The End of The Gatekeeper

As I search the web for the news and the newest of socianetworks, I am taken with the creativity and innovation as the medium social networking evolves. Social networking is no longer a fad or a trend; it has become a well-accepted medium for people to interact regularly with one another.

The day of the gatekeeper is over. Six degrees of separation was reduced to two and now, it we are essentially one degree away from anyone we would like to meet. Just connect into the right network and you are certain to be connectable to any one person on the globe. Good and bad as this is, it is a fact of life that our lives are ever more transparent than ever. Think about the personal brand you communicate when you share yourself on any of the networks in which you appear.

Speaking of branding, one site that has stood for irreverent brash honesty is Mark Stevens World, the social networking site of marketing guru, Mark Stevens (www.msco.com).

Mark is the best selling author of Your Marketing Sucks, Your Management Sucks, God Is A Salesman, and soon to be released, Rich Is A Religion.

Also, just landed on a very interesting site for all in the film and music industry. It's well known how getting one's work noticed in the film or entertainment industry is like a needle being noticed in a haystack. The site, www.icewhole.com seeks to end that by allowing actors, musicians, and filmakers to showcase their work and be noticed by well known celebrities in the industry. In beta test now, well-known actors such as Morgan Freeman and Derek Jacobi are judges/panelists awarding $3000 prices for "best-in" contributions in various categories. This social network may be the on-line Schwab's drugstore where about-to-be famous artists can be noticed.

Stop The Presses: The Media Gets Into The Socianetwork Act

Who better to create community that a local paper? The Daily American Online has launched a social network to bring members of this community together and find out all the dirt and doings.

Wait til Entertainment Tonight starts it's network......


Newspaper launches social networking siteDaily American Online (subscription) - Somerset,PA,USAThe Web site is the newspaper’s first social networking community. “It’s localized: think MySpace meets Somerset. You’ll be able to find out what’s going on ...

Bringing The World To You Through Socianetworking

Tomorrow, the networking group I co-founded, Metro Roundtable (www.metroroundtable.com) is in for a treat. They will get to hear the best-selling author and marketing guru (according to the Wall Street Journal) Michael Port, of "Book Yourself Solid" fame share his business development wisdom and insights.

How was it possible to get this kind of talent for this audience?

I have socianetworking and Facebook to thank.

Michael and I have never met "on the ground." But we have met in cyberspace. He knows who I am connected with, and I know who he's connected with.

Some say social networks are nice ideas but don't pan out into REAL results.

Because of the connectivity factor of Facebook, Linked In and many others, we can reach people and get to know them more quickly and more easily than ever before. Our reach is just as easy on the other side of the world as it is in our own neighborhood on-line.

What a feeling of power and success to be able to meet and greet people never possible before.
Maybe 6 degrees of separation is now only 2, or even one degree away.

Social Networking- Pluses & Minuses

Most business people believe that social networking sites are here to stay, even though percentage-wise, they are visited by a relatively small population of business folk. The popularity of this medium, and the sprouting of dozens of socianetworks each day, point to the fact that we have reached the tipping point of acceptance on the part of consumers all over the globe.

However, while popularity is high, there are clearly pros and cons to what these sites offer and can do for business owners, employees, executives, and consultants.

Growing businesses 'could benefit from using social networking'Business Strata - Business News - Farnborough,Hampshire,UKGrowing businesses could experience benefits by embracing the concept of social networking, according to an expert. Tim Gibbon, co-founder and editor of the Social Media Portal, added that social networking currently plays a significant role in business, while interest in it is also expected to grow."Business owners need to know what is happening in and outside their environment and build long-term relationships. This could be with clients, potential clients, suppliers, peers and contemporaries," he explained.

However, without strong guidelines for how to leverage the information and connections within these sites, people are often confused and overwhelmed with which sites are geared to their specific interests and/or needs, and so stop visiting them - at least for a while.

For boomers, lack of techie skills prevents them from exploring and experimenting with how social networks can help them professionally.

There's a coaching opportunity for any takers out there.

Making The Cash Register Ring on Socianetworking

We know that Linked In and Facebook have received huge cash investments from venture gurus. How do these sites actually make money?

According to Advertising Age, http://adage.com/digitalnext/article.php?article_id=127817, Linked In, top professional site, generates revenue in four ways, and is about to add a fifth:

Here's a Model for Profitable Social Networking
There's been a lot of talk and advice on this blog about how social networking sites will make money. One major network, LinkedIn, is using a variety of models to drive revenue, which amounts to $100 million a year, according to ...

How can participants and members generate financial benefits? Write and share how you've used socianetworking/sociabiz networking to enhance your business or practice.

Would you like tips on how to up your ROI on these sites?

Linked In Live

I connected on the ground with my first Linked In contact. Brent
Clark, co-founder of Consulture LLC, http://www.consulturellc.com/,
a forensic accounting, valuations and lit support firm firm near Atlanta, and I lunched at the lovely Buckhead Club and discussed referrals we could make to each other, as well as how we could network together in the Atlanta market. We both service lawyers and accountants, so we have a mutual client base.

Brent is amazing, having started a group on Linked In for forensic accountants that is mushrooming members daily. He really "gets"connecting people and he "gets" networking but by nature, he is a giver - as well as a generous yet savvy business person for his clients.

It is a so cool to know that you can be connected online and have the relationship turn out to be a credible, valuable, mutually beneficial one.

Web 2.0 doubters be damned.

OK, here's the big (I mean billion-$ big) news:

We saw in the WSJ yesterday that Linked In got a $53 million investment infusion, and that the company is now valued at $1B.

This is the exponential power of attracting masses of people who want to connect professionally. The question: What's next for Linked In?

LinkedIn Gets $53 Million Infusion - Wall Street Journal Wednesday, June 18, 2008 - 05:57 AM - 1 day, 19 hours ago - World News Headlines - Google News Headlines By REBECCA BUCKMAN LinkedIn Corp., a business-networking Web site, has received a $53 million infusion from blue-chip venture capitalists that values the company at $1 billion.

For athletes, professional turned business folks, Athlinked is connecting the physically advanced:

ATHLINKED Launches a Professional and Social Networking Platform ...PR Web (press release) - Ferndale,WA,USAATHLINKED, a niche professional and social networking platform based out of the Washington, DC Metro Region, has officially launched its website. ...See all stories on this topic


There seems to be greater emphasis on personal networks cropping on to the scene versus business sites that would give Linked In a run for their money. An exception to this is:
www.salesconx.com. Here's a site where sales leads are bought and sold, but membership is FREE.

Check out the site and share your thoughts.

Getting To Know You - Picis Launches Site Connecting With Its Customers

Tomorrow, I fly to Atlanta, and I will meet up with two new colleagues that I met on Linked In. For those who are questioning the value of socianetworks, you might as well ask yourself about the value of cell phones and Google search.

It may take a while for people to really tap into the power of the online network. It often takes people a VERY long time to tap into the power of the on-the-ground network as well. Ask yourself how long it takes you to follow up with the really interesting people you meet at live events. I know the answer because I see all those business cards piled up on desk tops neglected and waiting for you to tap into the treasure those potential relationships offer.

I am so enthused about meeting my new colleagues. It seems sort of magical to me that we found each other and that we'll get to work on all kinds of new business opportunities together.

And now for today's socianetwork updates:

Social networking is primarily known as an open population where anyone can join and participate. Now, Picis has created a new kind of site designed to reach out and touch it's health care customers – from physicians and nurses to IT staff to hospital CIOs and CFOs and learning about their unique perspectives.

