What is the number of your Web?

This blog starts part B of the 31-blog series of New Media Marketing (NMM). Over the next few blogs, we will be addressing one’s web site as the foundation and starting point for a NMM program. Instead of starting with what makes a good site or how should you say it on a web or some of the more standard questions concerning web sites (we will address these topics in subsequent blogs). It is important to realize that when we are talking about web sites for NMM, we are concerned with certain characteristics of the site. Did you know?

• Only 40% of companies with 100 or less employees still do not have a web site. The web is more often then not, the first place a potential client will go to validate your business or receive their first introduction to your products and services.
• It has not been just an electronic equivalence of the yellow pages for a long time.
• Without online presence your business can be considered nonexistent.
• For many successful organizations it is an essential lead-generating tool
• It is the stage to build your brand.

I mention this for many companies are implementing an obsolete approach when they finally decide to have a web site . I am not talking about its look or functionality. Ask yourself what category web site does your existing site fall into. What I am talking about is the fact that today our web sites should be or moving toward Web 2.0. The following definitions also highlight the fact that the web world is evolving, for technology continues to impact marketing effectiveness.

• Web 1.0: Access information, purchase online
• Web 2.0: Share and collaborate
• Web 3.0: Experience, participate, and co-create

Most sites today are Web 1.0 sites - that is the site provides the customers with information and ability to purchase and/or register on-line. Successful organizations realized that with today’s customers that is not enough. Thus Web 2.0 enters the scene. It is where all web sites should be moving. Web 2.0 pushes sharing and collaborating, whether that is product reviews or asking for help on how to market a product. Web 3.0 is a world of visual experiences with the goal that the user is an actual participant and co-creator - the user is actually immersed in the experience. Do not make the mistake of thinking that Web 3.0 is far in the future, some companies have already made the move toward Web 3.0. Web 3.0 enables the web 2.0 communities to come alive.

A good way to compare web 1.0 and web 2.0 is that web 1.0 is read only and web 2.0 is read-write. Web 1.0 was somewhat passive, with users downloading information. Web 2.0 encourages users to be more involved by uploading information to the web. It no long is about destination but distribution. You no long only interested in having users come to your destination but how do you distribute your site outward.

Your web site should be designed to support other community-building platforms and also be supported by them. Your web site participates in other web building servers and social media sites. Your web site is not only the hub for information but also the hub to foster and support your NMM vehicles such as your blog, pod casts, ezines, email, etc. A prime example but a very simple one is not only does your contact information need to be on each web site page (providing information) but also opt-in form (becoming part of your business’s electronic community) or your site to have the ability to post and archive articles as a read more location for articles presented in your ezine, etc.

As you move toward web 2.0, realize that you do not need to utilize all vehicles that it offers. The following is a table of some of your options (selection depends on your target market – staying focused)

Communicating:
• Blogging
• Podcasting
• Online video
• Videocasting

Participating:
• Social networking
• Social tagging
• User ranking and rating
• Online user groups
• Social Bookmarking

Collaborating:
• Comparison shopping engines
• Wikis

Trial environments
• Picture/video sharing
• Community development projects
• Collaboration software

Setting agendas
• SEO
• RSS
• Content syndication engines
• Content distribution via social networks
• Person to person viral marketing

So back to the original question. What number is your web site?
0 – No excuse for not having one.
1 – Average but not good start moving it to web 2.0
2 – Good but do not get too comfortable, web 3.0 is coming
3 – Great and like me anxious to see what web 4.0 brings (you can count on there being a web 4.0 and with today’s accelerated technology, it will be here in a blink of a marketer’s eye.