When it comes to doing business online, keeping things fresh is much of what it is all about.

You may have a great idea for miles 0-25 of the marathon, but if you start losing your freshness and consumer interest in the home stretch, your business will never see the finish line.

(Caveat: Now, there’s keepin’ it fresh, and there’s keepin’ it fresh. An example of over the top? iJeans. I mean, seriously? Let’s review: jeans and iPods®, not a good combo. If you must get something for your iPod®, get something useful.)

How many times have you heard the phrase “Web 2.0″ in the past 6 months? Don’t be intimidated. It is nothing more than a marketing term for social networking tools that have become not only popular but extremely useful.

In other words, there are some serious implications here, not just for social networking, but for your business and for your bottom line.

For instance, forums. I’ve alluded to forums before, simply because it is one of the best and most important features of Web 2.0.

But are online forums anything new (I mean “New!”)? Like Scrabble, no. Forums have been around for awhile.

Essentially, they’re just online destinations or gathering places for like-minded people, and really the first things that people participated in online. Does anyone remember when these were called “bulletin boards?” Ah, yes, those were popular, weren’t they?

In otherwords, pretty much the opposite of the Joe Lieberman political stance with Democrats these days.

And for all the reasons that forums are popular today - learn new things, share opinions, network, accuse total strangers of having no idea of what they are talking about - bulletin boards were really what launched cyberspace in the first place.

So what does this mean for your business? Simply that if you have a web presence, you should be creating a forum for your users/customers.

Why? Well, so your customers can learn new things (about your business), share opinions (about our business), network (about your business) and even accuse total strangers of having no idea what they are talking about (regarding your business).

For instance, let’s say you are a lollipop company that is branching out into fashion. Controversial, no? Why not capture that controversy on your site, let the buzz build and enjoy the attention?

Forums give your customers the best place to stay engaged in and thinking about what it is that you are selling. Do you think this will have a positive affect on sales? It will. Why else would companies like Atlantic Records and MTV make a forum for Danity Kane?

Another current pop culture example: search for “Ricky Bobby,” Will Ferrell’s NASCAR character in “Talladega Nights.” People want a place to sound off about a new movie, and Sony pictures smartly provides one.

With business, innovation is key. Forums provide an easy way to support your customers interests in and questions about your what you’re selling.

We’ll cover how to get one started next post, but in the meantime, how about an inspiring story about someone who literally lives and breathes the “innovate or die” creedo? This should ring a bell: “Set it and forget it.”

So, Forums, Part I: check.

Next post: Forums, Part II - “Now what?”

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iPod® is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.

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