Welcome to the age of the crowd. Just as projects like SETI@home from UC Berkeley's have tapped the unused processing power of millions of single computers, so social networks are exploiting the power of millions of human brains. Wikipedia showed that the model could be used to create a comprehensive online encyclopedia. And companies like eBay and Facebook have built profitable businesses that couldn't exist without the contributions of users.

All these companies grew up in the Internet age and are designed to take advantage of the networked world. Now the productive potential of millions of plugged-in enthusiasts is attracting the attention of old-line businesses, too. For the last decade or so, companies have been looking overseas, to Latin America or China, for cheap labor. But now it doesn't matter where the workers are - they might be next door, they might be in Ukraine - as long as they are connected to the Web.

Technological advances are breaking down the cost barriers that once separated amateurs from professionals. Hobbyists and part-timers suddenly have a market for their efforts, as companies in industries as disparate as pharmaceuticals and aerospace discover ways to tap the latent talent of the people. The labor costs a lot less than paying traditional employees. It's not outsourcing; it's crowdsourcing, which can be looked as an application of the wisdom of crowds concept, in which the knowledge and talents of a group of people is leveraged to create content and solve problems. This enables companies to get low-paid amateurs to design products and even tackle corporate R&D problems in their spare time.

The Options

Not everyone in the crowd wants to make silly videos. If you like to thinker or have the scientific talent and expertise that corporate America is looking for, you may consider the following alternatives. Research has shown that the odds of a problem solver's success increased in fields in which they had no formal expertise. So you don't need to be a Rocket Scientist or a Nuclear Physicist to participate. You just need creative ideas:

InnoCentive funded by Pharmaceutical maker Eli Lilly as a way to connect with brainpower outside the company threw open the doors to other firms eager to access the network's band of ad hoc experts. Companies like Boeing, DuPont, and Procter & Gamble now post their problems on the Web site and anyone can take a shot at cracking them for a reward of $10,000 to $100,000 per solution.

Marketocracy was launched with the goal of finding the best investors and tapping their collective knowledge to create a superior mutual fund. Anyone can sign up for free and run a virtual fund, starting with $1 million. In 2001 the company launched the Masters 100 Index, a real mutual fund based on the virtual investments of its 100 most successful members .The fund, which now has more than $44 million in assets, has outperformed the S&P 500 Index (generally considered a good gauge of the U.S. equities market) and has an average annual return of 11.4% since its inception.

CrowdSpirit is a very ambitious project that aims to utilize crowdsourcing to develop and bring to market tangible, sub-$200 electronic devices such as MP3 players, digital cameras, or game controllers. The community decides what the product is, from concept to design to technical specification, by submitting and voting on design ideas. Winning projects are then funded by the community and the products delivered to market.

SitePoint, a media company that targets web professionals, lets companies hold design contests and gain access to the creative talents of the global design community. A business looking for a new design, be it a logo, website or stationery, describes exactly what it's looking for: the desired color scheme and file format are, what the design is for, etc. After a prize and an end-date have been set, designers start submitting their work for all to see. Once the contest holder sees a design he/she likes, the award can be assigned to buy the design.

iStockphoto, which grew out of a free image-sharing exchange used by a group of graphic designers, has created a marketplace for the work of amateur photographers - homemakers, students, engineers, dancers. There are more than 22,000 contributors to the site, which charges between $1 and $5 per basic image. Professional-grade cameras now cost less than $1,000. With a PC and a copy of Photoshop, even enthusiasts can create photographs rivaling those taken by professionals. Add the Internet and powerful search technology, and sharing these images with the world becomes simple and inexpensive.

Take your pick

Spend some time searching and you'll find crowdsourcing options to suit your expertise. From T-shirts design to music making, new business concepts continue to pop up every day that involves large groups of consumers. This allows entrepreneurs to consider every service and product that might be game for people-power. Harness your creative powers and make some decent money at the same time, letting your spirit rise to new heights.

The Alternative

Every business has customers who are sure they can design the products better themselves. So why not let them? Crowdsourcing let companies get low-paid amateurs to design products and even tackle corporate R&D problems in their spare time. If you own a business and could use some creative help, why not consider this option? It is very easy (and FREE) to set up a community site or social network and start making use of the spare brain power floating all over the world. Who knows, maybe you can create the next YouTube.