MappingTheWeb //

eBay has been at the top for a long, long time. It is one of the few to have successfully weathered the dot-com crash of the late 90s and early 2000s. In doing so, it has established itself as the premiere online auction spot. Ask anyone to name an online auction service. Chances are they will name eBay 99 times out of 100.

Why has the company been so successful? Why hasn’t any other auction site been able to make a run at eBay? After all, an auction is not sophisticated technology. The underlying concept itself has been around for centuries, perhaps even milleniums. The reason eBay has been at the top for so long is because of the Network Effect. Please read the preceding post to gain a full understanding of the rest of this post.

So what is it going to take for someone to challenge eBay (if indeed it is possible)? eBay must have an Achilles’ heel………. right? I sure hope so. Anytime a monopoly emerges, the best interest of the consumer is in jeopardy.

The way I see it, some company is going to have to pour a ton of money into a killer auction app to have a fighting chance against eBay. Even then, I’m not so sure the giant can be beaten. eBay isn’t trying to create a market. eBay is the market.

Anyone have any idea how eBay can be conquered? Or what it might take to do so?

With all due respect, I have used to have accounts at hi5, Friendster, MySpace, Orkut, and several other social networks, but I found them obsolete. Facebook is the cream of the crop - by a long shot. Second place is miles behind.

Now, I know many of you are sick of hearing about Facebook (as am I). But there are very important lessons to be learned from this social network that cannot be overlooked. The insights and knowledge are priceless. Therefore, I proceed…

Although Facebook does get grouped with the other social networks (SNs) above, are they all really in the same league? I mean really… none of the other SNs make sense like Facebook does. The proof is in the pudding: it seems that the other guys are now copying Facebook and/or trying to become more Facebook-esque. It was bound to happen.

Why is Facebook unrivalled?

1. The people on my ‘Friends’ list are actually my friends. The same cannot be said for the other SNs.
2. The Facebook interface is intuitive and easy to navigate. I get lost on the other SNs. The clutter gives me a headache.
3. The other guys try to do too much. If I am looking for scrapbooks or comedy, I’ll look elsewhere. Facebook has focused on connecting people and ignored superfluous features.

There are other factors that play into my decision, but these are the most important. Facebook really has created a “social utility that connects you with the people around you”. Amazing concept? Not so much. Brilliant execution? Absolutely.

Enough said.

Search has come a long way since the glory days of WebCrawler, Excite, and Altavista. The introduction of Google’s PageRank system forever changed the search landscape. Algorithms have evolved and innovation continues to occur. But what is next on the horizon for search?

Verticals, verticals, verticals

I know I keep emphasizing the importance of verticals over and over. However, their value is priceless. I will not rant about them again in this post. Instead, if you want to read more about my stance on verticals, you can do so by reading the following:

• The Proliferation of Verticals
• Dethroning the Internet Giants
• Evolution of a Hot Internet Space

Search engine education

Most users are unaware of the full capabilities of a search engine such as Google. Did you know, for example, that Google search can be used as a calculator? A stock quote tool? A parcel tracker? A flight status checker? A dictionary? Chances are you probably don’t. Further education and instruction is needed to maximize the user experience and provide exposure for these little-known functions.

Indexing of ALL pages

This has been a topic of discussion for quite some time. It is 99.99% likely that not all of the web pages on the Internet have been crawled or indexed. Search engines strive to reach the 100% milestone, although it will never happen. The constant surge toward this target (and the innovation that goes along with it) is critical. Making as much information available as possible creates more relevant search results and more efficient browsing.

Removal of clutter and SEO landing pages

As we all know, the web is riddled with redundant, meaningless clutter. Parked pages and SEO-tailored landing pages continue to appear, decreasing overall efficiency on the web. Add to that duplicate content that has been ripped off and republished, and there is a widespread problem that needs to be dealt with in a systematic manner.

The notion of removing pages seems to contradict my last recommendation of ‘indexing ALL pages’. However, as I’m sure you’ll agree, these clutter pages are useless and do nothing more than make life on the web a pain.

Personalized search

Over and over again, the concept of personalized search seems to resurface. What fails to surface is exactly what this looks like and what it means to us. Painting a clear picture of personalized search will be the biggest obstacle. Obviously, behavioural search patterns and trends will play a key role. But how? Are search results displayed in a new way? Are SERPs tailored to your individual profile? I have no idea. Yahoo and Google are making strides in the area, but it will be years before we can truly realize and appreciate the true potential of such a concept.

Conclusion

The way I see it, search is still in its infancy. Anyone who’s read the book “The Search”, by John Battelle, would probably agree with me. Soon, we will be able to search for anything, at any time. He sees a day when you can Google your lost luggage in an airport. I see a day like that as well.

Web 2.0 is an echo-chamber - let’s face it. Many deny the fact, but it’s true. Ask anyone on the street about RSS, widgets, APIs, or wikis and you’ll get a blank face. Chances are they’ll think you’re speaking another language. Even fairly tech savvy Internet users frown upon such terms and phrases. As much as we’d like to think web 2.0 is mainstream, it isn’t.

Those who live in this echo-chamber glorify the trends and technologies, as their value and potential is recognizable. This bleeding-edge Internet group wants the world to learn about these technologies, but the fact of the matter is that they are very daunting and intimidating to the average user. In other words, web 2.0 needs to be humanized before it can ever be adopted by the mainstream.

