Magazine Resources

FC NOW: The Fast Company Weblog

August 31, 2005

DIY Not?

In response to our August 2004 article on phishing, reader Robin Grimes pointed me to PhishFighting.com, which deceives the scammers. There's something to be said about fighting the internet's ills yourself.

This notion of do-it-yourself can be extended to more areas. For instance, franchise owners create new practices to help their business, such as mounting more effective displays. And workers develop routines to increase their productivity, like using a computer program a certain way or documenting a process efficiently.

All these DIY activities could be adopted by appropriate businesses. These best practices that few use can be shared with everyone. Not only could such a move potentially help countless people, it could be a source of business for established companies. Any holes in services or product capabilities can be filled this way.

What DIY or consumer-created innovations would you like to see become an established business?