The web has shown the unique ability to progress, advance, and grow at an infinite rate, and at a ridiculous pace.  As this maturity takes place, we are sometimes forced to play catch up in order to stay current and utilize all of the web’s offerings.  This familiar scenario is exemplified when looking at businesses that operate on the web.  Since the popularization of e-commerce, businesses have found the internet (and rightfully so) to be a terrific platform for conducting their trade.   Nowadays, nearly all businesses have some sort of presence on the web.  You would be hard-pressed to find  a company without a website or at least some sort of online contact information.

Unfortunately for businesses, the quickly advancing web has now made this sort of online existence, “old school”, if you will.

The web has gone through a pretty large transformation since the first dot-com bubble in the late 90s to early 00s.    What was once a static and structured architecture is now a dynamic, user-driven platform.  The internet is now centralizing around users and their activity instead of solely spotlighting the businesses that provide the content.  The web has and continues to evolve into a huge social arena, connecting users across the vast landscape of the web.

So, how has this ’social web’ changed companies and their online presence?

It is not acceptable for companies to remain hidden behind their “corporate veils” anymore.  The web has given everyone a voice, and it is imperative for these businesses to start participating in the “conversation”.  We are seeing more and more companies utilizing social tools like blogs, Twitter, and various social networks in order to engage their current and potential customers.

Recently, Facebook found themselves in a sticky situation as they updated their terms of service (ToS).  A massive uproar soon followed.  Articles and blog posts filled the internet about the company and its unfair terms.  In response to the uproar, Facebook temporarily went back to its older ToS, and is now asking for user feedback while it drafts its replacement ToS, now known as its “Statement of Rights and Responsibilities.”

These are the types of actions that truly define a democratized business.  It stems from listening and interacting with customers.  Businesses who do not participate are at a huge disadvantage.  The evolution of the web has brought consumers together and has put businesses in a unique position.  In order to succeed, it is critical for businesses to start tapping into this network, giving their customers a voice, or else they stand a real chance of losing out to companies that do.

What is interesting about the Facebook ToS debacle is that the story broke immediately and spread to major news sources almost instantly.  Of course, Facebook, being the largest and most popular social network, will tend to receive lots of attention.  But you would assume from the number of stories written that this was an earth-shattering situation for all Facebook users.  Well, in fact, it turns out that only about 0.006% of Facebook users cared about this story!  I can only imagine what would happen if a majority of users were interested.

Point is, businesses must offer customers a voice.  Businesses who democratize and knock down their corporate barriers stand to gain a lot of attention and respect from the general audience.

“I’m nervous about sharing my ideas and putting them out into the open”

This is such a common sentiment shared by many aspiring entrepreneurs.  I’ve heard it time and time again.  It isn’t hard to understand why these individuals feel this way.  I mean, who wants their ideas to be stolen right out from underneath them?  Who wants to give up control of their beloved baby to some strangers?  Who can they trust?

These seemingly valid concerns are quickly discredited when you start to really evaluate the situation.  The majority (probably 98%) of these ideas are exactly that, just ideas.  In other words, nothing!  You don’t have control over anything because you don’t own your idea.  Similarly, worrying about someone stealing it is almost like worrying about someone stealing your air in a public park.  Please, do not worry about something you have little control over.  Instead, focus on the all important next step: spreading your ideas to whomever will listen.

Spread Your Ideas

Very rarely does an individual possess the skills and knowledge required in developing an idea into a working prototype (whatever form that may be) all by him/herself.   So, the natural next step is to tell close friends or family members…you know, those trustworthy individuals in your life.  You may still be reluctant to “tell the world” and face possible criticism.  My advice here is to focus on the close individuals that “get it” and forget the rest.  In other words, don’t spend hours trying to explain to Mom and Dad how your web service will work.  That will only frustrate and tire you out.  Instead, associate with the innovative thinkers and those who will help build upon your ideas.  This breeds creative thinking and helps stimulate your mind, body, and soul (for all you spiritual entrepreneurs).

The social web has been described as a humongous cocktail party, where people are free to mingle, shake some hands, and make some small talk.  When I think of spreading ideas on the web, I like to think of myself sitting at a booth at that giant party with some close friends discussing a business idea.  Your table is going back and forth on certain business models and logistics, perhaps writing all of this down on the back of a napkin.  Wouldn’t it be wise to make a few copies of that doodle, jot down some contact info, and pass it along to some smart individuals that you have met?  Well, the answer is yes, and the ’social web’ has made doing just that easier than ever.

If you find yourself reading this and thinking: “Wait, Kevin, so what happens if they go home from the cocktail party and start to work on the idea without me?”  Well, this is my breakdown of the few possibilities that will occur after this “napkin exchange of business ideas” :

• They throw out the napkin (65%)

• They look at the napkin for a few moments, think about it for a few more, then throw out the napkin (20%)

• They contact you back, and you start a dialogue about your idea (12.5%)

• They pass the napkin along to a friend (1.5%)

• They lock up your napkin in their vault and start working on it alone (1.0%)

You’ll discover a few things to be true in this sort of situation:
1)People are usually not interested in your ideas, and do not want to steal it.
2)If you have caught their attention, odds are they will seek you out; it’s in their best interest to work alongside the original mind behind the project.
3)Your “one-of-a-kind” idea most likely already exists or is being worked on (this simply validates your napkin’s business model, so it’s not a terrible thing).
4)If someone does decide to steal it, however unlikely, this should not affect your passion for the project and should fuel your desire to outperform all ‘imitators’.   Karmically speaking, they are at a huge disadvantage, so remember that you have the upper-hand when it comes to those individuals.

