Unless you have been living under a rock and have yet to receive the best internet deals through somewhere like Compare Internet, it is fair to say that the internet has changed the way the world does business. You can now meet clients, make sales, and hold meetings via the internet; you may even be employed without ever having met your boss! Unless you have been living under a rock, it is fair to say that the internet has changed the way the world does business. You can now meet clients, make sales, and hold meetings via the internet; you may even be employed without ever having met your boss! Business has drastically changed with the help of the internet, for better and worse. Many companies and industries have now sprung up that would not have existed if the internet was not so popular. Included here are a few companies that would not have been possible without the internet.
Social media has permeated our daily lives to the point where you likely don’t go more than an hour without checking Facebook or Twitter. But before all the likes and tweeting, people were investing in each other on a far more personal level. Facebook was born out of connecting individuals in universities to build networks, but has grown into a far less worthy cause.
While Facebook is incredibly beneficial to families and friends who live oceans apart, it can also be a great divider. The need for popularity on social media sites has created divisions and fights between schoolmates and colleagues resulting in real world repercussions. Facebook can be used to further your business via marketing and advertising, but can also reveal unpleasant personal details to your clients. Be careful about using social media as a means to reach your customer without first screening your professional online image.
One of the fastest growing social media sites, Pinterest has risen to fame on the idea of old school “dream boards” and pinned creative aspirations. While Pinterest originally seemed to be an arts and crafts site that appealed to homemakers, it has become an avenue for business advertisements as well as personal connections over similar interests.
Pinterest has been criticized for being too “perfect” as many individuals feel the projects presented are unattainable. Instead of critiquing your friends for having a “Martha Stewart” perfect home, people are now upset with the perfection of “Pinterest Parties.” The dissatisfaction with the over-publicized ideal has even born sites such as Pinstrosity or Man vs. Pin.
Threadless
If you have heard of the growing popularity of crowdsourcing, you know that this enlistment of multitudes of people would not be possible without the internet. Take the creative genius of Threadless.com for example.
This t-shirt website was born out of the idea that millions of people can create their own t-shirt designs. These shirts are then submitted to Threadless for print or rejection and then mass-marketed. Each designer receives a small payment for their creative talent, and Threadless receives money from all the t-shirt buyers. Without the diversity of the internet compiling all of these artists, Threadless could not exist.