Case

"Crowdsourcing" is often applied gathering information from online communities, but it is also a way of putting those communities to work. Presidential candidates are using crowdsourcing applications that put volunteers to work in their own homes calling potential voters around the country. Clinton's "Call Center" landing page shows a typical app's workflow step-by-step.  Obama's landing page for a similar app has a different engagement style.

An element of NG's culture of participation is "crowdsourcing", outsourcing by open call a task traditionally performed by a specialist. It is a way to leverage the mass collaboration potential of online communities. The Fort Myers News-Press used this technique last fall to investigate large and unexplained increases in a local municipality's property tax assessments.; On the Media reports:

Interesting talk at LIFT08 conference by psychologist Jonathan Cabiria about relationships in virtual environments and social justice. He explores how platforms such as Second Life can create safe environments and can be a recommended activity for marginalized people, especially if they suffer from issues such as loneliness, depression, isolation, pessimism and/or low self-esteem. Watch the video:

Software maker Symantec released its 2007 Green Data Center Report in late November. An innovative approach to disseminating this material was releasing an Executive Summary in the form of a podcast interview with a Symantec executive.  Podcast interviews with authors from magazine and book publishers are increasingly common; similar podcasts accompanying corporate white papers are a newer trend.  Access both the podcast and the full report.

The ability of the web to engage potential customers is "fractal": self-similar at every scale. I saw this on a recent trip which required my wife and me to seek out accommodations in small towns outside the scope of the large travel websites.

Lacking any other way to evaluate such lodgings, we quickly found ourselves judging potential accommodations through the websites turned up by online search. Our thought was that if proprietors took the time to present themselves online, then they might be equally attentive to their facilities. An offer of free wireless was another key criteria, indicating awareness of what contemporary travelers are seeking.

The websites of the places we chose were simple and with few NG features, but were personal, reassuring, and best-in-class. We were not disappointed, enjoying quality motel-style accommodations run by interesting people. Engaging online content addressing prospects' core concerns reduces the friction of doing business for enterprises of all scales.

The Nordic Inn, Alpine WY (pop. ~780)   D-K Motel, Arco ID (pop. ~980)

Open source NG tools and the culture of participation came together in Southern California to make sense of the torrents of data being generated in response to the many forest fires that swept the region this week. Here's now a small band of web-savvy radio station employees created a powerful information service that out-performed those of much better-funded public agencies.

Have you considered RSS (Real Simple Syndication) as a means of getting your message out and staying "top of mind" within your stakeholder communities?

Medical device manufacturer Medtronic offers an RSS feed via both their public relations and investor relations departments.  I found it interesting to note that the latter contains a description of RSS and how it use it, while the former simply offers the RSS symbol to click. Does this reflect a  perceived difference in the relative Internet NG sophistication of the two audiences?

In another indication that businesses are serious about exploiting NG opportinities, Pfizer has announced a relationship with Sermo, a social networking site for doctors. UK's Financial Times reports :

The collaboration signals an important move by the business community to tap into the online networking craze exemplified by the success of websites such as Facebook and MySpace . . .

Dr Michael Berelowitz, Pfizer’s global medical executive, said: “The way the internet and other web-based media have transformed life is unprecedented. But it offers such advantages that we’d like to be part of that evolution.”

Maplight.org  employs many elements of Internet NG technology and culture. Here's how the site integrated them to create a unique destination:

Most news organizations generate one or more RSS feeds to make sure they stay top-of-mind with consumers and are easily embedded into other wedbsites. For example, The Washigton Post feed for its top news items is http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/rss/index.html?hpid=distribution#topnews. They also offer separate RSS feeds for topics like Health, Politics, and Technology to capture key demographics. Many special interest organizations publish RSS feeds highlighting news of interest to target audience segments. For example, there is an RSS feed about Allergy News from Medical News Today.

A BusinessWeek article highlights how Novartis, The Broad Institute, and Lund University announced the completion of a genome-wide map of genetic differences in humans and their relationship to type 2 diabetes and other metabolic disorders. All results of the analysis are being made accessible, free of charge on the internet to scientists around the world. This is data that Norvartis spent millions of dollars developing. This reflects a new realization that they will benefit by getting more people involved in making advances on a complex and challenging problem.

The focus of the article is on how organizations such as Norvartis and Intel are opening up to gain competitive advantage.

“These discoveries are but a first step. To translate this study's provocative identification of diabetes-related genes into the invention of new medicines will require a global effort. We hope many will race to do so,” said Mark Fishman, President of the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research. “We hope as well that others adopt this novel and effective mode of open collaboration between scientists and physicians, in business and academia, and dedicate work to our patients by making the data quickly and freely available to all.”