Embrace the ‘Social Web’

Spreading your idea will be harder than you think.  You’ll quickly realize that your $1M-idea falls on deaf ears.  You will want to utilize as many online services and resources as possible.

• Utilize LinkedIn’s Groups; posting entries to individuals with similar interests.

• ParterUp allows you to post business ideas in hopes of meeting business partners.

• Twitter is Twitter (I’m a fan, can you tell?)

• Craigslist is not a bad place to post ads in search of talent.  Odds are you’ll be receiving countless automated emails from various web firms based in India.  But there is the chance that it falls into the right hands.

Speaking of Craigslist…blogger Adam Breindel posted an interesting article speaking about, oddly enough, one of my Craigslist ads.  He speaks about the benefits of being open, and how so few entrepreneurs actually act this way.  He advises these entrepreneurs to come out from behind their NDAs and to operate outside of a vacuum filled with secrecy.  Here is a bit from the article:

[The post] is absolute genius, and it’s so rare. Plus it shows the guts that most entrepreneurs fancy themselves to have, but lack when tested…I work with a lot of entrepreneurs and most of them think that they’re the first ones to think up some genius idea, and the best way to be successful is to either keep it stealthy and secret, or to sign reams of NDAs and non-competes with you before disclosing (cue music) their subtle and delicate brilliance.

Remain Transparent

Throughout your “napkin-passing” journey, it is critical to remain truthful and transparent.  I recommend you:

• Keep a Blog.   This adds depth to one’s character, and allows others to “read between the lines”

• Microblog.  Did I already mention I like Twitter?  A useful tool to jib-jab and pass out those “napkins”

• Post Comments.  Don’t just read blogs, but participate.  You never know who is listening.

• Have Atleast Four Points of Contact.  Strive for having four different points of contact/reference.  Between the numerous social networks and services, this should not be too difficult.

• Respond Truthfully.  Emails, blog posts, comments, etc. should be truthful and from the heart.

And don’t forget…next time you have the opportunity to share your idea…DO IT!

What is the Real-time Web?

If you’re not quite sure what the ‘real-time’ web is, maybe you’ve heard it called life-streaming, micro-blogging, or tweeting.  It really doesn’t matter what you call it.  The ‘real time’ web (RTW) is all about one thing: the fast transfer of knowledge.  It’s really as simple as that.  How fast can I notify, update, and/or interact with a community of like-minded individuals?  It’s a direct extension of the blogging format, with far less barriers, a constant stream of information, searchability, a much larger audience…and we are just at the BEGINNING of this phenomenon.

We are just at the beginning…

At the forefront of this RTW revolution is Twitter.  What this once modest, still barebones service was able to do in such a short time is truly astounding.  It has surpassed that “trend” phase and is slowly creeping into a [dare I say it?] mainstream service.  You may think to yourself – “So what, who cares if people use Twitter?”

What’s the point?

I guess the point that I want to hit home the most is that this really is the future of our web interactions.  It took us a few years, but we are finally leveraging this technology and connecting with other human beings instead of relying on computers, algorithms, and search results to deliver our online data (hmm…Google).  The RTW has enabled us to connect with individuals who we would never of been able to connect with otherwise.  People, for the most part are pretty amazing and you’ll be surprised how much people will give back.  Perfect example: After following theCRICKETtoy on Twitter (accidentally, I must admit),  I receive an instant direct message from the company’s owner asking if I would like one of their CRICKETtoy™ products for FREE.  Not really expecting anything out of it, I direct messaged my address back, and received the little guy in the mail in just days! (Thanks Jeff)  Point is, people want to connect with people, and the RTW finally allows us to do just that.  It doesn’t matter if your promoting a company, a service, a blog, or a product; what the RTW forces you to do is promote yourself first.  People do this by helping others, giving advice, offering their services, whatever it may be, people want to be part of this amazing ‘real-time’ exchange of ideas and information.

What does this mean?

I made a slight cut at Google before…kind of joking, but kind of serious at the same time.  Google searches are great for historical and static pages on the net, but when it comes to current and news-breaking events, nothing comes close to the RTW.  I find myself gravitating towards Twitter Search for various information now.  There is so much power that lies in the RTW and its huge community of people that conventional search engines tend to seem “old school”.  Before pages are indexed in search engines, and even before a blogger can create a post, someone from the Twitter community has already wrote a 140-character gem that will be retweeted, discussed, and spread virally throughout the internet instantly.  So powerful.

What should I do?

Get on Twitter if you haven’t already.  Create an account and start connecting with people that interest you.  Guy Kawasaki has some great articles on how to get started on Twitter.  Read both, here and here.

Once you have built up a solid community of twitterites, I recommend utilizing the power of FriendFeed.  Check out the RTW jedi himself, Robert Scoble, on how to get started with Friendfeed.

Most importantly…

I want to hear from you guys who are part of the RTW.  I want to get your feedback and your opinions.  I would like to do a more comprehensive follow-up and would love to hear back from the community

• What are you thoughts about the future of the RTW?
• More useful: Friendfeed or Twitter?
• How should companies embrace the power of the RTW?
• How many third party Twitter applications do you use?
• How do you get your news?