I love the Springwise newsletter. Its chock full of new ideas and companies that are making consumers lives better. In its most recent newsletter http://www.springwise.com/, there was a write up on Crowdsourcing. This is social networking at its best because it’s a platform that enables crowds (networks) to develop new ideas. It specifically talks about a company called Kluster. They have a set of project management tools to enable crowds to develop new concepts. This type of application can also be used to create brand identities, plan events or any other project that would benefit from crowd input.
Kluster joins the ranks of a few other crowdsourcing providers; Cambrian House and CrowdSpirit. Springwise states that the main advantage that Kluster has over its competitors is that it offers crowds an incentive for participating. Kluster has developed a rather creative and engaging system of rewards which we all know is critical to keeping people coming back to these types of Social Networking arenas. And, we all know if you don’t keep the content new and fresh and/or offer contributors some other reason to come back, the network will die over time.
With Kluster, members can earn “Watts” by helping solve problems or suggesting refinements or enhancements. They can invest their “Watts” and cash out if a project is purchased by a third party. This provides an opportunity for reward in a way that has never been contemplated before and I bet that more people will contribute just to have a chance at making it big with a cool idea. This is a big differentiators for social networking because, as we know, the biggest problems corporations face as they look to social media to help drive innovation and brand is keeping people coming back. As explained by Kluster: “Watts encourage users to participate and stay on target, keeping the community productive.”
In the best case scenario, the crowds will help brands create new hit products. At the very least, using Kluster will enable companies to interact with their most dedicated customers. Smaller companies can use Kluster as an instant research and development lab, enlisting (and rewarding!) the community to help ‘flesh out’ ideas that they might otherwise not be able to develop.
I like the model behind Kluster and I think it will enable many companies who are willing to embrace social media to communicate with consumers as well as give them a valuable incentive for continuing the dialog.
