What happens when someone says “free forever” and then sends you a bill?
The Unspoken Contract of Trust
Bait and switch is a shitty thing to do.
I am a big believer in radical openness and honesty. It is something I attempt to hold myself to in as many situations as appropriate. So, when I see other businesses use the whole bait-and-switch tactic, I cringe.
A little back story before moving on to the situation that caused me to cringe this past week.
What Simon Sinek Taught Me About Integrity
I have been reading Start with Why by Simon Sinek. And so much of what he has in that book resonates with me and our business.
A few quotes that stand out:
- “When companies or organizations do not have a clear sense of why their customers are their customers, they tend to rely on a disproportionate number of manipulations to get what they need.”
- He considers running a promo, using fear or peer pressure, or promising innovation to influence behavior as “manipulations.”
- “Loyalty is when people are willing to turn down a better product or price to continue doing business with you.”
- “Everything you say and everything you do has to prove what you believe.”
The Community That Went Back on Its Word
On to the cringiness.
So, a while back, both Damien and I joined a community for other similar businesses.
When we joined, the community's owner made it very clear and well known that this was and would always be a free community. The owner would ask for donations from the members to help cover some of the administrative costs of running such a large group (I believe it was up to around 10K members when we first joined, and has only grown since then), but it was always premised with “this will remain a free group.”
This past week, an email went out that the community is no longer free to anyone. Basically, pay or get out; we don’t care how much you have contributed to this community or not.
As a business owner, I understand the importance of ensuring costs are adequately covered. However, trust from my clients shouldn’t be eroded because I miscalculated things.
Covey Was Right About Trust
As Stephen Covey says in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”
That one email caused us to lose any amount of trust in this community, more specifically, the community owner.
It became clear that the owner doesn’t have a good understanding of their WHY and is solely focusing on the WHAT. Sinek says that, “Nouns are not actionable. It’s nearly impossible to hold people accountable to nouns. For values or guiding principles to be truly effective, they have to be verbs.” So note to self (and other business owners), when writing your mission/vision/values, make sure they are verbs and not nouns.
This Is a Cautionary Tale, Not a Complaint
This isn’t a takedown. It’s a lesson. For all business owners:
- Know your WHY - and make it actionable.
- Keep your promises.
- Be transparent when things need to change.
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If you mess up, own it. (Jocko it with Extreme Ownership!!)
Ponder This
- What promises have you made in your business that may be harder to keep than you thought?
- How do you communicate changes, especially when they contradict your earlier messaging?
- Is your WHY strong enough to withstand a pivot?
Books
- Start with Why - Simon Sinek
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen Covey
- Extreme Ownership - Jocko Willink
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