I’m a big fan of the Application Service Provider (ASP) model for obtaining access to powerful software for use in businesses large and small. In case you’re not familiar with the term, Application Service Providers are third-party organizations that ‘rent’ online access to software to clients that they manage and host on their behalf.
Examples of solutions relevant to Internet marketers that I’ve used (among others) include www.campaigner.com (for email marketing), www.salesforce.com (for CRM), and www.parachat.com (for chat).
There’s a ‘hosted software’ solution for just about anything you might want to do these days. But how do you ensure you are choosing the right one?
One Degree Posts
In the past week, I’ve been struck by two very strong examples of how the blogosphere is reshaping business communications drastically.
In the first case, a previous silence was broken and so was the strength of the story that led as an example of a company who ignored the blogosphere at its own peril.
The second case demonstrates a company who is either unaware of the power of the voices within the blogosphere, or who knows the power and believes that threats can silence it nonetheless.
Case #1: Kryptonite – A Positive Example
Nearly a year ago, Engadget, a popular gadget blog revealed that “Kryptonite locks could be easily picked with a ballpoint pen”:http://www.engadget.com/entry/7796925370303347/. Although the company issued official press releases on the subject and offered to replace the tubular locks in question without cost to owners, their lack of interaction with the blogosphere made it appear as if Kryptonite didn’t respond at all. The result was that the Kryptonite story has been used as the ‘warning’ for companies not recognizing the importance of the blogosphere since that time. This is not likely the story Kryptonite wants to tell.
Suck.com was one of those defining online moments you need to understand. “Big Fish – The Story of Suck” makes for an amazing read…
Comments closed