Using Web 2.0 while Planning for Web 3.0
Even though the Internet was originally designed as a means to share data and communicate within the corporate world, the ability of Internet users to interlink data and interact not only with each other but also through an entire array of websites through the technologies of Web 2.0 has recreated the Internet into a bustling opportunity for the world of commerce. In particular, it places some of the power back into the hands of the consumer. No longer do consumers rely on the advertising and product portrayals offered through static data display. Manufacturer reviews are much less important to consumers these days. After all, retailers and manufacturers are in the business of promoting a product in order to sell it.
Instead, many consumers look for peer reviews and price comparisons in order to determine which items they will purchase. Other consumers are a much more reliable source when it comes to the reliability and usefulness of products. Web 2.0 technologies make all of this possible by opening the doors for user driven data presentation.
Today’s computer savvy consumers upload all types of information from product reviews to product complaints using blog posts and Utube videos. Plus, help forums are cropping up all over despite the fact that some companies have mistakenly taken the position that an open forum on their website could be detrimental to the growth of their business. Quite the contrary, today’s consumers are searching for a place to read the reviews of consumers who are happy with their product purchases or who can offer suggestions for resolving minor and even major problems with their electronic device or some other type of product.
Since user interaction streamlines the responses that are given through search engines, the users’ intent dictates the type of response that is generated through their request. The way that marketing messages are perceived and delivered is determined in part by eCommerce trends. Today, the manner in which products are found and purchased has changed drastically from the past. Instead of a passive reliance on business marketing practices and company advertising, today’s consumers are actively searching for as much information as they can find.
Businesses that do not offer this information are going to lag behind those that do. Sales will drop and productivity will decrease to a point far below that of the competition.
Businesses that want to stay ahead in the game need to step it up a notch and incorporate an interactive consumer experience in as many ways as possible.
Incorporating social networking forums, a consumer-driven troubleshooting page, and blog spots or reviews of the company’s products will go a long way in creating a loyal customer base.
Utilizing the specific features that Web 2.0 facilitates allows business owners to create a unique customer experience unparalleled by other websites that have not decided it’s time to do so. In essence, Web 2.0 allows average Web users to contribute content or interact with each other in a manner unlike any other. Today’s Internet users come from all around the world and the camaraderie is almost instantaneous through an online connection that seems to know no bounds.
Although there is more to it than that, from an eCommerce point of view, it is the presentation of the information in conjunction with the user interaction that is important. Internet users are also consumers and they want and need social interaction that validates their selection of a specific product. Additionally, they want and need the social interaction that allows them to share their pleasure with a product as well as tips for improved use of it or solutions to problems that might arise. Companies that understand this and incorporate this type of interaction into their website will provide a reason for Internet users to browse and stay awhile.
In the past, the opportunity for personal connections did not exist beyond emails to the company owning a particular website.
However, the Web as we know it today allows interaction among humans connected to the Web in context with viewable content there. Business owners would do best to present an open view of the behind the scenes activity of customer service as it relates to the common, everyday individual. Today’s consumers are searching for information not only on which products are the best ones to purchase, but also, they are searching for which companies are the best ones to buy from for specific types of items.
Website owners who incorporate these features will be ahead of the game when later technologies expand upon the technologies of Web 2.0 and transform them into Web 3.0.
In order to prepare for the advent of Web 3.0, website owners and small business owners who use the Internet to grow their business need to have a firm grasp of Web 2.0 to lay the groundwork for the changes that are imminent if they are to stay in the game of making money and growing their business.
In order to take advantage of Web 2.0 and all that it has to offer your business, business owners need to incorporate a few very specific facets now. Doing so will generate more direct traffic along with traffic directed to them through indirect avenues. While niche products might not have as great a need as more commonly sought after items, the fact remains that growing your Internet business centers on the use of technology in a manner that funnels traffic directly to your website rather than someone else’s website.
Incorporating the ability for users to visit a forum and connect with others is essential in creating customer loyalty. Likewise, opening up a forum between consumers and customer service or tech support and making the questions and responses clearly visible will also go a long way in creating a feeling of loyalty among current and prospective customers. Furthermore, potential customers who see that a specific company is interested in resolving any issues with their products will be more inclined to purchase products from that company.
The fabric of the Web is constantly changing and shortly, it will be doing so again. For some eCommerce Web sites, Web 3.0 is going to have a greater, more positive, impact. In essence, currently a gap exists between the people who use the Web and the applications used through Web 2.0. The software that web developers use can do as they are programmed, but they cannot interject any understanding of relevance or context to any of the data as it is presented.
Once Web 3.0 is refined and implemented, browsing on the Internet will change in a way that benefits consumers immediately. No more drive by hits. No more combing through countless search results that clearly do not match the search query. No more wishing there could be a way to discover the lowest price, best product, and quickest delivery all through a single search. Web 3.0 is going to make all of that happen.
It will reduce the time spent searching while reducing the overload of information that less refined searches produce. Web 3.0 Interfaces would be simpler. Searches could be conducted on a much broader level without overwhelming the individual doing the searching.
Machines will be able to interact with the data with a full understanding of what it means. This will increase the relevancy and value of the information generated and returned as results. Through Web 3.0, the manner in which information can be delivered will change.
Alerts will be sent to recipients concerning the presence and availability of products, restaurant reservations, and more.
Web 3.0 will make the best of the Internet as a social marketplace with virtual consumption- from static shopping through which consumers browsed a website page and ordered an item to social shopping all in one fell swoop once the change is made.
Thus, eCommerce sites would do best to set up Web 2.0 features now and begin drawing customers to their website before it is too late. Once Web 3.0 comes into play, any website owners or small companies advertising online and still using Web 1.0 technology will not be in a place to catch up with the others.
