In his post yesterday, The Future of the Social Web: in Five Eras, Jeremiah Owyang summarizes a larger Forrester report on how the social web will impact businesses for the next fear years. Of particular interest to me are the 5 eras and how they are defined:
The Five Eras of the Social Web:
1) Era of Social Relationships: People connect to others and share
2) Era of Social Functionality: Social networks become like operating system
3) Era of Social Colonization: Every experience can now be social
4) Era of Social Context: Personalized and accurate content
5) Era of Social Commerce: Communities define future products and services
Forrester has era 5 starting around 2011, but I don’t think the eras are so clear-cut. Many companies are already tapping into the social web to define future products and service (era 5) through the concept of co-creation. Through it’s Nike+ iniative, the company engages runners and uses information and feedback to produce products they want. Brother has tapped the social web for hobby sewers to provide products and services for both its customers and for its dealers – leading to more sales of its high-end hobbiest sewing/embrodiery machines. Comcast has famously used the social web to improve customer service. I believe there is quite a bit of cross-over in the eras, with business leaders already jumping into the 5th era. The nice thing about the social web is that any sized company can jump right in, without the need for expensive research tools. I do believe, however, that the social web will also force these eras to happen and businesses who have not entered the fray will be left behind.
(photo by cloudzilla)
Technorati tags: social media, strategy, social media strategy, business, marketing strategy, marketing
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