I recently read a post that pushed “freemium” companies to start charging right away — to put the paid offering on the table to see who will buy how much at what price. It’s good advice, of course, but really in many ways just an okay read; nothing you haven’t already read somewhere else.

But I had a different thought for the launch of CEOguides.com: why not start at the paid end of the market (where we’re at: professional services), and go down, rather than start at the bottom and climb up. You might call it mass customization (very loosely), or even a Targetization (bringing design to the mass market).

We have always been in the couture, bespoke, handcrafted, artisanal knowledge & advice business. (Nobody pays 3 figures/hour for cookie cutter advice!) Our strategy for these new service-related businesses should mirror that.

Premifree? Pree? Not so catchy; perhaps I’ll keep working on a label that fits.

What examples do you have of startup companies taking this reverse approach rather than the freemium model?