Web ME.0, Consumers take control

In 2010 consumers will gain control. We will see the birth of Web ME.0 where everything is about me, the consumer. Its the web the way I want it, not the way someone wants me to see it.

Gone are the days of a brand deciding for me, deciding how/when/where/what message I see. Gone is Web 2.0. Brands must now play by the consumers' rules.

Web ME.0 is:

• Destination Free. I don't have to visit individual sites because all information flows to me.
  
• Filtered. I see what I want, when and where I want to. None of the stuff I don't want.
  
• Walled. I only interact with the people with whom I want to interact. Maybe its lots of people in an open format, like twitter. Maybe its just my closest friends, like Facebook(or something like Facebook used to be since they are foolishly breaking down the wall just to make a buck.) But I get to choose who.
  

So where does advertising exist in this consumer controlled digital world? It doesn't, at least not in the form that we currently call advertising. Advertising is dead and companies that are still trying to make money based on the old model are dying with it. 2010 will be the nail in the coffin.

Consumers are in control.

Zuckerberg Is Out of Touch

I can't tell if Mark Zuckerberg is just completely out of touch with his users, or if he's just completely ignoring them.

Why? Because every recent change Facebook has made to its platform has been met with opposition from its users. Just look at these two Facebook Groups.

We Hate The New Facebook, so STOP CHANGING IT!!! 1,643,343 members

group: i love the new facebook design 70 Members (and this is the largest group)

People can't tell you how to innovate or how to make something better. But they sure know when something is wrong. And if the groups are any indication, something is definitely wrong.

A good CEO is in tune with his audience. He gets them. He looks out for them. He does what is in their best interest because he understands that when his users are happy, his company is happy.

Z is the complete opposite. He is out of touch with the users and isn't building Facebook in their best interest. He is building it for himself. The way he thinks it should be. And right now, how Z thinks they should use it and how users actually want to use it are at odds. Which is not a good thing.

Case in point.
Facebook has announced new privacy settings to make privacy EASIER on the user. Total lie. The only thing easier about the new change is how much easier it will be for Google to get your personal data. I guess this is to keep up with Twitter. But I can't figure out why.

If Z learns anything from reading this post(yeah right) its should be this:

Facebook is Private and always should be.

Twitter = public. Facebook = Private. Two totally separate things. They don't have to be like each other. They shouldn't. We shouldn't even be comparing them.

People like their privacy. That's why Facebook has been so great. I can talk with all my real friends without the entire world watching. (sure there are loopholes, but for the most part it works pretty well.)

How's this for a business model? Make it more private. Make it a safe harbor where I can go online without fear of someone stalking me, watching me, spamming me or interrupting a private conversation. That's the value. Privacy. There aren't many, if any, private places online. Make Facebook the most private place online. That will make you some money. Guaranteed.

With the new changes, Facebook has taken away some of our privacy. They have told us what the world can see of our profiles when they should have given us the option to decide for ourselves. Actually, I think it shouldn't even be an option. Make it private. Keep it private.

Remember MySpace. It died because it got to be too public. Facebook is the next MySpace.

Going Destination Free

When the web was born, everyone focused on the destination, usually an all important URL where all the magic was going to happen. And nearly two decades later, most still seemed fixed on getting traffic to a destination. That will change.

A friend of mine, Anthony Power, has called it "The Destination Free Web", where information flows freely from one place to another, and the destination is no longer important.

Why the Destination Free Web?

1. Its the INFO people want, NOT the destination.
   
2. People don't want to be confined.
3. People want access everywhere and anywhere.

How?

1. APIs
2. Partnerships between companies and platforms
3. Sharing of Data and Info

Monetize?
The question arises, "If people aren't visiting my website, then how will I make money?". Tough question. But then again, the people asking that question are the ones who still think that they can make money through advertising. Advertising is dead and the destination free web will only make it more dead.

People and companies who understand the destination free web will build the web of the future.

Where there are people, there's Spam

Spam is nothing new. It started with email, but is quickly spreading like a virus to each new emerging technology and platform. Right as each technology hits the tipping point and moves from early adopters to mainstream use, that's when the spammers start.

It happened this year with Twitter. One search of a trending topic shows real conversations, mixed an increasing amount of Spam.

Mayra Ruiz notes on her blog, "What is up on LinkedIn these days? I have heard countless folks complain about *all the limitless spam* that can be found in groups." Linkedin groups are full of Spam too.

With each new technology, the spammers find a way to abuse it and spread their Spam and as long as there are people there, they will continue.

One thing that concerns me is Facebook's talk of making the popular social network more public than private. Right now, the privacy wall does a pretty good job of keeping the spammers out. But I guarantee, the more public Facebook becomes, the more Spam we will see. (Personally I think making profiles public will be the death of Facebook).

If social networks and other emerging technologies aren't careful to control Spam, they will lose value and people won't use them. And no one, is immune to this.

The importance of proper catigorization.

I have been working on a project lately where I have been dealing with filtering and categorizing large amounts of data, specifically retail products. What surprises me is that companies who are in the business of helping people find a product, don't take the time to lay the proper ground work to make it easy for people to find what they are looking for.

Let take for example, Amazon.com, one of the largest internet retailers. Its their business to help people find products. But Women's T-shirts, with 25,000 items is very hard to navigate because it doesn't really have any subcategories. Off the top of my head, I would think you could create sub categories like, V-neck, Round Neck, Cotton, Cotton Poly Blend, Novelty, Casual, Retro and more.

It does us no good to give people all of the products/data in the world if there is no way to easily navigate that data. If you are in the business of helping people find something, take the time to do it right and make sure everything is properly categorized.

Long Tail Surfing

The Long Tail is so BIG, you can't possibly navigate it by yourself. Even with great filters, its just too big a job on your own.

It must be a collective effort. With each person surfing individually and sharing with the group. This sharing from person to group will introduce people in the group to new things that they will then share with new groups(if its worth sharing). This cycle from individual to group and back to individual is the future of the Long Tail Surfing.

Enabling this cycle is the future of internet retailing.

Blogging for an A

It has been a long time since I have blogged. I have been consumed with another project that has consumed all of my free time. Should be launching it soon.

The time off has made me think about how I blog. And I have decided to change my blogging habits. Before, I only blogged when I felt like I had something really intelligent to say. I took a long time to think about a post because I wanted get it just right. And sometimes it took a long time to write those posts as if I were writing a small Thesis for some Masters Degree I will never get. I feel like this way of blogging has limited me and my ability to get my thoughts out. A lot of great thoughts have fallen by the wayside.

But that's all going to change starting now. From now on, blog post will be:

• Shorter
• More frequent
  
• A way for me just to get my thoughts out on a given topic
  
• Written in the moment
• To the point
• More of a brainstorm
• How I think the digital world IS changing
• How I think the digital world SHOULD change
• An exploration of my thoughts

I am not saying I won't take the time to write good blog posts. I am just going to let my blogging and thoughts flow a little more freely than before.