I, Local 2.0

ReadWriteWeb is reposting some of its "hidden gems" that you may have missed over the past year. This one discusses Local 2.0, a Web 2.0 way of thinking about how we interact with what's around us.

Local 2.0 brings the promise of Web 2.0 technolgoies to an area near you, driven largely by social networks and data that provide actionable info. The post explains that the work-from-home generation is more likely to interact with and care about local shopkeepers, while its previous incarnation, Local 1.0, had us hidden away in our homes buying online, doing deals over the phone and keeping to ourselves. It argues that local businesses are using the internet to trade with and partner with their peers and that people don't really live online.

This reminds me of something Ford's Scott Monty recently DMed me. When I asked him about maximizing social media marketing, he said, "It's not just about online presence - get out there and meet people face to face." (For more on this, check out WHY magazine's jan/feb 09 issue, which goes live Thursday.)

People still want to do business with people. I can't tell you, as a freelance journalist, how many times I've been asked to conduct person-to-person or telephone interviews rather than email interviews, particularly when time is not a factor. While at one time, we cherished the thought of being able to do everything by ourselves, on our own, there's a new appreciation for "otherness," particularly those right around us.

When a new coffee shop opened in my neighborhood last month, my first thought was, How can I work with them? What services can I offer? I wonder how their hot chocolate is. I don't think I would have cared much several years back, when the thought of doing business with someone in California seemed more exciting and going to Starbucks made me feel cosmopolitan.