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July 16, 2007
A Real Disconnect
I am having a horrible time, believing the social network myth.
Don't get me wrong, I find that I find interesting information from much of the social networks I belong to. And I use them as a resource. But much of my life is not on the Internet its around my local community. I have a major disconnect from the need for a plumber in my area. And a pretty cool reference by a brillant thinker in Canada or Europe.
I want to understand why the Social Networks which are self organizing will be better for me that a forced geographic relationship in the world.
However contributing to the experiment I will create a listing service on Facebook for skilled craft on Facebook.
Posted by carl at July 16, 2007 11:44 AM
Comments
Depends what you need done. Before services like Yelp, local businesses worth a damn would go unnoticed. Without things like Craigslist, we'd be stuck with Uncle Henry's and the local newspaper, where someone gatekept on our behalves. There are plenty of local community social network overlays (depending on where you live) that can add some value to the localization aspects of what you need.
In MY case, I need to reach people who share beliefs and interests. They don't have to live near me. They have to be interested in what I'm interested in.
So it becomes a matter of finding people where they interface with the net, and then finding a way to derive value from the services that seek to capture it.
Another example: my parents do wire wrapped jewelry. They go to little fairs and craft shows, and they make okay cash, but nothing amazing. Same business online is worth $200K a year. Why? Because people want the product, but maybe don't go to the craft shows. So, social networks like Etsy come along and make it easier for crafters to be seen and to compete with larger retail operations.
Social nets aren't evil. They just require you to know how you want to leverage them, and then you have to hit the right ones.
--Chris...
[chrisbrogan.com] PS - your blog software eats line breaks and html.
Posted by: Chris Brogan... at July 16, 2007 01:44 PM