Web 1.0—the version we knew, say, five years ago—was like traveling by train: You were transported in one direction along a set route to get to your destination. Web 2.0 is more like traveling by car: You control where to go and what you see. Sharing the control of content between Web developer and individual is one good way to describe the Web 2.0 experience.

When I told my 10-year-old daughter I was writing this article, she informed me that Wikipedia was Web 2.0 because, "If you have an account with Wikipedia you can change the information, as long as [what you write] is accurate and you have proof." Other examples of Web 2.0 are eBay and Amazon.com, which allow visitors to create content, including product reviews and recommendation lists.

Personally, I want to interact with a Web site and to some degree have intelligence built into it that anticipates my needs.

Make Web 2.0 work for you

LinkedIn, a great social-networking site for professionals, is one example of how user-generated content can turn into new business opportunities. Based on your input about places you’ve worked and schools you’ve attended, the site creates a roster of employees and students who were there at the same time. Then you choose whom to invite in your circle of contacts—implicitly recommending these professionals. You can also explicitly recommend someone with a written review.

Google Ad Sense is another helpful Web 2.0 tool for business. If you subscribe to Ad Sense, Google will place relevant ads on your company’s Web site. The way Google achieves this is through Web crawls, which basically evaluate the site’s content and images, and place ads that your customers might be interested in. Google provides revenue sharing from the ads it places, which can translate into dollars to reinvest in your own Web advertising.

If you have a company, you need to start thinking about how to incorporate customer interaction into your Web site. This can be as simple as providing an online calendar that can be edited by users, or a site that offers live support. A company blog is a powerful tool to build relationships with current and potential clients or customers; their responses to your posts can give you valuable information.

The options are vast, and your customers will start to expect these advances as Web 2.0 continues to evolve.

Peter Seif has held senior positions in national communications companies and is now president of Synergy Networks.