Web 2.0 is a phrase created by O’Reilly Media. It is the baby that Web 1.0 gave birth to. In other words, Web 2.0 is the second generation of Internet services that allows people to collaborate and share information and ideas via social networking sites, wikis, blogs, and folksonomies. Web 2.0 is the place where people, technology, and economics meet in the digital age.
It is in Web 2.0 where the middleman is the main man (or middleperson, main person, you get the drift). In digital media, the middleman connects the user to where he or she needs to be. And, who is the biggest and baddest middleman on the web, you might ask? Well, it’s Google of course!
In Tim O’Reilly’s “What is Web 2.0 Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software“, he states, “Google happens in the space between browser and search engine and destination content server, as an enabler or middleman between the user and his or her online experience”. In the Web 2.0 world, the most powerful companies are those that bring the user to where he or she wants to go. The middleman is the users mode of transportation while they are on an internet joyride.
The middleman isn’t merely a mode of silent transportation. The digital middleman wants to know as much about your ride as possible. Google, the king of search, does exactly that. In “The Long Tail“, Chris Anderson wrote that Google taps “consumer wisdom collectively by watching what millions of them (users) do and translating that into relevant search results or recommendations”.
Companies that target the long tail which is the collective power of all the small sites on the web that make up the web are the companies that thrive in the Web 2.0 world. eBay and Amazon are also great examples of powerful middlemen who always keep the long tail keenly in their sights. They understand what the customer wants and provide it in simple transactions. They also remember the last time the customer was there and make recommendations, like a waiter at your favorite restaurant.
And, two of the things that are oh so exciting about the middleman, is that their service automatically gets better the more people use it, and customer service really counts; well, most times it does. eBay grows bigger and bigger in response to its user activity and the comments section will let you know if it’s a safe bet to buy that antique vase from Joe Schmo for $29.95.
Amazon has cornered the market on user reviews and they use user activity to produce better search results. But, beware of their return policy. A few months ago, I ordered two of the same books by mistake and had to return one copy. The books each cost $16.47. When I returned it to Amazon, they charged me an $8.24 restocking fee, and a $3.99 prepaid return label reduction which left me with a measly $4.24 for a new book I never even opened. But, I digress.
The digital world is in some ways similar to the nondigital world. But, what’s fantastic about the digital world is that anyone with a computer and an internet connection can participate in Web 2.0 and make their presence known. Maybe some bigwig at Amazon will read this blog and then some other folks will link to it. And, then I’ll get primo Google PageRank status. And, well, who knows what could happen next?
Because in the digital age, how you get to your destination can be just as important as the destination itself. And, that is my ode to the digital middleman.
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