page (here’s how) that takes you to the Facebook Fan page when you hit www.yourdomain.com/facebook . Its simple. You can change it. and It Works.
What do you guys think? Does having a FB vanity url matter for people or brands? Is it a game changer? Am I full of crap? More importantly, did YOU get the url you wanted?
