"Marketers should keep in mind that UGM, as a source of marketing research information, is at the infancy stages of development," Toby Bloomberg points out. "I think the day will come when UGM will be integrated into an overall marketing research strategy along with traditional quantitative and qualitative data."

Scott Holmes, managing partner of United Future, the interactive division of WONGDOODY, points to Apple as a classic case of a company going through periods of positive news, then negative news, then positive news again. "They have resurrected themselves once again. How? They embrace the customer."

And they don't monopolize the conversation. "The smart brands are allowing consumer-to-consumer conversation," says Holmes, "creating online exchanges between audience members. This is the wave of the future."

"We expect marketers will continue to look for ways to involve the consumer in all aspects of their marketing," says Neisser of Renegade Marketing, "from product development to package design to ad development and more. The spoils will go to the marketers who innovate, who deliver the highest degree of customer satisfaction. In the world of UGM, filtering will be increasingly important to both marketers and consumers. For marketers, filtering helps avoid the problem Chevy ran into. For the consumer, filtering means that only the best UGM sees the light of day. Converse Gallery was a great example of successful filtering."

Next: Conclusion