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Reading is a means of language acquisition, of communication and of sharing information and ideas. I get a lot out of reading, as it allows me to learn from the experiences of others, and it expands my knowledge and understanding of history and new, emerging trends.

Since reading is a part of communication, the subject at large, I began to truly wonder about the depth of communication and the impact it has on our everyday lives. My curiosity led me on a journey of discovery, which opened my eyes to a deeper understanding about technology, human behavior, and our economy.

In his book, “New Rules for the New Economy,” Kevin Kelly writes, “Communications is our economy. Web technologies have significantly influenced communications and thus are dominating the economy.”

Kelly presents an interesting perspective on how the web is changing markets by enabling the masses with the power of influence over everything through individual mass communication tools—i.e. the web. It has inverted the industrial era model from the suppliers being in control of the media to now the buyers. Some call it the Social Era.

It Is More Than Just Building Technology

At DevDigital we build a lot of custom web based technology projects. Our projects range from artist websites with mobile readiness applications to corporate enterprise applications that connect global divisions and track product shipments all over the world.  Our work ranges among numerous industries including Healthcare, Medical Devices, Retail, Entertainment, Food & Beverage, along with a full spectrum of specialty industries applications.  To date, we’ve completed more than 800 projects, and most requests that we receive are loosely defined as “technology aimed at some specific objective,” but rarely within that objective is the term “communicate” used as an attribute of the expected results created by the technology.

Web 2.0 technologies can be a powerful lure for an organization—with their interactivity promising to bring more employees and customers into daily contact at lower cost. When used effectively, they may also encourage participation in idea sharing, thus deepening a company’s pool of knowledge. They may bring greater scope and scale to organizations as well, strengthening bonds with customers and improving communications with suppliers and outside partners.

Most often reported are greater abilities to share ideas; improved access to knowledge experts; and reduced costs of communications, travel, and operations. Many also say Web 2.0 tools have decreased the time to market for products and have had the effect of improving employee satisfaction. If we look beyond company borders, significant benefits have stemmed from better interactions between organizations and customers. The ability to forge closer ties has increased customers’ awareness and consideration of companies’ products and has improved customer satisfaction. Others have been able to burnish their innovation skills, perhaps because their companies and customers jointly shape and co-create products using Web 2.0 connections. A report from McKinsey demonstrates that these customer interactions have resulted in measurable increases in revenues.

The evidence is clear—instead of thinking about technology as a way to streamline a process, lower costs and improve marketing, think of it as simply as a better way to improve communication. As Kevin Kelly has said, communications is our economy and it’s your economy. Think about how your technology communicates and what it says to the market, in both words and experiences.