Information system management - The Kiwi Experience - Assignment Example

? THE KIWI EXPERIENCE CASE STUDY By There is no specific definition of web 2.0 technology, but from its functionality and features, Lytras, Damiani & Ordonez (2008) describe it as a web technology that emphasizes on user interaction as a community and openness. Web 2.0 has a variety of features that include a rich user experience, owing this to its use of Asynchronous JavaScript + XML that provides users with a dynamic experience. It also allows the users to classify or arrange information, giving it a folksonomy feature. Users of web 2.0 can contribute to the contents of a web page through evaluation, commenting, and review making the information contained in the website more integrated. Different information can be integrated together to make it more vivid and adding more value to the information. Data and information generated by users creates an environment rich in quality since value is user generated. Online reviews provide a rich source of information for customers, which have numerous implications on various managerial functions and activities such as building of a brand, customer attraction and retain, diversification of a product, and quality assurance. Arguably, “A person’s reputation is a valuable piece of information that can be used when deciding whether or not to interact or do business with” Lytras, Damiani & Ordonez (2008). It gives an opportunity for sale, payment of products and services on demand basis as income is generated monthly, since it allows customers to pay after consumption. Due to the ability of the users to share in the sites, web 2.0 creates more trust to customers and service and products providers. It also uses multiple channels such as sharing of files or pictures. In addition, common features of a web 2.0 are blogs that offers an opportunity to interact with users, whereby they can share ideas, thoughts, and offer important information to the users. In a blog, posting entries is in accordance to their dates and there is an enabled response to and classifying comments. Events and calendars in a web 2.0 enable the provider to keep clients up-to date with current activities. The content in the website is downloadable via copies of a portable document format documents. Clients can also request for forums and the providers can provide the same information online. Response to special offers is also possible with web 2.0. 2. Wiki experience is a web 2.0 version operated by Tourism Holding Limited, a New Zealand tourism Company, which is a major player in the tourism industry in the country. Its major target client is the youthful travelers who wish to have fun throughout the touring experience. The kiwi experience uses various features of web 2.0 technology that include the ability of the previous customers to upload pictures of themselves during and after their experience and this is a way of people who meet in the course of touring to remain in touch with one another. This feature, an indirect marketing tool appeals to people for they can keep memories of the tour fresh for a long time and maintain the contacts made. Apart from building more trust on the website, it also makes it more authentic to people. The other feature of wiki experience is the ability for people to book for trips online and make payment arrangements online without having to visit a travelling agency. By the fact that this is easy, it appeals more to people, saves them time wasted in booking and making payments the normal way. The website also uses social media making it possible for people to communicate on the website, post comments of their experience. Client can make contacts of ahead of their travel and this makes it more fun to choose to travel with the company, giving Tourism Company Limited a competitive advantage over other players in the market. Apart from offering direct feedback to the company regarding the quality of their services and analyze their customer satisfaction, online marketing also offers an opportunity for customers to know the kind of services offered by a particular company 3. On its website, www.kiwiexperience.com, their privacy policy has certain attractive provisions while others are not. First, it collects information regarding their customers, which it classifieds as either personal identifiable information or aggregated information. Whenever a customer registers for services with the company, they are required to provide their personal identifiable information. Leaving the customer with the decision of either choosing to provide this information or not is attractive to the customer. However, failure to provide the information automatically locks a customer from receiving certain services, such as emails and newsletter, leaving the customer without any option but provide the information. This is not a good part of the policy, since all customers ought to receive a service any service so long as they are registered. The policy allows users to permit the company to use their personal information for purposes specified by the client. However, although it goes ahead to explain that Tourism Housing Limited seeks to ensure that personal information is secure, it does not guarantee total security, meaning that it can be tampered with or unwanted persons can access such information. It also sensitizes people that information on the internet cannot totally secure, making sure that clients understand what they are getting into, that is, and other people could view their personal information. The company does not include aggregated data together with personal identifiable information, thus, personally, it becomes hard to link a client directly, offering some form of privacy. The website’s ClickTale does not collect any personal individualized information classified as personal that has been provided in the website. Instead, it records mouse clicks and movements, activities of scrolling and typed texts and this ensures privacy and confidence to the customer. What makes the privacy policy more unattractive to the user however, is the fact that it is alterable and changeable with time. If such a policy allows for use of personalized information, it renders such information impersonal. However, by the fact that the company notifies users of any changes in the policy, if any user does not agree to the new terms can choose to withdraw. Reference Lytras, M. D., Damiani, E., & Ordo?n?ez, . P. P. (2008). Web 2.0: The business model. New York: Springer. Read More