Picis Launches Customer Social Network at Picis Exchange 2008Business Wire (press release) - San Francisco,CA,USA... and IT implementations, Picis has created a new social networking Web site, Picis Exchange Network, to capture unique perspectives from its customers. ...See all stories on this topic

The Perils of Social NetworkingBy emelyanova Social networks (SN) can be fun and useful places to be when you want to hang out with your friends online, meet new colleagues, discuss a news event or engage in hot-button debate. The primary benefit of social networking is that it ...Internet security tips and advice - http://www.securityteacher.com


Enterprise Architecture, a new term referring to large enterprises trying to influence form and templates on the social network.

More Untold perspectives on social networking within large enterprisesBy James McGovern(James McGovern) Continuing the previous discussion on social networking within large enterprises. Have you heard of service-oriented architectures (SOA)? One of the major value propositions behind is to decouple the producer from the consumer in order ...Enterprise Architecture: From... - http://duckdown.blogspot.com/

Social Networking Sites Take Off By francois 57% of those age 12-17 log in on a daily basis; One out of eight 30 year old or older uses social networking to conduct business; At least one out of five uses it to find new friends - I would have thought that number to be higher based ...emergencemarketing.com - http://www.emergencemarketing.com

Trusera Brings Medicine to Social NetworkingThe Inquisitr - Melbourne,Victoria,AustraliaA new health-centric social network wants to let you evaluate a medical procedure before you ever walk into a doctor’s office. Trusera, just launched today, ...See all stories on this topic
Social Networking Peeve: "Bad Manners"Washington Post - United StatesA survey released last week by the Consumer Internet Barometer, a production of TNS and The Conference Board, found that common pet peeves among social ...See all stories on this topic

Online Medical Advice Goes SocialABC News - USARather than deal with health records or data, it focuses on social networking and storytelling, hoping to foster communities in which users can learn from ...See all stories on this topic

On the Internet, politics, and GOP wariness of social networkingAtlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USAThe Pew report found that Democrats were more adept at the social networking. Even Republicans admit that this is so. Nathan Tabor is president and CEO of ...See all stories on this topic

Facebook - best branded social network optionSocial networking and web 2.0 social sites have for good reason, become an essential component of a brand’s youth marketing strategy. Recently, a debate has erupted over which is the smarter option: a social network created by a brand ...Digg / upcoming - http://digg.com/

Free Social Networking Softwares - Launch your own Social ...By Abbas The new trend in Social Networking space is all about finding a niche and having a reasonable registered users which will help you grow your community slow and steady. Keep it real, if you think you will be as big as MySpace, ...Technology Nerd - http://tnerd.com

Social networking sites used to corrupt policeTimes Online - UKHowever, police officers should think twice before accepting a friend request because criminals are scouring social networking websites on the lookout for ...See all stories on this topic

Legally Mine - Or are they? Whose Contacts Are They Anyway?

It's hard to get a true grasp about the state of the social networking world.
Some articles indicate social networks such as Facebook and Linked In are plateauing. Others question the ROI effectiveness of online advertisements. Yet more and more networks pop up each day. Every possible interest group is banding together to connect and swap ideas, comments, information and members want to have their voices heard.
As I indicated in a previous post, I believe a major shakeout on the business network front will soon be upon us. As the harsh realities of spending for advertising on these sites begin to indicate that eyeballs do not translate into consumer spending, the model will go through a transformation. For marketers, the question is: What's the next iteration of marketing and advertising online?

And on another issue, see the article below on a UK court ordering an ex-employee to turn over all of his Linked In contacts to the former employer. Whose contacts are they anyway????

Create your own social network 7 stepsBy Nik Peachey(Nik Peachey) Social networking is one of the key concepts that is driving Web 2.0 these days. With the opportunities social networks offer for collaboration and communication, this is certainly something we as educators should be thinking about ...Learning technology teacher developme... - http://nikpeachey.blogspot.com/

