Corwin Hiebert Managing Creative People + Creative Projects

Well, I’m not at all an expert in marketing, but I suspect that answers are going to depend somewhat on what the service or product is. For example, I am a board game designer (really) and in the hobby market sales are hugely dependent on word-of-mouth, so most publishers expect to give out a lot of freebies to reviewers or conventions, hoping to generate buzz. Games are generally shared with friends (few games play solo), so I can see how this is considered an important strategy. But would this approach work for, say, a frying pan, or hand-knit socks? And in the case of boardgames, is it the most effective use of limited promotional dollars? How do people who understand marketing measure these things?

The first thing I consider is whether someone is in my tribe or not. If you’re in my tribe, I’ll consider a freebie. If you’re not, I won’t.

If you’re in my tribe, you’re there because we share some common values. From there, I think a determining factor might be whether the exchange is a gift or a favor (to borrow Seth Godin’s terminology). A gift expresses a value deeper than a monetary one. If, by not charging, I am seeing the return value of something greater in the world that I want to see, then I benefit and it is worth the lack of monetary exchange. As such, this would depend on the values of the giver & receiver.

A favor, on the other hand, is a simpler exchange. It may be an obligation, or a push to devalue a product or service. It’s someone saying, “If you do this for me, I’ll get you back on the next one” when what they really mean is they would prefer to take from you than add to your world.

The first (a gift) adds value to the world and to the people involved. The second takes it away. I avoid the second completely. The first is something I love to do, so long as there is enough other work where financial viability is considered a value.

Thanks for the comments everyone! Trevor – your name came out of the hat! The book is in the mail!