Web 2.0: What it Means to You

How does this affect a catalog site? Expect to see greater use of blogs, forums, wikis and customer reviews online. Motherwear (www.motherwear.com), a cataloger that offers clothing to nursing mothers, has an excellent blog for women to talk and share their experiences and questions with others.

▲ Customer reviews. Dozens of Web sites now include customer reviews on their products pages. Amazon.com was the first and most popular site to do this, but now there are many other sites doing it just as well. Take a look at the customer ratings on eBags (www.ebags.com), customer reviews on Backcountry (www.backcountry.com), or the “paw ratings” on PETCO (www.petco.com) to get ideas. (See the sidebar at right for what to consider if you’re flirting with offering the option of customer reviews on your Web site.)