Comment on Social Networking Gets a Sanity Check by Where’s the ...By Where’s the Social Network Money? Jacob... it is still a fraction of the amount being generated on sites like Yahoo! and Google. Om Malik points out that the lack of a solid revenue model comes with continued signs that the social networking space [...]Comments for GigaOM - http://gigaom.com
Monday, June 16th, 2008 - Real Estate Industry Social Networking NightA night of social networking for Real Estate Agents in the Greater Toronto Area and Durham Region. 3 fo $1 Oysters served from 8pm to 11pm. Relaxed and comfortable atmosphere. RSVP Please by calling 905-424-0155 or e-mailing ...events durham region - All Events - http://eventnow.ca/events/
New Book from FT Press Offers 50 Proven Social Networking ...PR-CANADA.net (press release) - Murino,MontenegroFT Press has released The Truth About Profiting from Social Networking, the latest book in its popular The Truth About Series. ...See all stories on this topic
Real Estate Social Networking CommunityExceptional Real Estate Social Networking Community, offering many powerful tools and functions to help members maximize their networking opportunities and to connect with other industry leaders over the Internet.Digg / upcoming - http://digg.com/
Easy Dating Tip from your romance coach - DO Social Networking ...By April Braswell(April Braswell) As a further amplification of my Romance Coach and Online Dating Coach post from yesterday about DO Social Networking for enhancing Your Dating Life, tee hee. You DO still need actually to MEET F2F. So, just like with the Online D. ...April Braswell’s blog - http://aprilbraswell.vox.com/library/posts/page/1/

Social Networking Now Has DecorumSocial networking will never be the same. Debrett's, the well known authority on etiquette have weighed in with their version of social networking etiquette. After research showed that a majority of users had no idea about what was ...Social Marketing Journal - http://socialmarketingjournal.com
'Jerusalem Post' launches Jewish events networkJerusalem Post - IsraelBy JERUSALEM POST STAFF The Jerusalem Post has launched a new social networking Web site, Jhappening.com, which provides information on Jewish-related ...See all stories on this topic

Social network pruning heuristic #3: Familiarity mattersBy Andy DeSoto The social network pruning series is a collection of brief articles that each cover a technique you may wish to use to keep your social networks at a more manageable size. The last two tips were #1: Full names only and #2: Eliminate ...Andy DeSoto - http://www.andydesoto.com


MySpace Might Have Friends, but It Wants Ad MoneyNew York Times - United StatesThe social networking site has grown — to 118 million worldwide users — and the flirtations have not stopped. But the cash is not coming in as quickly as ...See all stories on this topic
Court orders ex-employee to hand over LinkedIn contactsTelegraph.co.uk - United KingdomThe decision is one of the first to highlight the tension between businesses encouraging employees to use social networking websites for work but then ...See all stories on this topic

MySpace getting a facelift in effort to turn popularity into wealthInternational Herald Tribune - FranceThe social networking site has indeed grown - to 118 million registered users - and the flirty messages have not stopped. But the cash is not coming quite ...See all stories on this topic

Tag, You're It

There's no hiding from anyone these days, especially your friends.
The appeal of knowing the whereabouts of your friends has generated the enormous popularity of Sniff.

Sniff (the Social Network Integrated Friend Finder) has been very popular in Scandinavia, with around 100,000 users registering in the past six months alone, and it's now available in the UK. It's a new application that can be installed on mobile phones and social-networking sites such as Facebook, providing users with a detailed map of their friends' whereabouts at any given moment.
Sniff: Social Network Integrated Friend FinderTelegraph.co.uk - United KingdomSniff (the Social Network Integrated Friend Finder) has been very popular in Scandinavia, with around 100000 users registering in the past six months alone, ...See all stories on this topic

Also note that socianetwork applications on mobile phones is rapidly becoming the next huge trend.

Another social network creates complete transparency among employees, salaries, and their opinions of corporate culture and company leadership. In the past, discussing your salary was an absolute no-no. Those days are over. Check out www.glassdoor.com

Enterprise social networking - ashyEnterprise social networking: Glassdoor seems to be ...Internet Evolution: Comments - http://www.internetevolution.com

It was just a matter of time before even the most anti-networking types of all, doctors, would want to get into the socianetworking act.
iMedExchange and social networking for doctorsSeattle Post Intelligencer - USASocial networks -- traditionally the domain of the young -- are increasingly moving into the professional ranks. There are social networks for lawyers ...See all stories on this topic

Every type of group, every age, every interest, hobby, language, will be hosting a social network. Will the monetization model change once the proliferation of these sites grows beyond the tipping point? Are all the ads paying off?

