Examples of External Collaboration

Best Buy uses multiple social media outlets to connect with their customers. The CMO has a blog Barry Judge's blog and Twitter account. They post online videos via Geek Squad HQ on You Tube that helps customers with technology support needs.

HSBC built the HSBC Business Network to connect entrepreneurs using blogs, videos and forums.

Intuit sponsors the Tax Almanac Wiki, where anyone can find and contribute to this resource for tax information.

JEEP connects with customers via a community page with links to photos on Flickr and the company’s MySpace page.

JetBlue employs social media as part of its training for JetBlue University, as this video explains.

National Geographic uses Google’s new virtual world, Lively, to bring people together around its new show, LA Hard Hats.

Southwest Airlines employees share their stories and communicate directly with customers through the “Nuts About Southwest” blog.

Starbucks has a micro blog on Twitter and started MyStarbucksIdea so that customers can submit, discuss, and vote on ideas with the best ones being implemented by the company. They already have over 60,000 ideas submitted.

Visa launched The Visa Business Network on Facebook to connect small business users and to help them promote their businesses to a larger community.