The week when Digg(ing) became mainstream
It’s amazing how many Internet & technology giants decided to introduce Digg-like, or RSVC (Read Submit Vote Comment) functionality into some of their products last week. In order of appearance, these were Yahoo, Microsoft, and Dell; the big guns of the Internet, software and hardware. Add to that the fact that Slashdot is also preparing to introduce RSVC into the site (the project is called FireHose and is currently in closed beta), and it’s obvious that giving the users the ability to say something and vote on it is becoming an essential part of every online service.
This wasn’t very hard to predict. This functionality is so easy to integrate into various services that it’s a shame not to do it. It cannot harm, and it can surely benefit a lot - whatever your service may be. Despite the outburst of negativity from Diggers towards Yahoo’s Suggestion boards, Yahoo actually has an interesting take on the concept of RSVC: they’re using this functionality to enable their users to suggest new features. Dell does something similar, using this set of features to harness ideas from their users.
Let’s look at some other services where RSVC functionality is a perfect match.
- bug reporting. I’ve found many bugs in various software products. I’ve rarely reported them. You know why? Cause the bug reports get lost in the fluff. It’s a mess. Give the users the ability to vote on the bugs, and the most important bugs will swim to the surface.
- complaints. It’s a perfect way to be transparent and honest with your users: give them the ability to complain and to vote on what they hate the most about your service. There is no better feedback than this.
- forums. Digg IS the new forum. If your want your users to have fun and talk casually about your service, by all means, give them a forum. But if you want this data to be structured, to have some meaning to you, add the voting component.
Together with the already established concepts of news and content, ideas and suggestions, it’s clear that there’s a place for RSVC on the website of every company which wants to communicate with their users - and that should be all companies.
Lastly, a few words about the consequences of this on social content sites which basically consist only of the RSVC set of features. Digg won’t be hurt by this, because they’re already a huge brand, and bar some unforeseen mistakes or catastrophes, they should be able to continue to grow. Look at Slashdot. Is it special in any way today? Nope. But it’s huge and it will stay that way as long as it’s able to churn out great news day after day.
However, a big majority of the smaller social content sites will suffer the fate of forums. How much is a site that consists of nothing more than a forum worth? Not much. Back in the day, it seemed a great idea to buy a domain and put a forum on it. It seemed the easiest way to make a community grow. Now, a forum without some good context behind it is an empty shell. So, if you’re not called Digg or Reddit or Netscape, you better put some context behind your site because on its own it will just be a Digg without the Digg community - and that’s not worth much.
February 19th, 2007 at 6:27 am
Some nice thoughts and ideas here, but I have to disagree with your suggestion that forums have outplayed their role on the internet-scene today. Personally I find it much more giving to take part in a community set up in the fashion of a traditional forum, compared to RSVC-based communities like Digg.com. In my opinion it’s much more organized, easier to start discussions and get them noticed, rather than just chiming in on already popular discussions.
Admittedly, there are flaws and drawbacks in the forum-based system, the most important one being that forum software developers have been extremely slow to adapt to the “new” web, and the things that have become standard in every new website today. For instance tags definately have their place in a community, because it’s easier to find relevant discussions and topics, yet none of the big/popular forum softwares have implemented this. Voting on post quality is also something I’d like to see implemented in the forums I participate in, because it makes it easier to filter out crap replies.
But all in all, I’d still prefer the forum structure for public discussions over a simple RSVC site like Digg every day of the week, and I’m pretty sure that I’m not alone.
February 19th, 2007 at 11:05 am
@Lars-Christian: I think you got me wrong…the forums are still really useful. I was referring to sites that consist of nothing but a forum.
And, you’re right, RSVC sites cannot replace all forums, but they can and should replace some kind of forums: those where it’s really important to give the most exposure to the most valuable information.
March 1st, 2007 at 6:02 pm
[…] March 2, 2007 at 1:55 am · Filed under Uncategorized The week when Digg(ing) became mainstream It ’s amazing how many Internet & technology giants decided to introduce Digg-like, or RSVC (Read Submit Vote Comment) functionality into some of their products last week.[news][entertainment][technology][programming] […]
May 8th, 2007 at 5:11 pm
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May 14th, 2007 at 11:58 pm
[…] Well, it’s not a surprise. MySpace News was done half-assedly, it brings nothing new to the table, and it’s definitely not a threat to any social content site, let alone Digg. The success of Digg and Reddit created quite a number of clones, some from big corporations like Dell, Microsoft or Yahoo!, but it’s not an easy ride to success. Social content sites need to have a perfect blend of simplicity, coolness, easy of use, and novelty, but all that combined still isn’t enough for instant success. […]
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