Socianetworks: Innies and Outies

I met someone last night whose specialty is helping companies build social networks that connect them with their customers. Interesting approach. Now companies become part of the same community as their customers. Why would they invest time and money to do this? To bond and gain the most important piece in the marketing puzzle: information directly from their consituency. They get to be inside the hearts and minds of those they wish to serve. It is no longer a them and us world. We are all one community. Should be fascinating to see this next generation of socianetworks.

Here's the social network news of the day:

Mobile Marketing Forum Day Two- Mobile Social Networking:A ...By adam What is the future for mobile social networking? Is it the ‘holy grail’ for mobile advertising? What are the opportunities for marketers? For content providers? What are the challenges across carriers/devices - ondeck v offdeck? ...A Media Circus - http://amediacirc.us

Social networking sites don't deepen friendshipsBy Anthony(Anthony) Social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace do not help you make more genuine close friends, according to a survey by researchers who studied how the websites are changing the nature of friendship networks. ...Crafting Gentleness - http://craftinggentleness.blogspot.com/

Tag, You're It

IBM has created new platforms to further people's ability to connect with others they might want to meet based on common interests and skills:

IBM Delivers the Next Wave of Business Social Networking: IBM ...Market Wire (press release) - USA"Social networking is the new frontier in business collaboration," said Jeff Schick, vice president of social software, IBM. "From the business-minded ...See all stories on this topic- Drawing on its experience in enterprise collaboration, IBM is expanding the tagging abilities of Lotus Connections to include people tagging. With the latest version, people can tag themselves or others based on a key topic or area of expertise. This allows individuals to instantly identify and retrieve live intellect on any given topic and tap into the collective wisdom of a larger group or pinpoint rare, niche expertise from the general population. Tag clouds are displayed on a person's profile and throughout communities, making it easy to associate people with areas of expertise.

So now - your interests are tagged, or flagged so that you can find others who share these interests or skills.
This is definitely the right direction. And on the flip side, we are revealing more and more of ourselves to our communities.

And Microsoft is testing it's own internal social network:
Microsoft testing prototype of Facebook-like social networkComputerworld - Framingham,MA,USAs Office Labs operation has created and is testing a prototype of an internal social network that can provide employees with feeds and updates about their ...See all stories on this topic.

Socianetworks are not a fad; we are looking at a trend that is here to stay. The key is: how will these networks thrive and be monetized going forward?

Is the Shakeout Upon Us?

Gazillions of social networks popping up everyday. What is the craze about? Why so many? Seems as though once critical mass hit, everyone wanted to jump on the success bandwagon.

I remember when I first learned about Linked In and Ryze. They seeemed like an awful lot of work just to meet people. My on-the-ground networking was paying off very well, and meeting people on line didn't seem to be a very strategic approach. I let my Linked In activities slip to zero.

Then, one day, a couple of years later, a former client of mine whom I respect immensely, invited me to connect with her. I was astonished because she was the last person I ever would have expected to participate in online networking. Then I checked out her network. Hmmm, not bad. That was the day I caught the socianetwork bug.

While I have profiles on Linked In, Facebook, Plaxo, and a slew of others, the one that I find most business-like and productive is still Linked In.
However, Linked In still leaves alot to be desired. Because this is still a user driven site, there are many left confused about how to capitalize on the information and develop the right business relationships among the 22 million participants.

A shakeout is bound to happen, and I believe it will happen any minute.
But that doesn't mean there isn't immense opportunity still available. The millions of people creating profiles, and user names, and passwords and sending messages, and links, and meeting lots of people tell us that people want this kind of connection and that it's here to stay. To be sure it will evolve. How, no one knows for sure.

