Web 2.0 extends this into the digital space with new generation ideas and technologies that we can use to become authors of our own content, and connect and collaborate with communities, all in a fairly simple yet rich environment using the Internet’s historic architecture.
Web 2.0 is about technology and data being personalised to us based on how we use them and what we want from them. Thanks to this, the Internet provides a very flexible way to do just about anything from virtually any location. Previously we needed to know how to write complex HTML language and how to put together technology platforms. Today all we need is access to a computer and a bit of inspiration.
User-generated content has revolutionised micropublishing. Social networking has transformed the way we connect and interact with people. Rich Internet Applications has reformed flat browser experiences to desktop-like environments. Open data has resulted in data integration into almost any data structure. But does this all matter to your business?
In a nutshell, yes. Consumers are forcing brands to engage with them in their Web environments. Mass media sites no longer dictate what news and information we read. Instead, people like you and I are consuming most of the Web’s traffic; they’re generating the most interest on social networking sites, search engines are listing blogs in their results pages, and ordinary citizens are writing the news we read. Major brands are now even soliciting their consumers instead of their PR agencies to market their products.
As broadband usage in this country increases so too will users be looking for better ways to spend their time online. This includes your consumers. Providing rich online experiences that add benefit to their day-to-day lives and that tie in well with your brand’s positioning will afford you an opportunity to leverage the Web in new ways; ways in which your competitors are either too afraid to exploit or are already using. Either way, your target audience is most likely already engaging with these experiences. Can you afford to ignore this trend?
Having said this, any adaptation of Web 2.0, regardless of whether it’s done for business or personal reasons, must offer both the user and supplier a tangible benefit. This must tie in with a good business and user experience models and should never been done in an isolated fashion.
Web 2.0 isn’t about to replace traditional media any time soon but, in one way or another, it is something we do share. As we become more familiar with it and as we see it evolve, Web 2.0 will continue to become an integral part of our lives. As individuals and businesses, this is something important to know.
