Web 2.0 is referred to as the second phase of the internet. It affords integration and opportunities that weren't even conceivable when the web first gained popularity. The services listed below are a taste of what this next step offers, and what companies are missing out on when they neglect to be a part of them.

The motto listed on the side speaks to the need to move simply beyond one website; however, the website shouldn't be overlooked. If a companies website hasn't been redone in the past couple years, then it's time for an upgrade. The website is the first step, but it is not the final one. The following services should show ways for a company to go above and beyond what they used to.

Blogs are a great way to build audiences, release products, and inform followers of news releases. The great thing about blogs is their informality. You do not have to have a formal press release to inform people of a new development or direction, and you have total control over what is written.

Services such as blogger, vox, live journal and wordpress are some of the leaders in the blog area (This particular blog was built on blogger). These allow you to post content, field comments and so much more with much less coding than if you did it on your own. These are simple content management systems that allow posting of content in a snap and without coding knowledge. Once it is set-up, it is good to go.

Here's some examples:

The Google Blog -- Google uses this blog to alert people of upcomming changes, interesting things that you can use google for and things that they support. See it in action.

culture. ish. -- This site is used to publish all culture. ish. publications online. It was also, at one time, used to host the culture. ish. podcast. The domain www.culture-ish.com is also linked to this blog for direct access. See it in action.

Integra Marketing Sample -- This hypothetical blog could be used to tell clients of upcomming changes as well as potential clients of the benefits of joining Integra Marketing. This is just a simple sample, but it is fully functional. See it in action.

The final key to blogs is the RSS feed. This allows individuals to subscribe to certain blogs and be automatically informed whenever a blog is updated. It also allows you do post your blog posts on social networking sites such as facebook and virb. The easier it is for people to be updated about releases, the more likely they are to follow it.

Twitter is a slightley different, and easily overlooked, solution for getting your content out. Twitter is a social networking site that allows people to add others as friends and then update them on what they are currently doing or involved it. It can be as simple as saying "out to lunch" and as informative as what new item you have listed on your site. Whenever someone adds you as a friend their homepage will be updated with whatever message you post on Twitter. Users can receive messages from checking the site, through IM or even text message on their cell phone.

Twitter also creates badges that you can post on your site that shows what you are "currently" doing.

Here are some samples:

Woot -- This company sells one product a day at an extremely discounted price. They use Twitter to post their product each night to help people see what product they are selling that particular day.

CNN -- This site is used to inform friends of breaking news stories on CNN. It's a great way to get new news quickly.

Homepage -- This is a quick look at what a homepage looks like to those who subscribe to feeds. See how both company and friends comments are shown in the same way.

Myspace is number five on the most visited sites on the internet trailing only to giants such as yahoo, msn, google and youtube. The site operates as a social networking site that allows individuals to create a profile page, add friends, send messages and comments, post pictures and share music.

Gap's Product Red -- Gap's new clothing line that gives part of the proceeds to fight aids in Africa. See it in action.

Vacancy -- The movie starring Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale. See it in action.

These two examples show how the potential exposure that a myspace page can create for a business. It's a great way to gain exposure for anyone.

Facebook is social networking site, but it is different than the rest for a very simple reason -- you cannot change the layout. Most you have edit the html or css to allow you to add things that weren't originally there, but Facebook does not allow this.

Facebook is also a great resource, because of it's integration. You can import RSS feeds, create groups and events and send messages. Within these groups you can easily send messages to all members and even invite them to events.

The Facebook home page also allows people to quickly see what things people have changed or said recently. This would allow an organization to post topics and leave comments and many people would instantly see the information when they log into Facebook.

culture. ish. Facebook page -- culture. ish. uses this page to inform members of events as well as other important announcements that are not published in their weekly issue. They also use it to allow members to connect with other people who are interested in the same topics.

Concert Page -- This is a page that culture. ish. created to invite people to a recent concert they put on. It allowed them to invite many people and easily inform them to changes in the event.

You can also buy flyers (ads) that appear on the site of the page for certain institutions or networks. Check it out.

Virb is a newer social networking site much like Myspace. Users can sign up and create a page; however, the site is somewhat different than Myspace in some important ways. One way is the ability to import RSS feeds. This is great, because you can easily link a blog to your site and users will be able to see your updates. The sites are also much sleeker to look at and follow more in the Web 2.0 line.

Here's some examples.

Think Film -- An independent movie company that uses Virb to help get its name out. See it in action.

To Write Love on Her Arms -- A group that helps those suffering form depression. They use the page to help raise awareness. See it in action.

Vrib's downfall is that it doesn't have as many users as Myspace and therefore a smaller audience. Check it out.

Podcasts allow you to communicate verbally with your target audience, and it's simpler than you might think. A podcast is also a great addition to any blog. iTunes also allows free listing of podcasts; so, that once someone subscribes they will automatically recieve new podcasts from that podcaster. If you don't have iTunes, they can still be downloaded through RSS feeds as well as manually.