But let's take alook at some of the more innovative approaches in socianetworks.

I love the first one listed because it addresses a whole new set of opportunities - tapping into creativity and project development through the network. How great would that be if we could transform the professions through innovation and more open thinking?

Saratoga man's networking Web site enhances educationSan Jose Mercury News - CA, USABy Emilie Doolittle What value could a social networking Web site like MySpace have in a classroom? A teacher would consider MySpace a waste of time, ...See all stories on this topic

NewsGator Delivers Corporate Social Computing Platform for ...Working jointly with Microsoft and NewsGator, Universal McCann has implemented a secure social networking solution that improves productivity by allowing employees to better communicate and collaborate. ...

Wachovia is unveiling an entire suite of Web 2.0 services internally, and Gen Y'ers are coaching boomers on how to use these tools.

Enterprise 2.0 Preview: Collaborative Tools Gird Wachovia's Global ...InformationWeek - Manhasset,NY,USAWachovia is embracing Wikis, blogs, instant messaging, social networking sites, Microsoft's Sharepoint, and other collaborative tools to connect staff, ...
Wachovia is embracing Wikis, blogs, instant messaging, social networking sites, Microsoft's Sharepoint, and other collaborative tools to connect staff, cut costs, and retain and attract younger employees.

Social networking is hard workBy emersondirect Andrew Chen writes about his view on social networking and going from zero to critical mass in which he says that there are quite a few variable involved in getting to the top, the most important being, users.

And when you need a little levity, be sure to check out Geek and Poke. We all would be better off ending our day with laughter.

How Social Networks Attract Vast Numbers of Members

If we look at all the new networks popping up and being populated by millions, see the niche markets that are targeted with this medium?
We can learn from the various ways sociabiz networks are addressing the needs of niche markets to connect and manage information and new ideas.

Select just one of these feeds and explore what that network is up to: who is it targeting, what needs does it fulfill, how does it do this? How can you take these ideas and use if for your own business or practice? Marketers, how can you leverage these networks for your firms? HR professionals, how can we leverage the networks as recruitment tools?

One network not listed here that is really quite unique:
http://www.smartypig.com/

It's an online banking network designed to encourage and support saving for desired purchases.

Feedback, questions, and ideas welcome!


Social network sites boost for Lancashire CrimestoppersPreston Citizen - UKBy Andrew Greaves » The head of the Lancashire Crimestoppers charity says the use of social networking sites to promote the group is an "exciting ...See all stories on this topic

Comment on Copycats: Top 10 International Facebook Clones by ...By Startaholics - be part of the next big thing a previous attempt, is said to have performed poorly relative to competitors - it will be aiming at Xiaonei, a social network that serves university students with 15 million users, according to [...]Comments for Mashable! - The... - http://mashable.com

Socialthing - Awesome New Social Networking SiteSee everything that's going on with your friends in all the sites you use, interact with multiple sites at once, and more!Socialthing! makes it easy to see all the things your friends are doing. It's a news feed for every site that you ...Digg / upcoming - http://digg.com/


SocialSplash - a new fun social network!SocialSplash is a new Fun Social Network where you can communicate with people, share photos, videos, create blogs, use the forums to discuss current issues and events, create and join groups, play games, share quizzes and surveys and ...Gaming's space - http://gam1ng.spaces.live.com/

Online Banking Thru a Social Network?By Andrew G.R. According to the Charlotte Observer, banks such as JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Washington Mutual are making a push to invade Facebook and other social networking sites to appeal to Gen Y. It’s not just the big boys making the move. ...RotorBlog.com - http://www.rotorblog.com

Monday, June 09th, 2008 - Real Estate Industry Social Networking NightA night of social networking for Real Estate Agents in the Greater Toronto Area and Durham Region. 3 fo $1 Oysters served from 8pm to 11pm. Relaxed and comfortable atmosphere. RSVP Please by calling 905-424-0155 or e-mailing ...events durham region - All Events - http://eventnow.ca/events/


