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Ecommerce and social networks -- new enabling technology

Ringside Networks, a startup with a team of ex-JBoss and Bluestone pros, has launched the first "social application server," which promises to enable companies to add social networking capabilities to any website and integrate with the relationships and profiles people have already established on social networking sites like Facebook.

My colleague John Eckman and I attended a Ringside overview/training session in NJ recently to learn more, and we both walked away impressed.

A few observations:

• Ringside is serious, and has assembled a team that has worked well together before. They've accomplished a tremendous amount in a short amount of time.
• They're providing key enabling technology. Middleware may be boring, but it's going to fuel a lot of innovation.
• They're working to support standards that support social graph interoperability. Ringside supports Facebook today, and the team is working on support for Open Social.
• It's open source, so the community can grow and improve the product.

As consultants, we're always seeking ways to enable our clients to engage their customers more deeply. We believe that by providing compelling, useful content and functionality, and manifesting it in ways that encourage to users to connect and share with their friends, companies will increase conversion and loyalty. We discuss some of these concepts in our recent white paper, "Online Communities: What Should a Retailer Do?"

Take Fan Networks as an example. A fan network is a community composed of a brand's most passionate and influential customers -- its fans, if you will. In addition to enabling a company to become less opaque by enabling product managers at an ecommerce retailer, for example, to share information with and get feedback and ideas from fans, fan networks thrive by enabling users to engage with their friends and see products that friends recommend at the point of purchase. Imagine if I can see the products that my friends recommend not only while browsing a merchant's online store, but while I'm visiting my own Facebook profile. The implications are significant for both marketers and customers. Instead of focusing solely on techniques to drive customers to one's store, now savvy marketers can take the store to places where customers are spending their time.

Of course, the types of applications that companies provide is key. So far, most of the applications released on social networks have been focused on entertainment: diversions, games, contests, etc. To have lasting value, smart companies will deploy applications that build on people's reasons for using the Internet. Rather than leading with games and entertainment, companies should lead with tools that provide information and utility. A contest may stimulate a spike in usage, but a tool that adds value to the shopping experience -- particularly if it draws one's friends in -- provides more lasting value. Want to know what products your friends are following and have rated? Interested in knowing if anyone in your social network has had a positive experience with a particular product? How about accumulating benefits based on how much your social network has purchased, not just you as an individual?

Ringside can enable these kinds of applications. Ringside has just been released as an early beta, and the team has an aggressive roadmap of releases planned over the coming months. We'll be experimenting with the product, and will share what we learn over the coming months. Stay tuned.

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