Archiv der Kategorie: English

Without money there is nothing to share

It is an interesting idea that the computer opens up the door to new ways of economy. Marginal costs dissolve, resources are better used by sharing and a new scope can be covered. However the question comes up, where does the products and services come from that are shared without stipulations and costs. Is there anything at all to share without money?

Sharing02

Good examples provide the new offers in the Internet, like Airbnb, Ouishare, and Uber. In these cases third parties are empowered to deliver services based on software that connects customers with providers via PC, smartphones or other devices. Let’s look at Uber. What needs this business?

  • A medium
    The Alpha and Omega of this business model is the access to the web page of Uber. Most people connect to the Internet no matter where they are. With this pervasive connectivity, everybody can log in from everywhere and make a contract.
  • Operating material
    The most important operational fund is the vehicle that is used to transport the clients. This vehicle is not an operational fund from Uber. It belongs to the driver, who also bears all cost – purchase, service, tires, insurances etc. The condition of the vehicle is not checked commercially, as in the case of a taxi company. The normal MOT examinations concentrate only on the fundamental roadworthiness of the vehicle, not on its commercial use.
  • Personnel
    The drivers are not employed by Uber, but private drivers, who are not subject to any regulations. Work time and skills only have to be compliant with general requirements. They do not receive any other incentives, like salaried employees – e.g. holidays, pension plan. Nobody checks, to what extent the drivers are able to fulfill their services.
  • Guidelines
    Since they are no official taxi companies, rules that traditional taxi businesses have to fulfill are omitted – standard taxi meters or prescribed safety installations, like a radio equipment or a special alarm system for the driver.
  • Insurances
    The drivers actually do not furnish services, but offer lifts on a private base, most of them will operate without commercial insurances. Due to the today’s insurance tariffs, it is even possible that the existing insurance even do not cover the passengers at all. Not to mention any kind of insurances for the drivers or passengers in case of sickness or accident.

The advantages of this approach for all are obvious.

  • Uber gets paid for brokering via the Internet. And that is where the business and the responsibility for Uber ends.
  • The drivers benefit from a business model that they operate without the appropriate training and without the obligation of following professional rules.
  • For the passengers it is cheaper and easy to use.

So far the whole seems to work.

If you compare the costs of the commercial providers wit the Uber drivers, you might wonder, where these costs are hidden in this new business model.

Where are the operative costs allocated? The Uber member pays all the costs plus the part that has to be paid to Uber. The costs of Uber are only the operation of the website and the marketing.

How to pay the tax for giving somebody a ride privately? Even if they drive on a cost-covering base, a cash flow between customer and driver happens that is taxable. How can the revenue be proven at all without taxi meters?

Who pays one for the increased probability of accidents of these „professional “Uber driver? Eventually the community of the insured people pays the costs of damages that result from their increased mileages.

And who pays for the personnel damage that results in the context of carriage? It starts with injuries that result from defective vehicles (e.g. sharp edges). It ends after an accident, in which passengers are heavily injured, permanently damaged, or in case of death, leave a family behind that has to be supported. As always the costs are distributed on the shoulders of the social community.

Eventually the Uber case is a good example of this new sharing economy, where business models target to privatize profits and to socialize costs.

Bottom line: Business models that offer services outside of the established commercial rules are introduced through the back door. At the same time, they exploit the social systems, by not making their contributions – e.g. insurances, taxes, employee services. These businesses are possible due to a special sharing rhetoric that monetarizes the bartering of the past – because the providers always receive their commission in the respective currency. After all there is nothing to share without money.

The form – the first gateway into the mind of the audience

Sometimes it is like bewitched. After days you have the solution for a problem. The premises are described in detail, the conclusions fit together, and the results build up on the original expectations. Everything leads to a comprehensible result. Nevertheless the audience cannot follow you. Perhaps the correct form is simply missing – the first gateway into the mind of the audience.

Form Kommunikation

At first sight the various formats, like articles, brochures or presentations seem to lack a common form. In fact, they all have a similar pattern that can be reduced to the following aspects.

  • Titles carry away
    The quick entry point to the audience is the title. With the flood of information that we are exposed to, we do not have the patience to consider for a long time, whether the actual information is worth it to invest attention. The title is the hook that pulls the observer into it, repels or, in the worst case, leads to no reaction at all. The more surprising and intriguing a title, the more likely the public will engage to look at it.
  • Summaries engage
    The second hurdle is taken within the following minute, in which the viewers have to be drawn into it in such a way that they look also at the remaining information. In a text the summary fills a paragraph by announcing all essential insights in such a way that one can overlook the facts but not yet finally knows. In a presentation the summary is in the header of a slide that shows the essential expression in one sentence.
  • Subheads are leading
    The outline depends particularly on the respective contents. In any case there are sections that consist at least of one paragraph. The emphasis of these subheads helps the viewers, to run quickly over the side at hand and to find the areas of interest. Contrary to the title, which should rather create fundamental curiosity, the subheads follow the topic. They should announce the succeeding contents as clearly as possible.
  • Paragraphs bundle
    In a paragraph two to three sentences are combined into a unit. Navigation is facilitated for the interested audience by the contentual blocks. A faster skimming is possible in texts. During the presentation the spectators can run quickly through the foil and direct their attention on the part that is most interesting for them.
  • Highlights send a signal
    The small brother of the paragraph is the fat or italic In these cases the author emphasizes special words. That way the viewers get quickly an overview of the most important components of the sentences. These highlights should be used as rarely as possible, so that their effect does not fall flat. In presentations the emphasis can also be produced with colors. The use of colors is a separate topic. The only thing to be said here: marking with the wrong color, like positive aspects with red and negative aspects with green sends the wrong message; Except: this is the message.
  • Lists relieve
    Related paragraphs that describe a whole, can be shown at best as lists. Thus, one creates a related unit that can be processed quickly. This costs space, but the readers honor this form, because they can better remember the contents.
  • Pictures are open for interpretations
    It is actually trivial, but a picture is worth a thousand words. This effect comes mainly from the fact that the respective wording creates different associations for different people. This leads frequently to misunderstandings that result from the individual living situation. With a picture the respective use of words takes unconsciously place in the mind of the observer. The look at the picture facilitates connecting the message with the personal thoughts and experiences. The conclusions that they make, are rather similar in one cultural area.

Bottom line: The application of the previous elements in texts and presentations makes it easier for the audience to understand the contents. If the perception is not disturbed by a form-free structure, the actual message reaches the audience with minimum resistances.