How Web 2.0 can help your business

I seem to be on a misson at the minute, to understand the relationship between blogging and big business. And as if by magic, I have come upon a gargantuan pile of work that people are applying in the (dare I say it) real world. Here's a great example: Seth Godin's published 3 versions of his new eBook, Flipping the Funnel, which explains in simple terms what Web 2.0 is (a megaphone), what kinds pf products are out there for use and how they can be used to "reach out to the fans" (del.icio.us, Flickr, Squidoo - for self-promotion) and what social software can do for you. Head to his blog for links to the three versions (one for marketers, one for politicians and one for NGOs).

A great quote from the marketer's paper:

What if you could figure out how to use the Internet to empower the people who like you, who respect you, who have a vested interest in your success? I call this group of people - your friends and prospects and customers who are willing to do this - your fan club.

A new set of online tools makes this approach not just a possibility, but also an imperative for any organization hoping to grow. Give your fanclub a megaphone and get out of the way.
And Godin's word of caution (also from the marketer's pdf):

Yes, you can edit the comments on your blog, but no, you shouldn't delete the negative ones. Get rid of the profanity, the anonymous heckling, and the juvenile, but if you're going to give your users a megaphone, you need to let them use it. If you don't, no one will bother reading.

This came to my via /patternHunter