Social Reference

In the new web landscape, community-generated content is becoming just as valuable as corporate-generated materials. While a company still needs to distribute information about their products, end users are now connecting with each other to share knowledge in ways never before possible on a large scale. These reference media are being heavily relied upon even in the IT industry. According to a recent survey conducted by Connectsm, 70 percent of IT professionals regularly refer to social reference tools such as Wikipedia. More specifically, 3 out of 5 indicated they would be likely to consult these tools to learn about a new product or technology they were interested in.

In the past, any two parties making a deal had done so on unequal terms, because one of the parties had access to far more information. Consider how little the average consumer knew about purchasing an insurance policy, compared to the insurance broker. Now, with access to a world of information, consumers are able to make purchasing decisions based on personal research. Whether they are reading the reviews on Amazon.com or researching a company on Yelp, businesses know they are under more intense scrutiny than ever before because of the symmetrical nature of information exchange.

Connectsm can help you take advantage of the new social reference landscape by working together to determine your company’s current image and shaping it to fit your goals. We will help you solidify your company’s industry leadership through the information provided by community-generated content.