Open & Free Business Model
One Mistake Corporations & Big Businesses Make
Something interesting has been happening since Social Media became a force to be reckoned with, it’s power and use has been grossly misunderstood. The big mistake most corporations and big businesses make, they try to understand communities rather than the users (generations) that build and make up these communities.
To understand a community is actually quite simple, if you spend enough time in any community you will discover a personality and a few trends. But that doesn’t mean you understand the people in that community, people influence people, and communities can influence other communities, but the characteristics vary. What these communities and people (generations) tolerate today, most likely won’t fly the next year or for that matter the next day. Another interesting characteristic about these generations, they group and regroup on the fly.
The Gen C and generations to come, group and regroup for the purposes of grouping and regrouping for a new purpose, they will no longer staying together for long periods of time. Making it virtually impossible to derive quantifiable data that can be used for marketing and or to merely understand any community. They social and very mobile.
Gen C are the under twenty somethings with very little patience for old industrial age thinking, or for that matter, systems developed by those old thinkers. They want a more Natural User Interface (NUI), they want their content to be relevant, useful and interesting. They move in packs, very tribal in behaviour, which means you need to be able to adapt to there moods swings. Gen C are at best chameleons, constantly changing and morphing their identities to simultaneously belong to as many tribes as possible.
Communities will come and go, but those jumping from community to community will be harder to attract unless certain criteria are in place. Connect Gen C members with each other, not just with a brand. Enable Gen C to participate in, play with or produce themselves and then share. Ask for a reaction and have a fun social interface. Enhance social status within tribes, and as I mentioned earlier, Keep it relevant, useful and entertaining.
Remember, pay-walls are not inviting, these generations will keep looking until they find what they want for free. Yes, those with money will pay upfront for some things, mostly just to save time, but the majority of the global population will spend the time to find what they want for free. The Future of Business will be an Open & Free Business Model, where FREE is the business model.
The businesses of the future should pay attention to the user not the communities, they don’t spend enough time in communities to provide enough reliable data. Whether you agree or disagree really doesn’t matter, the future generations will move in packs whether I say they will or not, they’ll group and regroup to meet their needs. Pay attention to what they get behind, not where they hang out.
If you’re in business today, don’t assume communities is where the valuable data is located, it’s in the users, the Gen C and beyond. The communities are a way to determine where they are at the time, that’s it, and it may not have anything to do with what the purpose or cause happens to be at the time.
The Vancouver Social Media Professionals Nov MeetUp
I thought I would post a little something on this event, I’ll be speaking and sharing on the Future of Business Online, The Open & Free Business Model. This event requires you contact the event organizer to attend, as of this writing there are only 4 spots left, so if your even a little bit curious, contact Glenn Hilton right now! He is on Twitter as well: @glennhilton
These fine professionals gather on the 1st Tuesday of every month where they bring in a speaker and then (my favorite part) a long Q & A session. They also do a neat thing called a Lightening Round, this is where you can pitch new things you’re learning, questions and challenges you might be facing, you could present new tools or technologies that make your job more efficient. You need to be a part of this group if you’re serious about your business, a fine group of people.
Groups that meet regularly should be helping each member improve, help increase business, learn, and support one another. How many times have you joined a group only to find out it was a bitching session and nothing of real value came out of it. Well, I can tell you this group is NOT one of those groups. In my opinion, these professionals like to solve problems, help one another, lift one another up, and just for fun, they love to eat!
The Vancouver Social Media Group is meeting at the Water Street Cafe in Gastown (Vancouver), so that speaks for itself don’t you think, a classy group already me thinks. They ask you to come prepared to order something, so get ready for a fun evening. The MeetUp will start at 7PM and run till 9PM, unless I go long : )
Again, there are only 4 spots left, if you wish to be with true professionals, then contact Glenn Hilton before you do anything else. Who is Glenn? Glenn owns ImageX Media, an award winning Drupal web design, development & consulting firm. Glenn oversees HR, creative direction and Social media Marketing.
Visit they’re website at: http://imagexmedia.com
See you there!
