PSFK notes that the web has historically rewarded individuals and companies that share their knowledge regularly and liberally...
Good question. In the past you couldn't argue with this approach. For decades knowledge sharing and thought leadership have been a winning PR strategy. The folks at Hubspot talk about this a lot when they talk about "inbound marketing."
However, as I look over this short list of folks (thanks to PSFK for including me!) I wonder if people who work for larger companies - both those who are well known and others - will be as willing to share knolwedge so readily in a recession.
You can bet that the folks named (myself included) and independent thought leaders like Charlene Li will continue in this tradition. In my case it's part of the culture at Edelman. But what about people who work for companies that sell their IP and whose livelihood depend on it? For example, industry analysts like Jeremiah Owyang who work for Forrester. Will they continue to rely on a strategy that to date has sparkled?
In tighter times my bet is that an iceberg of information that last year was unlocked might now remain more submerged.
I share a ton of content online with you. Much of it has moved to my Friendfeed page. However, these days I am now also producing more stuff for internal use - exclusive content for our staff and clients. This has allowed me to add value everywhere. I am just more strategic about it than I was before. That's what comes with the territory of working for a big global organization. I am lucky that Edelman is incredibly liberal here and they are great to work for. The leave it to me to judge. But what about others who aren't so lucky?
What's your view? Should all information be free? I don't feel that way. To a large degree it's what keeps information workers employed. There will always be limits. They just might be tighter now.