Barack Obama is social networking championDaniWeb - Herndon,VA,USAAnd it is social networking, Web 2.0, YouTube that has really made the difference for Obama. Just look at the 'Yes We Can' music videos which have flooded ...See all stories on this topic

Social Networking Without Boundaries : hi5 CEO Ramu Yalamanchi ...By Jared Ramu Yalamanchi runs hi5, one of the leading social networking companies in the world. The company is recognized as one of the fastest growing social networking companies and is now gaining merit as an emerging company which exhibits ...Sramana Mitra on Strategy - http://sramanamitra.com/

Social networking for business is next big thingcommercialappeal.com (subscription) - Memphis,TN,USABy Jane Roberts (Contact) Ask Dave Barger what businesses get from investing in social networking sites and pretty soon you're on his favorite topic: media ...See all stories on this topic


Recruiting 2.0: Using On-line Social Networking to Attract Top TalentBy eJP On-line social networking is all about connecting people in dynamic and new ways. A small investment of time in on-line social networking can yield big results for an organization’s ability to reach new audiences with information about ...eJewish Philanthropy - http://ejewishphilanthropy.com

CafeMom - A Social Networking site just for momsA Social Networking site for moms. Go Check it ou!.Digg / upcoming - http://digg.com/

Making SociaBiz Networks Work for You

Here are some comments from the pros about how to use social networks for business:
************************************************************
"Businesses tapping into social networks to expand customer base need to have a clear idea of what they want to achieve," said Chelsea Dubey, account executive at RedRover.
"You need success metrics, such as: How many people use the site? How many prospect leads are generated?
"Social networking just for the sake of social networking isn't always a good investment. It needs to connect to other elements of your sales and marketing strategy," she said.
When FedEx Corp. created NetFace in 2006, a social networking site for employees only, it did no promotion but sat back to see how quickly a community would form, said Nicole Heckman, manager of innovation research.
"We found it was much more viral than we expected," Heckman said. "Over several months, we had 2,000 active users."

Who knew FedEx started an internal social network?

Has anyone else started a social network within your organization?
Let us know what it has taken to set it up and how it's working.

Social Networks Growing Globally & Among Across All Age Groups

The number of new socianetworks is rapidly expanding, and as I thought, there is now a shakeout going on.

If the site doesn't have a strong enough value proposition, they will go the way of Verizon's network (merging into Facebook) and Monster's Tickle being scratched.

Ad expenditures on socianetworks are booming as target populations span many generations: toddlers, boomers, teens. Everyone is getting into the act.
They all are beginning to look, talk, and act alike.
Socianetwork news from the UK, Ottawa, Charlotte, NC, Fremont, CA.

UK Social Network Ad Spend to Grow 148% 2008-2012Marketing Vox News - USASocial networking sites are on the rise in the UK and ad spending on such sites is expected to reach £285 million ($533 million) by 2012, according to ...See all stories on this topic

Small World Labs, Telligent to Co-Host Social Network Shoot-Out at ...Earthtimes (press release) - London,UKBOSTON , June 6 -- Enterprise social network providers Small World Labs and Telligent are teaming up to co-sponsor a white-label social software shoot-out ...See all stories on this topic

Boomers More Traditional Online - Not into Blogs, Social NetworkingMarketing Vox News - USAPeople over age 40 participate heavily in word-of-mouth and value personal recommendations and expert opinions, but they have not embraced social networking ...See all stories on this topic


Verizon Pulls Plug On Social Network, Reminds World It Had A ...By Nick I.(Nick I.) The moral? If you're not a social networking company, don't try to be a networking company. It's hard enough for the pros. This is good news for us. There is one less competitor to worry about.http://www.datefling.com%20-%20http://www.datefling.com/


Now even babies can get on the social network crazeWBIR-TV - Knoxville,TN,USAWell, now there's social networking for babies, with a bunch of web sites that do the same thing as MySpace and Facebook, but for the toddler set. ...See all stories on this topic


