I have previously written about the idea of being money mercenary. Essentially, my thought process is that making money is an end in itself - divorced from a product or service. As such, the ability to make money, whether it be a program, process or platform is the "value" conveyed by the marketer and this is the proposition considered by the consumer.
"At the edge of propriety" challenges and articulates this notion of making money as an-end-in-itself - as legitimate perspective. The reason 'at the edge' is chosen to describe our reality is that what we do is unconventional. Or, said differently, is not in the mainstream of how people typically view commerce... e.g. money exchanged for some "thing".
"Something of value" is typically something you can hold in your hand, or derive some benefit from a service provider. In my transactional worldview, the product behind the transaction is secondary to the transaction itself - with the ultimate goal being transacting commerce with a focus on financial mechanics and this, standing alone, is the object of the business (with the ancillary benefits of being a part of a culture and community with the ethos and values that exist in all we do).
As such, this is no different than an "investment" in the stock market. You put your money to work for you in vehicles. If you invest in Exxon, Procter and Gamble, or Microsoft - you are not obliged to buy their gas, use Bounty Paper Towels or have Bing as your default search engine. In each case, your money is working for you independently of a product or service.
The question is whether what we do is "at the edge of propriety"? Obviously, I don't think so.
