Business trends have always been prone to change due to innovations in technology. When the Internet boom happened, it brought about a paradigm shift in the business world. Right from marketing to the ways businesses reach out to their customers, everything changed.

Another change is on cards; and the force behind bringing about his change is Web 2.0.

The technology is expected to change the look of a business, benefiting all involved--- businessmen, customers, vendors, marketers and other stake holders.

What is Web 2.0?

Web 2.0 is the latest ‘website development methodology’ which will make business more responsive and multi-directional. The W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) has come up with certain protocols for the website developers. The websites developed using Web 2.0 will be friendly to search engines like Google, yahoo and others.

“The new methodology developed by the W3C will save the Internet from being used wrongly, like hackers, virus and other security threats,” says Mithun Paul, CEO Msoft Technologies. “It is like switching from dial up connections to broadband connection which makes working on the Internet faster and much more convenient,” he adds.

The tech guru Tim O’Reilly, who coined this term, defined Web 2.0 as the business revolution in the Internet to build applications that can make bigger and more purposeful network to encourage collaboration user participation, user-generated content.

Web 1.0 Vs Web 2.0

• With the advent of 3G technology, the Internet is not limited only to laptops and desktops. It has grown beyond that and has reached mobile phones and iPads. And every business owner definitely wants to be visible everywhere and be accessible from anywhere. Websites will open faster if they are based on Web2.0. Unlike its predecessor, Web 2.0 does not use cables and encourages the latest ways of business.

• When websites which are the modern-day face of any business, especially small business, become accessible on devices like phones and iPads the direction of communication will not be limited just to a sender and a receiver but will become multi directional from all the stake holders, starting from marketers to customers. Micro-blogging, video streaming and niche networking are the future of business and Web 2.0 will enable that.

• With Web 1.0 the pages of a website were static, updates were mostly unidirectional. With Web 2.0 methodologies updates will be dynamic and content can be generated even by the users. This will bring companies in contact with real time users helping them develop a better understanding of user behaviour.

Why should you know about it?

Technology is known to bring about major changes in business trends. And Web 2.0 will definitely lead the way. It is already very popular in the western countries and India will not lag behind. The methodology has already set its foot in the face of microblogging, social networking and businesses based on generating user content like BigAdda, Indyarocks etc.

With the advent of this methodology entrepreneurship in the country is expected to see new heights, that too at no extra cost. So get set!