Pardon the bad pun, but it is difficult to predict. A number of companies are using them and getting success, but there are plenty of pitfalls too. This short article, An uncertain future, in The Economist, gives a run down of prediction markets, who’s using them, and what works and what doesn’t.
I predict there will be more exploration of prediction markets this year. (Ok, that’s enough with the bad jokes.)
Thanks to @amcafee on twitter for the link.
Skittles is known for their unusual approach to advertising and media. I think they are quite inventive and noteworthy. However, as reported on Mashable.com, Skittles unusual approach with social media this week, while innovative and noteworthy, also, as a result of “Bad Jokes”, were forced to retreat from twitter to Facebook. (“Bad jokes” is Mashable’s term: as they say later, the comments were much worse than that.)
I thought this lesson had been generally learned from the previous bad experiences at Chevrolet and the Los Angeles Times, but apparently not. As Mashable says:
“It’s important to point out how nasty (insults, racial slurs) things can turn out when you give control of the content on your site to users, some of which can be completely anonymous.”
Anyone developing a social networking service like this needs to have a strategy for dealing with trolls and other antisocial behavoir on your site. Otherwise…well, you might end up with something similar happening.
Mashable.com has a good rundown of the story at the link above.