Who is leading the pack when it comes to humanizing web 2.0? Facebook. Here is proof: ask any Facebook user if they know what RSS is or if they’ve ever used it? Chances are they have no idea what it is and they’ll admit to never using it. Little do they know, the Facebook ‘News Feed’ is essentially a rebranded RSS reader. Instead of pulling blog posts and news articles, the reader aggregates updates from your friends’ profiles.

This brings me to the most important point of all: Facebook is educating the masses about web 2.0 without them even knowing. In other words, Facebook IS bringing web 2.0 mainstream.

How is Facebook accomplishing such an improbable feat? By rebranding the terms and phrases that seem so daunting and sophisticated. This facilitates the education process and reduces the learning curve, making it easier for regular folk to adopt these technologies.

The term “social network” is synonymous with web 2.0. Though the nature of the term may be rather self-explanatory, people understand it. Sites such as MySpace, hi5, and Friendster have helped to provide clarity around its meaning. This education process is exactly what is happening at Facebook as we speak.

Let’s explore some of the web 2.0 technologies that Facebook has rebranded as internal features:

Wikis - By definition, a wiki is a collaborative space that can be edited by anyone with access to the site. This notion of participation and cooperation creates a more productive, usable information portal for all affiliated members.

Facebook has rebranded this concept as ‘Groups’. Within a given group, you are able to start a conversation (with a message), add photos, and provide simple commentary. Furthermore, administrators and officers have added control and functionality.

Blogs - When a user writes a ‘Note’ on Facebook, they are expressing their thoughts or opinions in a given manner. A collection of these notes, in reverse chronological order, can be classified as a ‘weblog’ or blog.

The offline concept of a diary has been around for centuries. It doesn’t take a huge leap of faith to consider a jump into the online world.

User-Generated Content (UGC) - Once again, the term may seem rather self-explanatory, but it does need some clarification. UGC is content created by the user - it is not production quality. Examples include photos, videos, and audio clips.

Not only does Facebook upload an astonishing amount of photos each day, but they also provide a simple, yet powerful video experience. Simply put, users are constantly interacting with user-generated content. They just don’t know it.  

API - An API is an Application Programming Interface. In other words, it is a way to let others integrate with your service by tapping into your data. This is what Facebook has done with their new ‘F8 Platform’. They’re allowing others the ability to tap into Facebook’s database and create applications which can then be added to the system and adopted by users.

Micro-blogging - This new phenomenon is essentially a mini-form of blogging. Recently made popular by companies such as Twitter and Tumblr, micro-blogging is a way to provide a short message (usually less than 200 characters) about your life, mood, or current state via the web, e-mail, text, or IM. To meet demand in this area, Facebook launched ‘Status Updates’, which is simply another way of labelling micro-blogging.

Widgets - Though the comparison may be a bit rough, it is still worth acknowledging. A widget is an embedded device that provides some level of value to the publisher. This is somewhat akin to what Facebook has done with their ‘F8 Platform’, and more notably ‘Applications’. Once a user adds a given ‘Application’, it appears on their profile page, where other users can see it and interact with it (or even add it themselves).

RSS - The concept of the ‘News Feed’ acting as an RSS reader was outlined above. Having said that, Facebook has started to integrate actual RSS protocol within the site as well. Anyone now has the ability to subscribe (via RSS) to another user’s ‘Notes’, in many cases. I’m sure RSS is being used in other places within the site, but I have just failed to notice them. In any case, I expect the adoption of RSS within the Facebook community to be slow, but steady.

On top of all these obvious examples, Facebook also makes extensive use of AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) throughout the site. This creates a more intuitive, enjoyable user experience.

I could probably go on and on and outline further examples, but I think we can all get a grasp of the situation that is unfolding. What can we learn from all this? Facebook is a rebranding machine. The ability to provide such advanced technologies in a simple manner is truly remarkable. The day that excites me the most is the day that people realize that they understand what all these web 2.0 technologies are. That will be the day that web 2.0 goes mainstream - and I have a funny feeling that that day is coming sooner than we imagine.

After taking a look at widget marketing, widget fever, and the monetization of widgets, I have come to one conclusion: widgets are NOT a business model. They are a marketing tool. There needs to be an underlying product or service behind all of this embedding. This made me wonder, “What are widgets comparable to in the offline world? What’s a good metaphor for the world of widgets?” Then it hit me - flyers.

Flyer Analysis

Flyers are created by a given store, then distributed to potential customers. The flyers themselves are worthless. They are a tool to entice customers into the store. Only at that point can revenues be generated.

Flyers can easily be moved from one location to another. They can also be easily disposed of. Furthermore, their very presence can catalyze word-of-mouth marketing and provide much needed brand exposure.

Widget Analysis

The widget world works much in the same way as flyers. A given widget is fabricated by a company with the intention of widespread distribution on the Internet. This embedded marvel provides value to the destination site, but can easily be removed if the publisher so desires. The widget itself is relatively useless to the company when it comes to revenue generation. Widgets are meant to drive traffic back to the parent property, which can then monetize the user via advertising or a subscription model, perhaps. Finally, as is the case with flyers, widgets can also create general brand exposure and awareness.

Obviously this isn’t the perfect metaphor - the biggest difference being that flyers cost money to print and distribute, while widgets cost nothing other than the cost of human labour. Having said that, I still think the metaphor helps to provide clarity when thinking about the purpose of widgets. It is also a great way to explain widgets to a non-techie or Internet user with little knowledge of web 2.0 world.