When you run conferences, everyone wants in for free. It’s understandable. Times are tough and people don’t have as much money. I’m running Inbound Marketing Summit in a few days, and it’s not free. The ticket price is $695 to attend (unless you know @dmscott, @justinlevy, or a few other people, who have codes for VIP discounts).

Otherwise, you’ve gotta shell out to get in.

The venue, Gillette Stadium, is home to the New England Patriots. They charge me money to be there. The food costs me money. The power, the booth construction, all that stuff. This is simple, right? It’s a transaction. I ask people for something, and they tell me how much it will cost. Sometimes, I get a discount if I buy in bulk.

Where things get harder to understand are when they are intangible.

My friend Justin Kownacki wrote about this yesterday.

The sense of walking into somewhere and listening to sage words doesn’t seem like it should cost money. I understand this. It’s just sound moving through the air to your ears, right?

Let’s move the discussion away from what it costs to make