Web 2.0 Roundtable: Recap and Closing Thoughts

Yesterday ExecutiveBiz hosted the Web 2.0 Breakfast Roundtable at the Tower Club in Vienna, VA. Limited to 18 attendees, the event provided an opportunity for candid discussion about how to apply new technologies like social networking, user-generated content, and collaboration to business, the public sector, and our personal digital lives.

As someone who typically sits on the consumer side of the Web 2.0 space as a Contributing Editor at Mashable and a co-founder of social networking site MindSay, it was fascinating to hear how companies on other side of the coin are thinking about the same set of technologies. While sites like Facebook, Digg, and Twitter are continually making headlines in my world, for organizations in our metropolitan area, much of the focus is on how to apply Web 2.0 technologies to billion dollar businesses and enormous government agencies.

During the discussion, one of the attendees joked “I think I’m going to leave here much more confused!” In thinking about our discussion afterwards, I have some good news for you: you’re not alone! Many of the same issues that were highlighted in our conversation – privacy, controlling your data, and brand management – are still far from an open and closed case on the consumer side of Web 2.0 as well. For example, Facebook, while currently the darling of the media, is constantly catching flack from users as it transforms from a cool social networking site for college students to a robust platform business for the mainstream. Digg, the social news site that landed founder Kevin Rose on the cover of Business Week, recently found itself in turmoil after launching a set of social networking features that were not well received by its users. Meanwhile, the aforementioned Twitter has been hit with continuous service outages as they try to scale their system to accommodate the early adopters that have flocked to it.

These examples aren’t meant to scare you, but simply a way to illustrate that things are just as chaotic on all sides of the Web 2.0 spectrum. While Facebook, Digg, and Twitter have had their share of problems, it hasn’t stopped them from continuing to innovate and drive forward with with products that improve our lives. Rather than fear the unknown, companies looking to adapt Web 2.0 should instead think about their goals and how to best achieve them. If your first try at implementing a wiki is unsuccessful, it doesn’t mean all future attempts at adding collaboration to your workplace are doomed. If your company blog only has 10 subscribers, keep blogging! The fact your organization has a voice in the blogosphere will come in useful, especially when your brand faces a crisis that needs an immediate response.

The question really isn’t about the software – there are dozens of vendors eager to bring your organization a laundry list of Web 2.0 features and functionalities. Successful deployment depends on a well articulated set of goals and requirements, as well as making sure everyone using your fancy new piece of Web 2.0 software has the proper motivation to do so. Most people respond well to things that make their jobs easier, improve their productivity, and reward their individual contributions to a team goal. Along the same lines, try to involve all levels of your organization in the vendor selection process, starting with the requirements for a successful solution. In the same way social networks like MySpace and Facebook grow through viral marketing, your new Web 2.0 tool’s success will depend on stakeholders in all parts of your organization singing its praises.

In short, Web 2.0 is still the wild, wild, west for all of us. However, if your organization has a specific goal – be it increased internal communication, better collaboration, or increasing your brand’s relationship with customers – there is a piece of software to do it, and people ready to use it.

For more open Web 2.0 discussion and networking, there will be additional breakfast roundtable events October 11^th, 18^th, and 25^th.

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Adam Ostrow is a Contributing Editor at Mashable, one of the leading blogs covering the Web 2.0 space. Additionally, he is co-founder of MindSay, a popular social networking service, and pens his own musings at AdamOstrow.com.

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