Social networking sites challenge journalism ethicsBy Alfred Hermida Image via WikipediaThe UK’s newspaper watchdog, the PCC, has released the findings of its research into attitudes towards social networking. It found that 78% would change information they publish about themselves online if they thought ...Reportr.net - http://reportr.net
Could Facebook Be the New Ning?By Josh Catone Earlier this week something interesting happened in the world of social networking: Verizon, which this week became America's largest mobile carrier after moving to acquire Alltel, moved its branded social network to Facebook. ...Read/WriteWeb News - http://www.readwriteweb.com/

Report: Social Networking To Revolutionize IndustryWireless Week - USABy Wireless Week Staff According to a report from iSuppli, the wireless social networking market stands to revolutionize the global technology business by ...See all stories on this topic


Internet in TransitionHuffington Post - New York,NY,USAFrom the Youtube debates to the successful use of the medium for fund raising, to the creative use of Web 2.0 social networking tools to amplify the ...See all stories on this topic;


Ad performance on social network sitesBy Jason Menayan eMarketer and Collective Media have released the results of a survey on advertisers’ attitudes towards social network sites’ advertising prospects, and DoubleClick/Performics’ study of the level of credibility web users have towards ...YieldBuild Blog - http://blog.yieldbuild.com


Blogging and Social Networking among Teens - posted by William HakimAnyways, on to the topic of this little blog post: the state of blogging and social networking among teens. I'm not planning to scour the net for survey numbers about Facebook or flickr usage among teenagers and repost them here, ...EchoDitto blogs - http://www.echoditto.com/weblog


Monster-owned Social Network Tickle Shutting Down (MNST)Silicon Alley Insider - New York,NY,USAIt's officially (by our count) a trend: Another company that isn't Facebook or MySpace has stopped trying to run a social network. We've already seen Conde ...See all stories on this topic


What Every Parent Should Know About The Leading Social Networking ...By Aria Munro Omni Publishing Co. today announced a June 16, 2008, release date of its latest DVD, “A Parent’s Guide to Social Networking Sites,” featuring national expert Sgt. Corey F. MacDonald, Esq. This unique DVD advises parents on the dangers ...eNewsChannels - http://enewschannels.com

Participative Web and User-Created Content: Web 2.0, Wikis and ...By Gerry(Gerry) Participative Web and User-Created Content: Web 2.0, Wikis and Social Networking / Vickery, Graham. ; Wunsch - Vincent, Sacha / Abstract Drawing on an expanding array of intelligent web services and applications, a growing number of ...Friends:Social Networking Sites... - http://onlinesocialnetworks.blogspot.com/


Social Media for Business Marketing Round TableBy Andrew There’s lots of talk these days about Social Media, Social Networking, blogging, Web 2.0, Web 3.0, the list goes on. This event is designed to highlight what’s “real” for business today, what’s coming, and what’s still just the “magic ...The Ottawa Network - http://www.theottawanetwork.com/


Social-networking sites: the complete guidePC Advisor - London,UKPC Advisor uncovers the best social-networking sites on the web. With hundreds of millions of user accounts, MySpace is the internet's most recognisable ...See all stories on this topic


Site seeks investors to help users network their way to profitsBizjournals.com - Charlotte,NC,USAAn infant social networking Web site hopes to equip users to profit from their original content. But first, Hurox.com (pronounced "who rocks") needs to find ...See all stories on this topic

Mobile social networking service Xumii is getting carrier ...VentureBeat - Fremont,CA,USAEarlier this week, yet another mobile social networking service announced that it is going into private beta this month. This one is called Xumii, ...See all stories on this topic


Zell expects a social network platform to save the newspaper industryBetaNews - USAThe solution to all this, Zell believes, lies somewhere in that Web site social networking template. "It will be a simple tool kit that is pre-populated," ...See all stories on this topic

What are your predictions for Social Networks? Which will last, which will evaporate? Are they here to stay?