There's no such thing as a free lunch
Some things to consider:
1. You go to an event and you walk away with a promotional bag. What do they want you to do with these products? Use them, read them and become loyal to these brands that have supported the event that you have just gone to.
2. Someone takes you to lunch: what they are doing is either wanting to be friends with you, wanting your opinion on something or wanting to share something with you.
3. A person gives you a gift: they want you to know that they appreciate you/like you/ or want you to like them.
It's funny. I write this blog laughing. My good friends in Vail are incredibly generous and kind people - always. They are in fact, one of the most amazing people I have ever met. They invited me to come skiing for a week during the holidays and of course I said yes. I couldn't wait to spend time with them. They are fun, intelligent and always up for a good time. Our banter is feverish and we always seem to enjoy long chats over good wine.
Why I laugh while writing this blog, is because they won't let me pay for any of the restaurant bills. But there is a catch. We talk marketing every single day. I secretly love it though and nothing makes me happier - but I did threaten to write this blog about "there is no such thing as a free lunch".
Happy holidays if you are still lucky enough to be on one.
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comments ( 6 )
helpful hints
02 Jun 2014wonderful issues altogether, you simply won a brand new reader. What could you suggest in regards to your publish that you just made a few days in the past? Any positive?
ReplyMatt
07 May 2013It is difficult to know if someone is doing something for you out of common decency and selflessness or if deep down they are seeking something from you that they do not mention aloud. Both in ones personal and working life this occurs but either way I believe if a person does something nice for you and you give something back in return whether it is expected from you or not, that is still a good thing. Both people get something they want so that cant be a bad thing either way.
ReplyLaura
11 Apr 2013When my economics lecturer confronted me with that adage more than a year ago I started thinking more about the “free stuff” we are confronted with all the time.
ReplyE.g. my friend invited me for dinner and afterwards asked if I can have a look at a school essay she had to hand in the day after. So the dinner was free but there was something motivating my friend to invite me. And some price I had to pay. Instead of driving to her house and spending a couple of hours there I could have studied and maybe had received better grades (opportunity cost).
Another example is a local company (selling insurances) which offered a free workshop on selling skills for local students. I did participate and from that point on I received a couple of calls informing me about other workshops and asking if I already know what insurance to choose when going abroad. Of course they do not spend their time on training people just because they want to be nice. They want you to first of all know about the company, to associate them with those great experiences and maybe even to feel like you owe them something. So you are definitely influenced when choosing an insurance company.
I think it is quite shocking to see how easily some people are influenced by such offers and for example chose restaurant a because you get a free drink when ordering a meal there even though restaurant b is cheaper and the food also tastes better.
mina
25 Feb 2013The economic theory, and also the lay opinion, that whatever goods and services are provided, they must be paid for by someone - i.e. you don't get something for nothing. The phrase is also known by the acronym of 'there ain't no such thing as a free lunch' - tanstaafl !and it's very true in todays day and age where everything seen as given for free or for no charge has a hidden condescending/ action that your somehow pressured to take on. Marketing and PR relies on this to get a message out, it may be a flash mob in the middle of the city, or a number of people all dressed in a certain way, but by doing this they are conveying a message and changing your thoughts, this also happens when companies give you promo bags. But that being said nothing is really free anymore without a purpose.
ReplyThibault Claudon
14 Jan 2013At least you are being lucid about your friends. Isn't it however a bit cynical to know that you are being invited for your marketing expertise, rather than for your own person? Even if you do have a good time with your friends.
ReplyUltimately this adage is saying: can people be genuinely altruistic? Very often there is a hidden motive behind everyone's action, may it be conscious or unconscious.
Francois de La Rochefoucauld even said that friendship was merely a commerce where self-esteem has always something to offer and gain.
We live in liberal societies where the individual is constantly praised as opposed to the collective entity, it would be hard to expect genuine and natural altruist behaviours.
Realizing it is often the first step to changing the trend.
Manon
14 Jan 2013It is absolutely true ! You feel always beholden even if it was totally free and innocent.
Reply