Cyberspace's spoken dialect of portmanteaus, anagrams and acronyms is already borderline extraterrestrial for many communicators, but another "lingo" - that of "mashups" - is
growing legs and power-walking onto the business scene with considerable pomp and circumstance. (For a guide to this and other "cyber speak" terms, see page 2.)
But is this really a necessary tool for PR executives (many of whom are already laden with digital communications channels) to add to their mix? The short answer is probably
"no," but the more realistic answer is "not yet - but soon." So here's a primer on the future of collaborative online communications, because, from the looks of it, this isn't
going to be the last you've heard.
Mashed Potatoes And Gravy
Mashups might sound like something that lost a battle with a food processor, but here's the technical digital definition, courtesy of Wikipedia: A Web site or
application that combines content from more than one source into an integrated experience. In other words, they are composition applications with content culled from various
sources - metaphorically speaking, a remix of an old song to make it newer and more innovative. Think of it as a wiki that combines actual software applications as opposed to
just text.
The first known mashup intended for consumers dates back to the Stone Age of 2005, when Paul Rademacher blended Google Maps with real estate listings from Craigslist to create
HousingMaps.com. Since then, the mashup momentum has snowballed in size and is currently on the communications menu for such companies as Amazon, Siemens, Pfizer,
GlaxoSmithKline and IBM.
So ... Why Bother?
You may think you already have enough new communications channels to choose from, and in some cases you are probably right. But mashups offer ample opportunity for companies in
terms of providing a platform for collaboration, integration, internal communication and consumer interaction. There are caveats, of course (when are there not?), but first the
good news: The reasons to leverage the mix-and-match power of mashups are bountiful, as they are:
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A relatively cheap way to create customized applications for your organization.
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A much faster alternative to updating Web portals or applications.
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Highly customizable, making them ideal for communicators who need to address very specific issues within their organizations.
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Capable of allowing companies to combine forces and compete with competitors, as Intuit did with Google in 2006. The partnership between the two companies
gave Google access to the millions of small businesses that upgrade to Quickbooks 2007, and Intuit's new software package will give users the ability to find the nearest
professionals (lawyers, accountants) to their location via Google Maps.
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Ideal for companies that aggregate large amounts of data, be it inventory, customer records, demographics or company information; the data can then be sliced and diced
quickly and accurately. For example, E*Trade gives its sales team access to new features by combining its customer relationship management system with
Salesforce.com.
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Built on a collaborative mentality, which is perfect for PR executives handling employee relations or internal communications across large organizations. As stated by
Yahoo! Local general manager Paul Levine in a 2006 BusinessWeek article, "We want to encourage community participation. [Mashups are] essentially research and
development and marketing for us."
The Flip Side
Clearly, the pros for considering mashups abound, but - as with all new media platforms - challenges give rise to a clear and present danger for organizations, and the fallout
often lands in the laps of the communications executives. Here are the battles that PR practitioners must anticipate when getting mixed up in the mashup phenomenon:
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Security is the foremost threat, as direct control of content is shifted to the end user, especially when companies use external services to manage mashups. Plus, if
the mashup incorporates private data (customer records, for example), then users must be authenticated to ensure the records are protected.
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Resistance from the IT department is practically guaranteed, as they will be responsible for managing the user names and passwords that prevent security breaches. Then
there's the issue of power, as the nature of mashups inherently takes power away from IT managers and gives it to the end-users, whoever they may be.
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Getting permission to "mash" certain applications into your mix can be tough. For example, Yahoo! initially blocked the use of its traffic data with rival Google maps,
though it has since relented. It does point to the bigger questions of intellectual property, copyrights, ownership ... you name it.
How, Now?
Okay, so you are actually contemplating using this technology for one of many reasons: Maybe you want to customize your company's management network, or monitor travel
schedules and incorporate them into employees' calendars. Regardless, there are best practices to weather the trend.
Scott K. Wilder, general manager of Intuit Small Business Online Communities, first notes that a typical marketing/PR professional couldn't build a mashup from the ground up;
they need to partner with someone who has a data-programming background. As an alternative, there are companies that offer packages to help create mashups, including IBM's
Enterprise Mashup Maker.
Then, Wilder says, it's just a matter of keeping these tips in mind when implementing mashup technology:
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"You're going to be leveraging data you have internally, so work with legal and privacy groups to make sure you can use that data," he says. "The key really is to get
permission."
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"The second thing is to get user feedback on how effective and useful a mashup is," Wilder says, so you can continually customize it to meet the needs of your organization
or your base of customers.
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Finally, "Set it up so users can easily contribute to it," he says. "We have users opt-in, as opposed to opt-out, to use the technology."
CONTACT:
Scott K. Wilder, [email protected]