Faster information, user-generated content, selling less of more, two-way communication, and a truly global reach are hallmark characteristics of a digital economy. If you sell steel fabricated buildings, with a few clicks on the Internet I can know all about steel fabricated building - what they cost, who you compete with, how they are built, what choices I have - anything I want to know in a matter of minutes. Custom content delivered at the request of the viewer. It is a pull world not a push. More and more we want to pull information to us. And it’s all faster. Broadband means richer content can be delivered in ways only dreamed of in the past. Broadband doesn’t just mean faster Google, it means more reach and deeper, more robust content delivered to the user, preferably at the request of the user. It means two-way dialogue, both parties talking in real time and no more one-way communication. Two-way communication is fundamental to contribution and collaboration. And contribution is today’s online currency. In the online community, it is a gift culture. A place where your status is determined by what you give away. YouTube, Second Life, Wikipedia - these online spots, like so many others, give users credit for what they give away. How crazy is that? Well, it’s not that crazy. It has been working for years inside companies. Companies foster collaboration and contribution among employees. Why not involve the rest of the world, including your customers? It works, and it is a new way of marketing.The digital economy is one of reputation. Your reputation is based on “friends” and other trusted sites. It has been a reality for years: happy customers are the best advertising. The online, virtual world gives users or customers a powerful voice. If you doubt it, watch the Internet media relating to political elections. Online media is shaping voting preference for many voters every day and the candidates are taking note. The digital economy is here and it is fundamentally reshaping communications. When it comes to your business or world, remember it’s not a matter of will every industry continue to be redefined; it’s when it will happen.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 17th, 2007 at 9:40 am and is filed under change, second life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.