Obama's victory proves the power of Web 2.0

No matter what your politics may be or whom you voted for last Tuesday, one thing is crystal clear about this election: Barack Obama was able to raise money, build a grassroots army of supporters and communicate with his many followers using Web 2.0 tools.

You may be in the midst of trying to convince the powers that be at your company about the power of Web 2.0. The next time someone suggests at at a meeting that it's just a fad or a buzz word, point to Barack Obama's campaign and say, "He used that fad to win a decisive victory in the 2008 presidential election." Even if your boss is not an Obama supporter, he or she has to recognize the beauty of the notion of getting your message out for free to millions of people. That, dear readers, is the power of Web 2.0 communication.

Why Web 2.0?

Web 2.0 tools have dual purposes. Inside the organization, they help foster collaboration, communication and knowledge sharing. They open up discussions, advance creativity and provide a way to share information that's just not possible with conventional communication tools. Web 2.0 tools provide a way for you to simultaneously communicate with people in your organization regardless of their physical location. Outside the organization, it can have a similar dynamic, but it can also be a powerful marketing tool, that when used as it was by Obama, created a groundswell of interest in the candidacy (which in this case was the product).

The Medium is the Message

Obama leveraged the power of the Internet better than any business or politician in history. Before you dismiss that as hyperbole, consider that his campaign raised more money than any in history--much of it in small donations of less than $100, that his grass roots army knocked on countless doors and made even more phone calls, and the calls to action from the campaign came through his website, and email and text messages and tweets on Twitter. He reached people through MySpace and Facebook. He ran videos on YouTube. He even ran ads on online games. Obama's campaign left no stone unturned when it came to finding creative ways to reach his base.

The Power of Social Networking

When you think about it, running for president is a huge marketing campaign. The candidate wants to get his message out and sell a product, and all the while, the competition is trying to sell a different product and define his in negative terms. Web 2.0 has the power to get your message out, but more importantly, the people who get your message can then act as surrogates and carry that message onto others who might not be in your direct network. As people become excited about the product,  they sign up to get the messages directly from you. It lets your customers act as thought leaders on your behalf and best of all, it doesn't cost you a dime.

Even though Web 2.0 has been around for a number of years now, there is still a deep lack of understanding of its potential in the enterprise setting. Advocates still sometimes face stiff resistance in the board room where it can be dismissed as a gimmick. So if you are fighting to institute Web 2.0 tools in your company, and you want a good example of a success story, look no further than our president-elect. He used these tools so effectively, he won the highest office in the land going away. - Ron