Jeremy Rifkin wrote The Age of Access in 2000. He could be seen as a radical in some circles, but the clarity of his reasoning about the world as we think we know it, makes his viewpoint worth understanding. There is a question each generation asks: Are we de-humanizing all of modern experience?
I’ve read this book a few years ago, and used it in teaching a few times – and still find that the differences between social structures are vastly misunderstood. The human race has many obsessions in the area of de-materialization. Some of the concepts he discusses are starting to make an impact. Look at Google – they have the most valuable brand (or have they?), knocking Microsoft off its top spot. Coca-Cola in still seen as the valuable brand by other researchers, but my bet is on Google. In the Age of Access, the company that controls access to the worlds information has a good chance of setting the pace of change in the next major innovation cycle.
Here is a company that doesn’t make anything physical, does not distribute anything, has no branches, limited or no physical customer contact, provides a platform for customers to do their own thing, etc and its the world’s most valuable brand? Check out the Millward Brown report.
Do you have a handle on your value in the abstract world? Do people recognize your brand aura and relate to it in a positive way?