Did You Know HP Has User-Generated Content? Neither Did I.

My favorite part of being at a conference isn't the sessions, although you can certainly learn a lot. It's meeting people an having conversations and discovering products you may not have heard of before.

By luck of where I was able to find an open outlet for my laptop today, I got to meet Angela LoSasso, Community & Blogs Strategist at Hewlett-Packard. Angela asked me if I'd ever heard of The HP Community Wiki, and, shockingly to me, but not her, I hadn't.

The reality of some of these old-school pre-Web companies is that the fast pace of Web 2.0 makes them nervous. Pre-web companies were accustomed to long R&D cycles and a very private internal development process. The thought of user-generate content and social networking leverage must have them shaking in their boots. HP has gone all-out with their Gwen Stefani campaign, but let's be honest, HP, while my 8-year-old might like Harajuku paper dolls, this is a fairly niche audience.

Not so The HP Community Wiki, which invites users to upload their own projects, ranging from the expected memory books and scrapbooks to creating craft projects, study aids, gifts, school reports, photo calendars, and more projects than I could have imagined. The projects obviously can take advantage of HP products, but using them isn't a requirement of either contributing to the site or doing one of the projects.

The real question I have is why HP hasn't done more of a media push for this project. While the Gwen Stefani promo content can actually be found through The HP Community Wiki, reverse promotion on the Gwen Stefani area isn't as reciprocal, an HP is missing a golden opportunity for promotion.

The site is one in conjunction with Wetpaint , and bears the Wetpaint branding fairly prominently, so it's fair to suggest that HP went to a company more familiar with Web 2.0 functionality to build out the site. However, they missed the boat at promotions. Gwen Stefani is a popular pop artist, but something like The HP Community Wiki can appeal to an even broader audience like those who flock to crafting and DIY sites. The popularity of the made-by-hand product sites is obvious when you look at sites like Etsy and the proliferation of crafting groups online, and HP would be wiser to ride that wave, which appeals to a wider audience. If HP is really interested in “What do you have to say?” they need to let people know that they really are interested in hearing the answer.