Service-Dominant Logic maybe the best way to make sense of the changes happening in the business world. It could also be the best place to start your transition into the Gig Economy. There’s nothing like a mindset shift to get you going in the right direction.

Welcome to the Subscription Maker Podcast. This is your host Zachary Alexander, Enterprise Architect at SubscriptionMaker.net. Please hit the subscribe button where ever you get your podcasts so that you won’t miss any new episodes.

Service-Dominant Logic or S-D Logic, as it commonly referred to by practitioners, strives to reshape how decision-makers think about doing business. We will talk about what this means for you as a subscription maker.

What is a Service?

For the record, Service-Dominant Logic suggests that you think of a service as the application of specialized knowledge and other resources on behalf of and for the benefits of others. It also states that services are things that you co-create with your customers.

What’s new for subscription makers is the way that S-D Logic treats resources. On this podcast, we have always talked about subscription services as a completed object. We have never gone deeper than to say how services are related to platforms.

You should also understand the distinction between service and services. Service is what you do for and with other people. Remember that a service is co-created with customers by way of feedback. Services delineate units of work for scoping efforts. People like options. Services provide them with opportunities to decide.

What is Service-Dominant Logic?

You could make the case that service-dominant logic is one of three business logics competing for dominance in the world today. The other two are goods-dominant logic and products-dominant logic.

Goods-Dominant Logic

Traditionally, this is what we think of as marketing. You make some durable goods like cars or washing machines, and you want to market those goods to your potential customers. For lack a better phrase, “This is the way business has always been done.”

Products-Dominant Logic

Think of products-dominant logic as the younger cousin of goods-dominant logic. It’s a newer variation of the same theme. People who support this kind of business logic believe that goods or objects are the best way to think of everything including services. So they look for ways to turn services into goods, which they call products. In some cases, they even try to add physical content to “flesh out” the service.

Service-Dominant Logic

S-D Logic strives to upset the apple cart. It endeavors to change your headspace entirely. You place the customer’s success at the center of your thinking. And you concentrate on how you can co-create services that will help your customers achieve their desired outcomes.

S-D Logic is important for those entering the gig economy because it suggests that you start by being of service to desired customers. It stops you from starting every conversation by talking about what you can sell.

Service Ecosystem versus a Strategic Network

The one sticking point I have with the literature is the reliance on service ecosystems. One of my pet peeves that a lot of very serious people hold is the belief that ecosystems are good things. I disagree with this line of thought because ecosystems generally evolve organically and contain at least one single point of failure. So, the simplest thing can cause the whole system to fail.

On the other hand, strategic networks are planned communities. Wel-designed ones include best in class redundancies. They are self-healing. So all the effort spent on creating them will not be undone by some simple random act.

Why does Service-Dominant Logic matter?

There are a lot of so-called gurus spouting theories about how the business world works. However, what’s lacking is any sense of rigor. When educators use the term rigor they mean “educational expectations that are academically, intellectually, and personally challenging.”

For our discussion, you can think of the term rigor as the effort required to find one’s unique value proposition. America is fast approaching a time when 50 percent of the workforce will be employed as either freelancers or contingent professionals. Average tenure lasts about three years. In this reality, rote learning will not get you to the next job.

Further, accidental is commonly used to describe people who have to adopt new business practices to survive in the current workplace. As you transition into the Gig Economy, you maybe force into becoming subscription maker. If this is the case, then you need to consider the benefits of service-dominant logic.

How to take advantage of Service-Dominant Logic

In previous episodes, we’ve talked about using the CliftonStrenths Assessment as a way of discovering your talents. You may also want to consider using the CliftonStrenths as a starting point for making the adjustments necessary for using service-dominant logic.

As you know, the majority of obstacles to change are internal or self-directed. So, you can imagine that changing to S-D Logic will generate some friction. You will not be able to reach your full potential until you overcome these challenges.

You will need a training regime that will address your concerns no matter how minor you think they are. Simply stating that they don’t matter won’t make them go away. On the other hand, you should avoid programs that require you to listen to some guru without question.

Botanists like to talk about the taproot or the taproot system when it comes to growing a mighty oak tree. They also alert people to the dangers of destroying the foundation of the root structure when the taproot is cut off.

Likewise, there is a danger for you if you cut yourself off from your talents. You will find your growth stunted. Talents require knowledge and exercise before they can become strengths. You can recover from most missteps. However, there may be some struggle to regain your position depending on how far ahead you were when you started.

Conclusion

Service-Dominant Logic is only an academic curiosity until you apply it to the real world. You may require coaching to use S-D Logic to maximize your advantages. And this coaching should start with an unbiased assessment of your talents.

Thank you for listening to this episode of the Subscription Maker Podcast. This is your host Zachary Alexander. The music track was Spring Cleaning by Dylan Sitts. You can find it at Epidemic Sound. Finally, you can find me on Facebook at Zachary T Alexander. Please, send me a friend request so that we can continue this discussion.