When did 'Middleman' become a dirty word?

This is a great post on a subject I have not seen before.  There are lots of Middle Men who take something and add value.  I am glad there are lots of Middle Men in getting my Hambuger to me, other wise I might have to butcher the cow myself.

The industry will face an increasing perception problem so long as technoligy continues to make more information available.  The term "middleman" generally refers to resellers or wholesalers.  The middle man mentality came from the days when brokers controlled access to the listings and market data.  Those days are gone. Brokers need to switch their mentality away from that of a middleman and more to that of a consultant or advisor.  We are not brokering information or products (middlemen) we are guiding them through a complex, high-stakes, financial transaction.  I think that's the key to adapting to the new reality.   

True, often the middleman's role has come from months of work.  Agree 100%

I agree with your thought... but not the example.

I've been working hard to see that no goods saying "Made in China" make it into my house. (And boy am I saving money!)

Hi Robert,  It's still a matter of bringing value to the table.  People need to see that we add to the equation.  Have a terrific weekend !

Great post ~ we are all middlemen in some respect, no matter what our profession.

Good post, Robert.  It takes someone in the middle to tie up all of those loose ends.

I could use a few more middlemen personally. Nothing like having an internet provider and get told to go on line, and help yourself find answsers.  If I do that, they don't charge me less. And usually I can't anyway, 'cause I don't have any internest service!!

In my opinion, this trend to disparage the "middle man" has been percolating for over 20 years.  The term "middle man" does not just apply to resellers.  Certainly many manufacturers are trying to sell direct and eliminate their middle men/resellers much to the dismay of the distributors that are a staple of local economies.  But, more than that, the term middle management has become one of disparagement.  Big corporations got rid of lots of middle managers and now the CEOS are pocketing the money.  If banks are any example, companies do not function better for the lack of "middle men".  It's all part of an attack on the middle class.  We can call ourselves anything we want but the overwhelming majority of us are "middle men" and I know this Realtor "middle man/middle woman" adds value and earns her compensation.  

Hi Robert

I never really thought about it like that but I have to agree. The middle man does get a bad rap. Some may deserve it but most don't ...........Brad

Hi Robert, I could be wrong but I believe the person that wants to "cut out the middle man" considers themself to be smarter than the rest of us and that by using their superior intelligence they will get the best deal and save all kinds of money. And of course then brag about it to all their friends.

Middleman is what America was made of!    That is what entrepreneurship is based on, and capitalism....

I guess one bad apple a day is not earth ending.  Sounds like your friends's comment made a statement that you registered for a majority.  Not finding that here in Hawaii.  Comment's like this one from my friends get a smile and talk to you later and I move on.  Middlepeople will always be the backbone of our economy.  They have to stay with medium changes for sure, but they will survive.

Hi Robert...From the looks of the comments you're receiving you may end up with a thriving business.  At least you are garnering a great deal of support for your concept.  It will be interesting to see how many actually contribute, by subscribing, to support it monetarily.

I read you response to my comment and although I still am skeptical about a need for your concept time will tell and I certainly wish you well.  If folks want to pay to list on additional sites, and many do, and if they want to pay to get listings from you I guess you will be successful.

Agents are the "middlemen".  We facilitate sales between sellers and buyers.  We are seeing more layers of middlemen, each addiing a cost factor to the transaction.

Kate

I can relate completely with what you're saying, and it's a good point that unless we physically draw attention to the value we're adding it sometimes get's lost in the preconceived notion that as a middle man we're not really necessary.

Some use Middlemen like it is an unnecessary layer.

Middle management gets caught between the Upper layer and the employee. Middle Schoolers are out of grade school but not quite in High School.  the Middle Class is the strength of many countries.

Without that Middle layer, there would be chaos!

thanks for honouring all of us in the middle!

I agree that the middleman, or middle layer if the analogy is broadened, are very important in society and the world.  If the analogy is applied throughout all aspects, from the farm to the grocery all the way into politics and socio-economic fabrics of society, we might recognize that having some cream in the middle of the oreo cookie is actually a good thing!

I think it became a bad word right about the time every wholesale furniture company in the country started running cheesy commercials that said, "CUT OUT THE MIDDLEMAN!  GET WHOLESALE PRICES DIRECT FROM THE MANUFACTURER!!!" (said in my best Monster Truck accent, "SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY!!!"