The world has changed and the attitude of people to paying has changed. It started with the internet and now all forms of social media have enhanced the availability of free material (good and bad). The younger you are, the less likely you are inclined to pay for intangible items. Nearly all knowledge in the world is a Google, YouTube (or whatever you use) search away and for free. This leaves those of us in the service industry in a difficult position. Things we could once charge for are now free and easily accessible, but free can be effective.
If you want to attract clients or customers then you must be generous (i.e. give away) much or all of your knowledge. If someone can get it for free then there is no point trying to charge and no point moaning about the fact that they won’t pay. The same is true by the way for products. If someone can make them cheaper than you then that’s a fact. Get over it. The difference between what you can get for free and what you are willing to pay for is that some things need more than just basic data or information. The people and organisations who feel confident enough to give much away free and then charge for the really clever stuff know that they are doing something remarkable Why Being Remarkable Is Effective and chargeable.
If you want to be effective then give away for free anything that is just based on information. Almost nobody has a secret formula these days. How to do almost anything is just a free click away, but why you might want to do it and how to effectively implement that information and experience is another matter. I discussed this many blogs ago in How To Ensure Your Consultant Is Effective . Don’t pay for information, pay for implementation. Don’t pay someone who tells you how to run your business or your life, pay someone who can help you actually effectively do what you need to in order to achieve your objective. Pay for someone to use their knowledge, not someone who simply tells you how to do something.
In education and training, don’t pay for fact based courses – it’s all there for free. Pay for how to effectively implement whatever it is. All of our courses Training are based around implementing improvements and achieving objectives. None of them are based on just the transfer of knowledge – all of that is available for free from us and others. Don’t pay employees and consultants for what they know, pay then for what they can achieve for you with that knowledge.
If you want to get ahead in the knowledge sector then charge for your experience. Everything else is already available for free.
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