November 17, 2021

If you're not paying for the product, you are the product

7 minutes

I was talking to a speaker friend about all of the free services that exist today, from social channels (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc.) to business services like Canva, Animoto, Dropbox, Zoom and more. It’s very tempting to try and use those free services, after all, that’s why they offer a free version. But that can’t be the business model, there has to be a profit model for those services and sites as well. While I might try a new service with a free-trial, I try not to stick with the free versions. There are more features with the paid versions and since I want people paying me for my products and services, it’s only fair that I should pay for the value I get from them. That said, there are times when the free version is enough and lots and lots of people use them. So, that makes you wonder how these companies benefit. Some get enough people that upgrade and pay, and some may not. But, as Tristan Harris (a former Google Design Ethicist) said: “If you're not paying for the product, you are the product”

Listen to this new 7-minute episode and hear what that quote actually means and it might just change your perspective on what’s really “free”.

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I'm Alan Berg. Thanks for listening. If you have any questions about this or if you'd like to suggest other topics for "The Wedding Business Solutions Podcast" please let me know. My email is [email protected]. Look forward to seeing you on the next episode. Thanks.

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