Web 2.0 and Social Media beckons; What Should Companies Do?
Each passing day brings a new threat that seeks to derail a company’s network, computers, users or even reputation. Digital vermin is getting lethal, to say the least. Equipped with nothing but bare arms, we seek to wade through the dirty waters to combat with these ever burgeoning threats. Are we getting anywhere? Has any progress been made?
While you are busy ruminating, we’d like to come to the point: Should companies espouse web 2.0? Should they embrace the all-new-but-hugely-distributed power of the socially conscious, network leveraged, all-new Internet?
It’s tricky, really. If the companies give in and embrace social networking, web 2.0 and all else that is the rage today, they would be inviting more trouble. Or would they, really?
According to a press release from message labs,
” Facebook now has 61m active users world wide and Australian membership almost doubled during 2007. This extraordinary growth is part of the problem. Companies risk being caught off guard.”
Web 2.0 and Social Media: A case for Individuals
Even as individuals, we are told to stay away from suspicious looking profiles on myspace or facebook. You wouldn’t stumble upon a site unless you really find it worthy and you won’t twitter away your credit card details. It is presumed that individuals can take care of themselves and that they know where to draw the line.
That’s a point well-made in favour of social media and networking for individuals using the Internet at large.
So, what about companies?
A split approach will be necessary as we see it. On one hand, companies just can’t stay away from the lure and power of the web 2.0, because it is the future. People have always been central in anything we do and the Internet had to come to this. It is logical, isn’t it? It can’t remain this browser-ME-web page thing forever. Sooner or later, people will walk in through your virtual doors, chat with you, poke you and twitter you — well, they are doing it now.
Companies will have to stand up and face it. The future beckons them. They can’t hide behind their thousand computers anymore. Corporate blog posts will have to be answered; customers will tweet their problems; your helpful articles (if you did post any) will be bookmarked, digged, reddit-ed and much more.
So what about security?
Well, we must go back to our network design drawing boards and incorporate this aspect. This is here to stay and companies will need to figure out a way to help achieve security in spite of crowded internet traffic sharing everything you put on your website — form effective policies incorporate the use of web 2.0; help spread information about the possible pitfalls and dangers associated with web 2.0; define what can be done and what cannot be; monitor network traffic and take all necessary precautions.
Cisco has jumped in and embraced web 2.0 and social networking as a striking example, showing that it can be done. Cisco marketing executives are prolific bloggers and Cisco’s acquisition of Five across, a company that builds social platforms, is a terrific move albeit an understandable one. According to Venturebeat, in an article titled Cisco Dives into Web 2.0 :
“…it is clear Cisco sees social networking and the wider Web 2.0 phenomenon as ways to drive Internet traffic, and thus traffic over their routers and other networking gear — and, it follows, more revenue for Cisco.”
Bottom line : Web 2.0 and social media is here to stay. The Internet just decided to get gregarious. Companies just have to catch up, re-design networks and customize their security.
Related posts:
- Social Media is the Future, Not Search Engines What appeals more to you? Spiders( the eight legged freaks)...
- 50 Most Powerful and Influential People in Social Media Ever wondered who are the most influential men or women...
- About SelectSys Our Company Based in Austin Texas, SelectSys is a Cisco...
- 3 Tenets of Professional Social Networking Social Networking is in. It has now emerged as a...
- Strategies that work: Collaborate or Call it Off We really got into this quirky habit of manipulating proverbs...
Tags: Cisco, Cisco CTO, Five Across, Social Media, Venturebeat, Web 2.0