The Trouble With Free

In theory, we like free.

Chris Anderson’s new book Free tells us it’s the business strategy of the future. Stores can give away free products by charging manufacturers shelf-space fees. Record labels can give away music by distributing it through no-cost, electronic channels. Organizations are getting creative at finding alternative ways to generate revenue.

The trouble is, we don’t buy it.

While we enthusiastically embrace the idea of free, we treat it with very little respect. Free carries with it an inherent perception of no value... [read more]

Comments

[Bjorn Amundsen]

How does this apply to asking people to volunteer their time and talents?

[Ben Arment]

can you elaborate Bjorn?

[Bjorn Amundsen]

I mean for example in creating short films and things like that, asking people to volunteer their abilities to shoot, produce, write, things like that. I know how much I value when people are willing to volunteer to make a project happen. I guess I'm trying to figure out the balance of giving my services away, at a discount, or when I should charge, and I wondered what you think about that.

[Ben Arment]

Bjorn, for you, I think you need to designate exactly how many hours you're willing to give away each month and cap it. Tell people, "Sorry, I'm out of budgeted time until next month." Just as you give a tithe of your income. Give a tithe of your time.

[Michael Schut]

Hmm...it will be good for me to wrestle with this today. I think I value free pretty highly.

Speaking as a worship staff guy, I wonder how much this kind of thinking contributes to us as sinful people having real trouble accepting the free gift of grace in Jesus, and why it's so easy to turn worship into "something we must do" as well: music that speaks mostly of what I do for God rather than thanking Him for His gifts, preaching series like "7-steps to a better marriage", etc.

If what you are saying is true in all church
life and not just for things like conferences (and I'm not convinced that it is :) ) it has serious implications for how we deal with that tendency in places like worship.

[Ben Arment]

Michael, I'm describing a social force that is at work in some aspects of life.

I will say that Christianity spreads faster in parts of the world where it's illegal and believers are persecuted. Read Alan Hirsch's Forgotten Ways for more on this

[Kyle Reed]

At first Ben, I thought you were crazy. After reading this I have to remind myself I am the crazy one.
Great points you brought up here and over on the rest of the article at collide.

My only concern about this is the abuse that comes from all of this. I feel like sometimes people know that you treasure things that are not free so they can pump the price up.

I would like to see a study of what Derek Webb has started at noisetrade.com
He has found that he will give his music and others music out for free as long as you give him an email address and some details. I check that site daily because of the great music. I think the key there is that he I trust Derek's taste and so when he puts something up I know it will be good. If it cost money though I probably would not buy it.

[Ben Arment]

i'm not saying that everyone who is a public figure is doing this.

incidentally, i've never listened to derek's music.

[Kyle Reed]

I gotcha, I was just wondering what you thought about that.
Or what Radiohead did by giving away their latest album as a pay what you want album.

[KM]

How does a free lunch at a conference play into this idea??? Ineffective? Not in the same category?

[Ben Arment]

I don't advocate carrying this principle out to its fullest extent. This concept is snowballing to be much bigger of an issue than I intended. It was to point out a social force that is in effect. But I don't think we should NOT give out free stuff. I'm sending out 100 "white boxes" for whiteboard that are valued at $20 each... But I pick and choose. For eg: I'm not giving out free copies of my book. My publisher might... but not me.

[Michael Schutz]

Yeah I hear you, Ben. We shouldn't take it too far. I do think the concepts of free and exclusive are different subjects though. Certainly money makes things less accessible and at least projects the image of value (eg. Apple's pricing). Yet I think that free doesn't automatically equal accessible. (Which you've already addressed well.) Seth Godin's Tribes gets after this as well.

I'm still pondering this in terms of worship too - thinking of things like the early church practice of Communion - getting non-communicants to physically leave the church before doing Communion.

Thanks for lots of meat to chew on today!

[Mike O'Dorney]

I see two dynamics at work here. One dynamic is "free", while the other dynamic involves a mix of perceived value, reliability, integrity and priority.

Personally, I prefer to work on a few projects and do them well. My family, job, church, etc., comes first, but if I was involved with Dream, I would have it as my 6th or 7th priority. I seek out others who are priority peers. I really don't like being mismatched with those who have the project as their 97th priority. I don't mind someone having a time commitment - say a schoolteacher who can only work on a project in the summers - as long as teh involvement is a high priority within that time window.

Some people are just unreliable, lack integrity or just have a different exchange rate between time and money. I value my time (and that of others) so I am reliable. Many others don't value their time, nor mine. For them, they might blow off a conference that cost $200, but be there for a $1k one. My experience is that boomers and gen-x ers have about a 4 to 1 ratio difference when it comes to the value of time versus money.

I generally view something (like a conference or meeting) as having both content value and relationship value. A high price may filter out many, leaving only those who value the content. But that may or may not filter out those looking for relationships, and potential mission partners. Or at least missional soul-mates that they can keep in touch with. But, if the conference is presented as content-only, with a passive audience (perhaps only interacting with the speakers), it may rule out those looking for (and valuing) content+relationship.

Much of the whole emerging church movement has moved too fast to monetize events, and moved to slow to build relationships. (I've often thought applying to an event should include a brief profiling survey, and providing each participant with a list of co-attendees that they are likely to connect with.)

But, the whole question of "free" versus "flaking at the last minute" has an answer that is more than just economics.