the consentio platform
What follows is the proposal I am submitting to MIT’s EF White Board Challenge 2011. This concept, the consentio platform, evolves from an idea that I had shared in a previous post.
“The Web can be used to increase participation levels of diversify participation (…) to become more informed and connected (…) a new model of mobilization in which small-time investments by participants allow scores more individuals to participate –and to do so quickly.”
“Most of the barriers to group action have collapsed, and without those barriers, we are free to explore new ways of gathering together and getting things done (…) so much easier that, in fact, it is changing the world.”
Digitally Enabled Social Change. The MIT Press.
Trends:
Online communications and social media are helping bring about changes that range from addressing issues of interest to a local community to giving underdogs a fighting chance when campaigning for public office, as well as regime change.
Problem Statement:
Leveraging free social media means dealing with a fragmented set of multiple online platforms, whose set-up and administration still requires expert online consultants and dedicated resources. That translates into a significant amount of time and taxing efforts and energy which could otherwise be best deployed to further the actual subject that you are promoting and campaigning for.
Opportunity:
Consentio is set to become the Speaker’s Corner of the internet. A non partisan user friendly portal, a single destination enabling anyone to discuss matters of public interest and to promote and campaign for them as they see fit.
Consentio is a latin word, a fusion of cōn- (“together”) and sentiō (“sense; perceive; feel”). The “consentio cloud computing platform” is thought out as a free web service taking participatory democracy to new levels.
As a result, democracy can be now defined in the XXI century as [a] a system that empowers each single individual to make a difference by [b] partnering with any others to make things happen in [c] a free society.
“More participatory, the networked population is gaining greater access to information, more opportunities to engage in public speech, and an enhanced ability to undertake collective action (…) social media have become coordinating tools for nearly all of the world’s political movements (…) communicative freedom is good for political freedom.”
“The political power of social media”
Execution:
Your messages and supporting content can be easily created and shared on Consetio, which will cross-syndicate any: updates, blog posts, pictures, documents, presentations, audio and video as well as meeting logistics by automatically populating well established social media services such as: Twitter, Facebook, WordPress, Tumblr, Flickr, Scribd, Slideshare, YouTube as well as Meetup and online conferencing and town hall meeting systems, to name a popular few and just to being with.
Consentio does the heavy lifting for you so that you don’t need to be concerned about managing the numerous user ids, interfaces, settings, different file formats, backups, updates, application programmable interfaces, and equally important: fragmented web analytics for each of those sites.
Moreover, Consentio’s dashboard aggregates all of the relevant web metrics so that you can focus on listening and monitoring your campaign’s progress and effectiveness with ease, taking prompt action as needed instead of being slowed down and distracted by technical challenges.
“The potential power of the Internet has yet to be properly harvested, but with over 150 million people in the United States alone having Internet access, e-fundraising is worth pondering (…) the overhead of e-fundraising is significantly lower than traditional methods (…) the Internet has provided immediacy that allows people to donate now.”
The Everything Fundraising Book.
Operating Model:
Consentio’s premium fundraising engine will support your efforts by helping you easily create and distribute online ads minimizing otherwise costly upfront expenses. Both Consentio’s premium service and your online ads are subsidized by a set percentage of the online donations that your campaign will be gathering. As easy as that.
Consentio, the Speaker’s Corner of the Internet Age.
“Freedom of speech is real. On a platform, or in certain recognized open air spaces like Hyde Park, you can say almost anything (…) if large numbers of people are interested in freedom of speech, there will be freedom of speech.”
Freedom of the Park by George Orwell.
Relevant posts:
