Last byte | Social technologies are here to stay

It's about a social trend of peopleconnecting with and drawing strength fromeach other online and how that threatens corporations.What we tried to do is put togetherthe frameworks [for corporations] to takeadvantage of this phenomenon.We give people resources and case studies.We lay out the strategy for how to plan forthis world. We take people from the pointthat they were dazzled to a point where theysay, "I've got what I need." There are really two impacts: internaland external. Externally, it means that youare no longer in control of your brand. Itmeans that people who decide they have differentways of thinking about your brand ? ordetractors ? are going to be connecting andtalking with each other. If you have a badservice reputation, you can no longer isolatethe complainers. Externally, it means you areno longer in control of your clients.Internally, it means employees are usingthese technologies to be more efficient.It empowers them for creativity andcollaboration. Some think everyone is going to beparticipating in social technologies, whileothers think it is a flash in the pan. Both perspectivesare wrong.It turns out it is a complex ecosystem.Fewer than 20 percent are creating content,but many others are reacting to that content,and nearly half of the online population istouched by it in some way. You are going to see a lot of connectionsamong your customers. In a business-to-business setting or government setting,customers have something in commonbecause they typically have the same job andmany of the same needs. It is a [mistake] tobelieve it is only a consumer phenomenon. We found a wide variety of tools.Blogs are good for updating people regularlyon your products and marketing. Facebookcan help you energize enthusiasts. Even simpletechnologies, such as discussion forums,ratings and reviews, allow you to tap into thecommunity pulse. They participate less thanother consumers, but still, about 33percent are touched by this technologyin some way, typically just by seeingit. So to build an application forthem, you have to supply a lot of thecontent yourself. This usage willgrow. You have to keep in mind thatwe used to be startled when a grandmotherwas using the Internet, butnow it's pretty typical. This is the biggest trend to affectbusiness since the Internet came along. Youreally can't ignore this because yourcustomers are participating.