Two types of consumers
There are two groups of consumers. In one group price is king. If the detergent, burger or book is 3 cents less I’ll buy it from you. The other world is full of people who ignore the price and have only one measurement for their purchase, value. I define value as, “The result obtained after interacting with an item.” My computer cost 200% more than the alternative operating system but the value I receive makes it a bargain.
The Value Crowd
The world is full of people waiting to become part of the value crowd. When I read books like The Art of Non-Conformity or Linchpin I feel like I robbed the authors because I got so much value from them. There is in all sincerity a feeling on indebtedness for the ideas, the service rendered. I once paid the guy who does my brakes more than the final bill because I could not in good conscious pay him as little as he was charging.
The value crowd is actively looking for ways to “pay back” the author, the cook, the real estate agent or the consultant that already charged them a fee but provided so much value they feel indebted.
The new focus group is not neutral but they’re much more helpful. They’re made up of people who you know like you. They like you enough to tell you the truth. I just applied to be part of The Domino Project Street Team. It would be an honor to be a part of this new movement in publishing. It’s more than just a shift in the publishing world though, it’s a shift in the way ideas are spread. It starts with the authors of course but it is then filtered through the street team. So instead of a focus group of strangers gather your best friends. I once heard that your best friends are the ones who tell you the most truth. No one is going to tell you the truth if you pay them $8 an hour and buy them lunch.
Your Street Team
Gather your fans, your tribe, your loyalists. If they really care about your they’ll tell you the truth about your ideas. Fan club, street team, focus group…whatever you call them just make sure they’re honest enough to tell you whether your ideas stink or are ready to be spread.
Who are those people for you?
