Strategies for Web 2.0 Success

Software vendors need to follow a new set of best practices in order to leverage the collective intelligence of Web 2.0.

By Jamie Lerner, CITTIO

Everyone from Kleiner Perkins venture capital partner Ray Lane to publishing guru Tim O’Reilly to Morgan Stanley analyst Mary Meeker is talking about the meaning of Web 2.0. And with good reason. Web 2.0 is the future.

Compare first-generation Internet applications with those emerging today and it is easy to understand the potential of Web 2.0. Drill down to the differences between Netscape and Google, between DoubleClick and Yahoo! Marketing Search.

With Web 2.0, it’s the smaller websites and the collective intelligence they create that are proving to be the true muscle behind the Internet. While Web 1.0 companies still talk about directories, publishing and selling software, Web 2.0 companies are busy tagging, developing architectures that revolve around participation, and offering software as a service.

The transition to Web 2.0 is driving an industry-wide shift in which content is created, presented and shared in new ways. It is often pulled from sources all over the Web, where updates are constant and copyright is not often enforced. This content is stored on far-flung servers and data centers where it is sometimes difficult to know who exactly you are doing business with.

As a software company, it is critical to be aware of the new range of operational considerations inherent in a Web 2.0 world - and to follow new strategies to ensure success.

New Webinar on Offshoring Best Practices

Software CEOs and VPs are invited to join the Sand Hill Group and Persistent Systems for a webinar, ìTrends, Strategies and Best Practices in Outsourced Product Development.î The online event will be held at 11:00 a.m. Pacific on June 29. Sand Hill Groupís M.R. Rangaswami will provide actionable data on product development trends and Sheng Liang of Seven Networks will share the most important takeaways from his offshoring experience. Click here to find out more and register for this informative event.

Teaching Our Customers to Shoot Straight

What does a missing laptop with thousands of customer IDs have to do with the future of enterprise software? Quite a bit, actually. Erik Keller of Wapiti explains why software vendors must help their customers prevent such security mishaps if they want to avoid further regulation in this week’s post to his SandHill.com Blog, The Software Critic.

The Cult of On-Demand

“On demand” – like “Web 2.0”- is one of the most popular buzzwords in the software industry today. And like Web 2.0, the legitimate opportunities of on-demand can sometimes be obscured by flying rhetoric. Robert Youngjohns of Callidus Software shares his insight on what really constitutes on-demand success in this week’s post to the SandHill.com Blog on Software as a Service.

Tech Outlook: Big Growth Ahead

Critics talk about the maturation of the technology industry and the dim prospects for future growth. S. Sadagopan disagrees. The rampant changes and innovation going on in business technology architecture will feed a new phase of growth in the coming years. Read his perspectives in this week’s post to his SandHill.com Blog, The Deep End.

Publish Your Perspective!

The SandHill.com Blog wants your opinions. Send your thoughts on the enterprise software industry to editor@sandhill.com and we’ll publish them in our blog.

Open Source: Money Pit or Money Machine?

Listen in to this new podcast from SandHill.com. Larry Augustin, chairman of VA Software, and Tom Berquist, CFO of Ingres, join Sand Hill Group’s MR Rangaswami to discuss open source business models, opportunities and challenges. Click here to play the podcast on open source and to see a list of all recent podcasts from SandHill.com.

Suite Revenge?

Google’s spreadsheet debuts to debate about whether an application suite could really compete with Office; plus one tech giant cancels its Indian plans as another pledges $6 billion, more shake-ups at CA and lots more M&A. Read these stories and more news of the week in the SandHill.com weekly news summary.

Poll: IBM Ups the India Ante?

IBM’s $6 billion investment surpasses the recent pledges of Indian commitment by other tech giants. What is the significance of this announcement?
Take our Pulse Poll >>

Last week, SandHill.com readers gave their opinions on what impact a rise in H-1B visas would have on the technology industry. Share your opinion and see the results >>

Is Your Company the “Next Big Thing”?

Enterprise 2006 is just around the corner! The ninth annual invitation-only gathering of software CEOs and investors will take place in Pebble Beach, Calif. on October 8-10, 2006. One of the event’s most popular sessions allows a select-group of fast-growth software CEOs to present why their company will be the next Microsoft, SAP or Oracle. Click here to nominate your company for this prestigious opportunity and visit the Enterprise 2006 site to find out more about the conference. Act now - the deadline for nominations is July 15!

Don’t Miss the Profile of Vikram Akula

Meet the SHG Foundation Social Entrepreneur of the Month: Vikram Akula, CEO and founder of SKS Microfinance. Recently profiled in the Wall Street Journal and in Time Magazine’s list of theTop 100 Most Influential People, Akula merged his knowledge of business with his compassion for the world’s poor. The result has been improved housing, food, health and education for 221,000 microfinance clients via $52 million in loans, a 98 percent payback rate and annual growth of 300 percent. Read what software vendors can learn from Vikram’s success in this month’s profile.