This blog post from Brad Berens is really making my head spin. I could simply think of it as an interesting idea and leave it at that. But dear reader, you know me. Reckless overthink c'est moi. And what is turning in my head is...is helping a competitor out and giving them their due a new reality of competing in the digital age? Is this how itz done nowadays?
I come from the ole skool of if your competitor is drowning throw him an anvil. But this over the top idea and Brad posting it may be one of those seminal tipping points in evolution of the way brands compete in our times.
Or it might just be a cool little idea. You make the call.
Dammit Brad, you made my noggin hurt.
Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.
Jim,
ReplyDeleteThe thing that you're not seeing is that Amazon doesn't perceive independent booksellers as competitors. Amazon long ago gave up on the idea of actually being the world's largest bookseller when it realized it could make the most money and have the least infrastructure cost by connecting independent sellers with buyers. All they need is some servers and a website and they can make all the margin without the hassle of warehouses and forklifts and fleets of trucks and Chinese factories.
Hell, I've been an Amazon affiliate for over a decade. Give me a tip.
If you've read Wikinomics by Don Tapscott, he predicts this open model where anyone can sell using Amazon's technology infrastructure and the US Mail will result in them kicking Walmart's ass in the coming years. He makes a convincing argument.
But, aside from Amazon, you have a good point. I tend to blog quite a bit, but I'm constantly weighing: is the thinking I'm sharing for free (and which I perceive to have value) marketing my agency to potential clients, employees, partners and press? Or am I just a complete sucker who has bought into some trendy idea of giving away trade secrets to my competitors in exchange for the mild ego stroke of gaining 29 new Twitter followers.
Chicken? Egg? I dunno.