When the words “Web 2.0” crop up in conversation, I have come to accept that the first, almost instinctive, thought that comes to mind is Facebook.  And why shouldn’t it?  With Canada boasting the largest number of Facebook accounts, it seems that almost everyone, including pets and, more strangely, stuffed animals, have signed up.  Facebook has revolutionized our online experience; no more having to wonder what old friends are up to, no more awkward phone calls, no more waiting to share online discoveries, no more forgetting birthdays, no more...  If I was to sum up this online experience into one word, the word “community” seems appropriate.  Your Facebook page forms your community and, within this community, information flows comfortably from you to others and vice versa.  All community members share a platform upon which thoughts surface, discussion occurs, discoveries uncover, and personal updates are realized.  It is this concept of “community” that I feel defines Web 2.0.   

Web 2.0 is literally the next generation of the internet going from a ‘push’ of information to viewers, like commercials on television, to now a ‘push back’ interactive conversational platform.   From a client standpoint, this is the holy grail of information gathering – it’s difficult to imagine any other method where you can gather such volume of information in both a non-intrusive and non-biased manner.  Importantly, Web 2.0 tools that serve as the medium for communication, such as video, pictures, audio, online social networks (such as facebook, del.ici.ous, or digg) are not just limited to harvesting information from a client’s consumer markets but also harvesting information from a client’s workforce.  Companies often fail to realize valuable information nested within their own organizations.  It has been shown that collective information from the entire workforce is a much better predictor of business goals, such as product success or project timelines, than predictions from any one expert acting alone (for more on this, please read "The Promise of Prediction Markets").    

Bottom Line:  Stripped of its jargon, Web 2.0 is simply an online platform upon which information freely and comfortably flows amongst all, or in other words, it brings the world to you and introduces you to the world.

Dhushan Thevarajah
Mar/Comm Communicator
Monday March 9th, 2009