Ok admittedly the title might throw some people off but before I go on to explain myself let’s talk a bit about subscription based services.

Think about it, most of us already subscribe to services or pay annual fees to get extra services for things we buy:

  • Extended warranties and product support
  • Software support and maintenance
  • MS TechNet
  • Netflix, Hulu, Pandora, Rdio, etc. (is iTunes already obsolete?)
  • Office 365
  • Online Training sites like PluralSight
  • Technical knowledge sharing websites like Experts Exchange

Now the last two I placed on this list for a reason. We all know there is a ton of information available on the Internet when it comes to IT training, finding solutions and how-tos, etc. so would anyone pay for online training or a knowledge sharing site? There a few key reasons why people pay for these types of services:

  • Quality – While there is lots of great technical knowledge on the web often times it can be out of date, incomplete or incorrect. How can you verify its authenticity?
  • Simplicity – A focused and well designed knowledge site will make it easy to find the information you need, when you need it.
  • Support – You’ve found a great article on how to implement something but you have questions or are stuck at some point. Who can you ask for help?
  • New Knowledge – Many sites present great information but maybe you need the latest information on a new technology or product.
  • Extras – Subscription services will often offer extra services such as insider news, discounts on additional services or even a small amount of personalized support, professional services or even the ability to make a request for new information or products.

So when it comes to Vision knowledge there is a lot of information out there but is it easy to find? Is it detailed enough? What if you need more than the basics?

Would you be willing to pay a subscription fee to have a comprehensive suite of knowledge from Vision experts and access to their brains? If so I’d love to hear your feedback on:

  • What type of information would make a subscription site worth it to you?
  • What type of value-added services would you expect to be included?
  • Do you think having access to this type of service would give your firm a competitive edge?

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