One Of The TOP Open & Free Business Model Examples
Just a few comments on what I believe to be a great example, if not one of the top Open & Free Business Model Examples. Skype has been around for some time, and I’m certain most of you use it, but next to Google they have shown us one of the best ways to give something away and generate revenue. Granted, not all of us has the resources or the know how to build a program like Skype or a systems like Google, but we all have an idea, a product or a service.
The Open & Free Business Model provides us a model to give something away and charge for a Freemium Service. Skype gives you the software for free, they even let you make Skype-to-Skype video calls or voice calls for free as well. There are conditions of course but it’s still free. Once you install the software, you can make these calls free to others who have an account with Skype, the account setup is also free.
In order to take advantage of the premium services, you will have to part with a couple of bux, nut only a couple. I subscribed to Skype for a low $2.95 per month, this allows me to call anywhere in North America anytime and for as long as I want. I can dial directly to Cell Phones and Land lines all for $2.95 per month! Your subscription rate will vary based on the package you decide to purchase. Oh, they also let you pay with PayPal too : ) (another FREE Service)
You have three options available to you when you download Skype:
1.) FREE
– Skype-to-Skype calling
– Video calls
– Instant Messaging
– Screen Sharing
2.) Pay as You Go Calling
– This rate starts at 2.3¢ a minute
– Call phones and mobiles
– SMS
– Skype To Go Number**
– Call Forwarding
3.) Monthly Subscription
– This Rate starts at 1.2¢ a minute
– Lowest calling rates
– Choose unlimited calling***
– Best rates with 3 or 12 month subscription
The above features list were taken from the Skype Website. They also have a product called Skype Manager, it lets you centrally manage Skype in your business. Allowing you to make accounts, allocate Skype Credit, assign features and monitor usage.
There is much more to learn about Skype, so the first thing you should do before you even install the software, read all the about the features, the different ways to purchase based on your needs, just like any other purchase you make right? For example, new in Skype 5.0, you can have up to 9 contacts in a Group Video Call…that may be a very important feature for you.
I asked on Twitter, what is your favorite feature in Skype, other than it’s free. Here’s a couple of responses:
@jameswanless of Vancouver, British Columbia said:
Text, vid and voice at same time, auto-saving of transcripts for reference, ability to phone landlines …
@Billy_Delaney of Akron, Ohio said, and jesting of course:
Typing information to someone on a conf’ call about what is being said, and the said person cannot see it :)))
I am a very happy subscriber, and this tool is one of my top valued items in my tool kit. It should be yours too.
Oh, and don’t SPAM me, but you can hit me up Skype to!
The Future Of Business Online Workshop
COME EXPLORE THE FUTURE OF BUSINESS ONLINE!
The Open & Free Business Model means looking at the world of business as it will be, not as it is.
How you can give away content and generate revenue, join me as I walk you through the basic principles of an Open & Free Business Model for your business. I’ll Show you what it might look like for you and your business.
We will look at three main topics:
TRENDS
We’ll look at trends and what’s happening around the world, and how these trends will impact your business online & off. Today there are 2.0 Billion people on the Internet, in the next 3 – 5 years that number will be 5 Billion. How will you get their attention?
THE OPEN & FREE BUSINESS MODEL
This is not a skill set, it’s a paradigm shift and this shift is painful, I’ll layout why and what this model might look like for your business, I’ll also show examples of how businesses are using this model.
BREAKOUT SESSION
By the time we get to this section, you’ll already have some new creative ideas, and ways to increase revenue. We’ll work through how you can build & implement your ideas with your staff.
When the workshop is over you will have a much better view of what’s coming, a framework to help you adapt, plus you will have a simple step by step approach for implementing new revenue streams.
This workshop has been reworked, it’s new & improved, it’s 4 hours (Noon to 4PM) of compelling information that will give you a whole new perspective on your business.
Workshop Friday Noon – 4PM / Oct 29th, 2010 – Price $99
Location Yet To Be Determined.
Book now and reserve your seat!
For more details and to book your seat, just send an e-mail to: workshop@owengreaves.com
I look forward to working with you,
Owen Greaves
What's Happening To Local Newspapers?
