Hayes (Jump Point
) and Malone (The Virtual Corporation
) present a compelling picture of a society irrevocably changed by the Internet age: while we retain our need to connect with one another, we're more likely to base those connections on mutual interests than on geographic proximity. The Internet has fundamentally changed group forming; we use our new tools to splinter one traditional institution after another—commercial, cultural, social, religious—then re-sort ourselves by our affinities and our passions. When challenged by an increasingly bewildering world (and array of consumer choices), we huddle into small, trusted groups. And reaching those groups is not always easy. Marketers must see their customers or constituents in a new social context—they are using social networks to form small, self-selected communities of interest, and the one-way broadcast, mass media consciousness of the past century is rapidly being replaced by a mass-connected social information space. More theory than specific proscription, this is an extraordinarily well-researched look at a market where word of mouth or a nod from Oprah have a much greater impact than an expensive marketing campaign. (Nov.)
