Net Gain: Expanding Markets Through Virtual Communities

From the offerings of commercial on-line services like the Motley Fool investment community to Internet communities of book lovers who gather a Amazon.com, Net Gain offers real-world scenarios and lessons for building value and creating competitive advantage. The authors - on the cutting edge of the on-line economy as leaders of McKinsey & Company's multimedia practiceexplain why some ventures - like Apple's on-line service, e-World - failed and why the Walt Disney Company cannot afford not to organize an on-line community that targets children. They suggest that to compete in the on-line economy, you must establish an entirely new organizational mindset toward product development, marketing, customer service, and distribution and rethink your company's relationships to customers, suppliers, and competitors.