2010 is here, and with it comes the continued advance of technology into business. That the web has reshaped the way we do business--or view and patronize businesses as consumers--is a more or less foregone conclusion. Sure, in mass markets in developing countries markets are still pretty basic: price and availability rule.
At the same same time, for emerging "upmarket" consumers the world over there is a commonality that is also emerging, powered in a large part by connectivity. People no longer have to travel to gain exposure to "foreign" culture: it arrives as a digital stream via the nearest broadband connection to the Internet. Attempts at censorship aside, information and its accessibility has become the great democratizer, even if only in the immediate spread of pop culture. Music, food, fashion, sports...are all merging based on globally shared tastes, a reality that has only recently hit markets in full force.
Beyond the media-style networks, though, there is a deeper connection that is starting to form: Applications like "The Good Guide" bring business policies--hiring practices, investment policy and carbon footprint--right up next to price and availability. A typical US department store stocks carries a dozen competing models of nearly any product it sells: price plays a role in the decision, but increasingly so does environmental impact.
And so the "market place" fight is moving to Operations. Check out Jeremiah Owyang's "Social CRM" listing and the Dachis Groups' "Social Software Wiki." Here you'll find the tools you need to evolve your go-to-market programs and refit your business to tap the continued push of technology.
2010. Indeed.
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