Yellowikis: a Web 2.0 Case Study, Part 2 - Industry Disruption and The Competition

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Tough Call

In the early days search engines, and other new kinds of Net site, grew quickly by word of mouth marketing - because everyone was interested in the next new idea - and there were few competitors.

Your article could not have been written about Alta Vista in 1996.

Whenever I hear that a 'new' business model has appeared on the Net I'm reminded of that old cartoon about new businesses from the early days. It features two talking dogs - the first dog is pictured using a PC. The second dog asks the first dog: "Why do business on the Internet?" The second dog responds: "On the Internet, no-one knows your a dog."

I'm not suggesting that Yellowikis is a dog - only time will tell that.

However, Yellowikis will suffer from a late start. There are now so many dogs out there that most Netizens are getting used to having to check out the details of who they are doing business with - getting back to a Buyer Beware culture.

I see this as the biggest problem for Yellowikis. Copying the Wiki comments section is not enough. Somehow, they have to gather real comments from real customers and make the real easy to read and understand.

The search today is not for the tool that will find any one who supplies any thing - which is the problem that Yellow Pages fixed for past generations. It is finding the tool that will find me a plumber who will turn up on time, will traet me in a professional manner, is trained, accredited, insured, recommended, and has parts and tools.

That is why you were led down the path of looking at organisations such as chambers of commerce. The Net gives us the opportunity to do this whole thing better - Yellowiki has an open goal to kick at...

Satisfied customers are the ones who create the best word of mouth marketing...

Posted by: Stephen Wheeler   Posted on: 11/16/05 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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