Internet Brand Ingredients

Lots of brands are the Internet. Things like Google, Yahoo!, Wikipedia, Flickr, You Tube, Facebook and so on. But what do 'land-based' (i.e. non-Internet) brands that want to get in on the action online have to do to make the best use of the Internet? What sort of ingredients should they have? Here I have a crack at answering that question.

You wouldn't buy a beautiful sports car and never drive it: all that engine power would go to waste. Yet most brands behave like this online, sitting pretty but not utilising the power of the Internet as the vastly powerful platform for data, community and personalized experience that it is. Any brand making use of these and not just looking pretty is doing well.

Added to that, the best brands should be using the novelty of the medium to improve marketing. This means giving people attention (engaging them) instead of constantly taking it (enraging them). It means forging better relationships with people by delighting, informing and serving them. In short, by behaving altruistically.

So exploiting the medium’s raw talents and offering something back are two criteria for a great brand online. I have a third: the ideas have to work – commercially, socially etc – otherwise what is the point?

So, which brand has mastered this triad the best? Find out here.