This has been on my mind for some time now, and I know I’m not the first blogger to share his or her thoughts on this medium. Having spent 15 years in Media via Radio & Television mostly, I’ve considered Newspaper a distant cousin rather than the opposition in my years of selling advertising. The Media mix for marketing has always been these big three, Radio, Television & Newspaper, but something happened along the way and they seem to have missed it.
If you’ve noticed, the paper has been getting smaller, or shorter. The paper is getting fatter with inserts and more grocery coupons than one person can count. The content is smothered by ads, there are more ads in the paper than actual content for us to consume. What used to take two cups of coffee to read, takes less than minute. There is always the big headline trying to get your attention, it is almost always a headline like – Another Hit-And-Run! After all, blood and guts is what sells papers right?
So what’s happening to local Newspapers? It’s as if they are in a different world, a world of their own, and we’re not invited to participate in that world. We don’t have a say in what goes into the paper, in fact, we have virtually no hope of being heard by our local Newspapers. I just don’t understand that way of thinking. The old saying comes to mind, “don’t bite the hand that feeds you”, and I know business owners are tired of being bitten.
Radio used to be theatre of the mind, a real connecting point for communities, a huge service during the war, they used to get involved with communities without charging you to be in your community. Radio reached more people than any other medium, it was the 1st medium on the scene really, and it almost didn’t see the light of day. Why? It was free! The music industry alone tried to stop it, but then they figured out how to monetize Radio, there was an acceptable business model. That business model was the 1st real Open & Free Business Model.
Television captivated us by the sheer magic of how they were able to make it happen, TV used to be live not pre-recorded, those were golden times for TV. They too figured out the Open & Free Business Model, just as Radio did, Newspaper’s like the other two lost their first love, being truly connected and got involved in their communities. They provided a service, and for the most part it was free until money became the primary focus. Money is and always will be the 1st love of almost every business on the planet, that’s why so many businesses fail, they focus on the wrong things because of money, and most still do today. But that’s changing.
I will give Newspapers some credit, they are adopting the Internet, they have to, that’s where the people are. Just because papers are moving to the Internet, doesn’t mean they will survive, it merely means they are making a shift to a digital format. One of our local papers has started using Twitter, they have 13 followers as of this writing, they have a ways to go to get attention of the Twitter crowd. In fairness, there is more than one local paper, one with 1006 followers, the rest with less 1,000 followers. The problem isn’t following & circulation, the problem is….the way they think, the paradigm shift is too difficult for many, they look at the problem with old industrial age thinking, and then try to solve this shift problem internally. No, they don’t need to hire a Social Media Guru, they need someone to come in with a fresh pair of eyes, someone who sees the future of business and what it’s really doing. Business, not the Newspaper Business.
If 60% of commerce is going to be done online in the next 2 -3 years, why are newspapers so slow to adopt this movement? They should have begun the move, from denial to foresight, but sadly they are resisting, eventually they will subcumb to this global movement. The times are a changing baby!
The control they are trying to hang onto is a greased pig. Consider the life span of one simple Newspaper Ad, about a day & a half. Radio would have you run campaigns that require multiple ads in an hour or a day for consecutive days. Television does the same thing, you must run 10 ads a day to reach as many consumers in a day. Ka-Ching! If it takes 30 days to develop a habit, imagine how many days it takes to keep a brand top of mind, the numbers get staggering.
The future of the big three has been at risk for some time now. Individuals are now the competitor, so pay attention. I challenge Newspapers to make one change, this one simple change: listen to what your readers want, let them decide, don’t get in the way and question it, just do it. Just once don’t let money think for you, Don’t tell readers how wrong they are, don’t treat us like we don’t have a clue what we are doing, just do it! You’re already loosing money and more importantly, readers, so why not try it, trust the people formerly known as your readers (consumers). If you don’t, they’ll find local news a different way, like here: The Fraser Valley Daily
There is so much more to say on this topic, would love to hear your thoughts. Someday we will see the end of the Newspaper Editor, why, because he/she will be redundant.
What do you think, do you think your local Newspaper is failing you & your community?