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« Tiger Woods' One-Percent Problem | Main | Stickiness in 2010 ... Or 2010: The Attention Odyssey » Google Sidewiki exemplifies the saying, "Everyone's an expert"Posted by Jason Swartz on December 14, 2009 at December 14, 2009 10:49 AMIf you're still having trouble accepting the fact that people can talk about your company through one of their many online social networks, you're really going to hate that now they can do it right on your Web site. Well, sort of... A few months ago, Google launched an add-on application to their branded toolbar called sidewiki, which takes online commenting to the next level. Google describes it as "a browser sidebar that lets you contribute and read information alongside any web page." Basically, this means that anyone who has the application installed can make public comments about you, your company or your brand - for all other sidewiki users to see - right from the homepage of your Web site. For example, I have sidewiki installed. I went to Apple's Web site. I clicked the expandable tab on the left side of my screen to see what other people have said about the company. There were the expected rave reviews from Apple brand enthusiasts, but there were also a few haters letting me know that Apple is an evil giant. If I were new to Apple, this could be an interesting introduction to their brand. Obviously, this is a unique example. But it begs the question; how might sidewiki affect your company's brand? Here's a snapshot to show you what sidewiki looks like, using the Apple example: 
As I've messed with it, I've come to the conclusion that sidewiki isn't really a "Wiki" in the traditional sense, i.e. Wikipedia. It's more like blog commenting meets Amazon.com's product reviews. Whatever you want to call it, it's worth downloading and getting familiar with. Here's a link to install both the Google toolbar and it's new friend, sidewiki: http://www.google.com/toolbar/ff/index.html After it's installed, visit some popular Web sites to see what people are saying and how they're using the application. Chances are no one has written an entry about you or your Web site, which is great, because you'll have the opportunity to be the first editor to contribute something. Finally, I recommend being the first to write your company's sidewiki entry, which will guarantee your post remains at the top of all other entries, should there be any. To do this, you'll need to register yourself as the owner of the site through Google's Webmaster tools. Follow Google's simple directions to do this by clicking here. Once you've verified your site, go to back to your company's Web site, click the sidewiki button in your Google toolbar and you should see something like this (example is from my own company's site): 
Simply add your entry and hit publish. You'll not only look savvy, but you'll likely be a few steps ahead of your competition and ensure your proper brand message is being conveyed.
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