Of the many ideas that have entered the business world by way of the Internet, few have proved more potent than “online community.” America Online owes its success to the creation of community. Amazon.com has become a retail powerhouse thanks largely to the relationships it established with and among its customers. Despite the obvious power of community and the fact that virtual communities are not new, executives in most industries have barely begun to grapple with this new form of interaction, much less understand how it can be used to enhance their business. But before long, the ability to create and manage virtual communities will become a distinguishing feature of nearly every successful business.
Community interactions occur wherever people are connected over computer networks — whether these people are buying, selling, collaborating or merely seeking diversion. Online communities —which we define as groups of people who engage in many-to-many interactions online — form wherever people with common interests are able to interact. These interactions can have a big impact on business strategy and operations. And they pose unforeseen threats as well as opportunities. For example, customer communities eliminate the information gaps that companies traditionally relied upon to maintain profit margins. The Web makes it easy for customers to find alternative suppliers or to create purchasing consortiums to... To read the complete article, login or sign-up using the form below.
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