Online IT communities are profoundly shaping the experiences of IT professionals. Information technology vendors must participate in these communities, but engaging them incorrectly will escalate marketing costs, reduce effectiveness, and dilute your brand. Technology marketers must ensure that their companies not only play by community rules and act responsibly, but they must also maximize the return on participation by acting like a peer and ensuring that all contributions provide direct and meaningful value to community members. The emerging power of online IT communities means that technology marketing leaders face a simple choice: Modernize the firm's online presence or lose responsibility for it.