Don't just sell it - give it away

I love Andy Samberg's SNL Digital Shorts. I was hooked from the first time I watched "Lazy Sunday" and I wasn't alone. It had some 1 million hits on YouTube just a few days after it aired on SNL. Then "Punched" came along last year with the same mass results. I wish I could add a link in here to view both of them. However, YouTube has removed all of these "Shorts" from their library of videos due to issue NBC/Universal has taken up with their material being broadcast for free over the web.

I'd argue that this was a misdirection on their part. Think about it - who is talking about the latest sketch on SNL these days? It must be a select group cause I'm not hearing anything about it anymore. If SNL was still allowing their videos to go out for free on YouTube, they'd allow for more opportunities to position themselves as THE best late night sketch comedy around as more and more people were likely to email links to the videos, show them to their co-workers in the workplace, etc. They would not only be multiplying, but also empowering passionate fans.

So why does any of this matter for the Squeeze? Buried inside this example is a much larger issue that applies to more than just the TV and music execs of the world. Its an issue facing most of us involved in any type of business - the battle of giving away your best vs selling your best.

Traditional marketers and business folk alike have a mindset that if you've worked hard for it and created something competitive, no one should have a right to it unless they pay for it. Our instinct is to protect our competitive advantage - hide it so no one can steal it. There is obviously some logic in this. But at the end of the day, most competitive advantages are eventually copied by someone. In today's marketplace this mentality no longer works.

Don’t fear sharing how you produce the excellence that you do in your work. Share it with rival companies and even co-workers, if asked. If someone is asking, they already see you as an expert. This will always keep you one step ahead as someone else tries to catch up. It will also position you as the expert they have to catch up to.