Web 2.0 and customer support
You know, the static ones with old information. Or one where you couldn't find the information you wanted? The kind where the customers needs were an after thought. I dread those. You see them all over the web. From small business sites to medium ones and even large company sites. They all suck.
On the flip side, one of the oldest interactive e-comm sites on the net has to be Amazon. In most cases, they make it easy to make a decision. They have user reviews, ratings, comparing, search, recommendations, commenting, etc. - highly interactive social stuff. Its about me, we, the customer, people, sharing, contributing, participating. I love it!
Which one works best?
Did you know, you don't have to spend a fortune to achieve Amazonian results? Size of business, small, medium, large does not matter these days. There is lots of free, web 2.0 open-source software that support all of the Amazon social features and functions as well as dynamic content (text, images, video), newsletters, rss and more. Customers, even your own employees, are expecting a better social experience from your site. One more thing, the search engines love social sites.
Consider the following links a gift. They are all about social media, customers, and marketing.
Ok, that was my 2 cents. What's your experience with social commerce sites or social shopping?