"Most people really don't care about privacy," started John Hagel III at the Social Media Club's The Power of Social Networks event at Duarte Design in Mountain View, interviewed by Chris Heuer during a fireside chat.
What people really want is value. The point is getting value is getting value in terms of conveinence, and that which relates to you. Facebook isn't really an infomediary. The real potential is to become an advisory of what we're not aware of in terms of connecting with people and becoming aware of the right products.
Most of the social networks are having trouble harnessing advertising. Advertising is still seen as the panacea. The business model is advertising, Hagel adds. He's skeptical of advertising as the way to build a business on the Internet. It's "blasting them with your message" and marketing is more about attracting, getting people to seek you. Advertising will take different forms. The real necessity for businesses online is what is the value business can provide to customers, and what value will they really perceive as best for them.
"The Internet is at odds with the desire of the business world," Hagel was quoted by Heuer.
Overall, the tendency is to focus on short term profits. Moving too quickly can undermine the long-term profitability of relationships. You really have to be focused on building the relationships, before you address building the business that relate to the relationship.
It's going to take a lot of lost money to drive home the message that if you're in it for short term profit, it's not the place to be. The Internet is a black hole for most large companies, Hagel continues. Metrics are tied to sheer numbers for impact, and eventually the lesson will be learned once they lose enough money.
There's a fundamental shift in society, from a world of push to a world of pull. What we're focused on, Hagel says, is how you're dealing with an uncertain world in a world of pull. How do you pull the resources to you which fulfill your needs. Search is the archytype of that. How do I create opportunities for me to be presented with opportunities and things that I didn't even know about. Most executives just say that's luck.
"I think there's an opportunity to shape serendipity," state Hagel.
Another level is achieving our most potential. How do you create environments where you build things and create things and build new knowledge in that process, so we all get better faster working collaboratively in these kind of environments.
"Not only how do you survive, but how you thrive?"
Most companies don't measure return on retention. Financial measures tell you how you did in the past. What you have to focus on are operational metrics which give you a view of the future. This return on attention is really critical, both from a customer viewpoint, 1) what am I paying attention to and 2) what am I getting in return.
How about return on information? How much time is a customer giving a company information? How much value is the customer getting in return for the information that he/she provided. The user needs tangible value for the information given, which builds trust. It's a return on information for the customer and vendor.
