Company: ASUS (North America) and Intel
Contact: Various representatives of Intel, ASUS, and Federated Media
Location: Santa Clara, CA (Intel) and Fremont, CA (ASUS)
Industry: Personal computing
Annual revenue: Confidential
Number of employees: Confidential

Quick Read

Tradition dictates that companies avidly protect and maintain control over their brands, products, and ideas, but marketers can't ignore the transition now taking place: Web technologies, and social media in particular, are quickly and irrepressibly transferring a growing share of that power to consumers, who now have a highly robust and economical platform for broadcasting their opinions, rallying their friends and followers, and introducing a new level of public sway that few marketers are prepared to manage.

Like most things in this world, you can choose to fight it or you can choose to embrace it. ASUS and Intel have chosen the latter; and, so far, it's working well for them.

Their joint online marketing project entails launching a branded social community in which users discuss ASUS and Intel products, shed light on what their ideal PCs would consist of, and share their ideas with other users.

For ASUS and Intel, the program offers the opportunity to bring the world's first socially designed computer to market, the ability to strengthen consumer loyalty and trust, and unrestricted access to unique and valuable user insight that will continue to feed product development and propel both companies' leadership positions.

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