Abstract:

The diffusion and adoption of Web 2.0 applications -the most actual peculiar phenomena of the digital era- have significantly transformed the traditional way in which firms and people interact. This has contributed to the modification of the traditional processes of knowledge creation, sharing and managing. The organizations are now aware and urged to adopt these applications to grasp the potentialities of the market and more precisely of the lead customers that play an important role in the firm’s process of innovation, providing competitive advantage and pro-active market positioning to the firms.

In this paper, we present evidences about the importance of Web 2.0 applications and their recent process of adoptions by firms. For this purpose, two case studies from different industries are presented. The case study comparison describes the several benefits of the adoption of Web 2.0 application by firms in terms of customers contribution to the firms’ innovation process and creation of a sense of community belonging.