I'm not saying I've done this myself, yet, but I've seriously considered it.

And you're people who know people! Thanks Jenny, I'm happy to be back spamming the hell out of your Twitter stream. 🙂

Let me know if it happens!

Products are definitely tricky because there really is no way to scale a purely output based pricing strategy. This is another case of the collision between value to the purchaser and and market pressures as well. One of the reasons (if not the main reason) that those ridiculously long "long-copy" pages selling information products are proven to be successful is that they spend a lot of time shifting focus from "another product" to the potential value.

With all products, input-output calculation attempts break down rapidly because there is no reliable way to divide the manufacturing/production costs across the number of units sold until the units sold is known. If we're talking about eBooks in particular, analyzing inputs breaks down almost completely because the input is brainwaves and the output is electrons. This is kind of a good thing because we're forced to think about value rather than inputs.

You're right though, there isn't really a way to avoid averaging value over a range of customers where products are concerned.

One place we benefit from non-value-based pricing as consumers is with traditional books. There are a few established tiers that are based on the type of book or construction materials. The tiers have zero relationship to value. Good for consumers, bad for authors delivering highly valuable information.

I'm not sure you are with Anthony on this. Perhaps he does hourly work as a freelancer, but that's not what he's talking about here. He's saying that he hires freelancers on an hourly basis because of management efficiency. In this sense, he's not operating in the wage slave, employee mindset.

When you say, "whatever the case it’s paying the bills", you're stuck in the wage slave mindset. That's fine if paying bills is the ultimate goal, but…

I'm with Anthony with this. I do the same thing and I also call myself a freelancer. I couldn't care less, if people think I do not work. I mean whatever the case it's paying the bills. I also hire freelancer/contractors and like Anthony, do it via the hour, per project depending on certain factors.

Awesome! It's a scary transition for some people so I love it when people just pull the trigger. This shift in thinking has the potential to change everything. …it can become a philosophy that finds its way into the strangest applications.

For related reading, muselife.com posted something about freelancing a while back: http://su.pr/1O8Iqa
I think it just grazes the surface though, as your post gets into detailed analyses of value and input-output calculations.

I admit my masochistic tendencies in the past, as I work for my father's company for many years. A son is a son is a son, but it helps pay the bills when you're in university. That's why I dread working for his company now that I'm graduated, because I feel that, although time spent on important projects is not wasted effort for the company, I take advantage of the hourly rate monster like how a pimp takes money from a whore–and I don't want to be that sort of hypocrite anymore because it's just not quality character and it's simply not worth it in the long run. Also, working for his company is unfulfilling as I would rather work for myself. His other employees are no exception to the rule, and I see this in action as I prepare the payroll for the accountant.

I think when you operate with limited finances and employees with specalised skill sets, the ability to execute value-based judgements is a balancing act, and oftentimes keeping employees happy (via hourly-rate) is the best route to go (but I don't think so, being a "luminary" and all). Of course I would imagine that they all want a high salary, but pfft, all his employees (except for my father, sister, me, the accountant, lawyer and psychologist) lack some sort of formal university education, and frankly I don't think he can afford drastic pay raises every year. And the fact that my sister notices a decline in work efficiency/ethic and an increase in distrust between boss and employee is something that needs to be addressed at some point as well. Sorry I rambambled.

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