Over Socially Networked?
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Hardly a week passes without yet another invitation to join some virtual social network. Is it worth (social net-)working overtime?
I like to think of myself as an early adopter. Former schoolmates of mine dragged me into something called OpenBC (presumably Open Business Club) more than three years ago which was a social networking site before we even knew what it was called.
It seemed like a nice chance to hook up with some old classmates, but then, after emailing with a few of them, it dawned upon me there probably was a reason we had lost touch in the first place. Since then, the network has relabelled itself to the unpronounceable XING (in a bid to be more international) which was when I lost interest.
Then my brother bullied me into Linkedin, which seemed similar, but more international and actually easier to pronounce. Nevertheless my involvement in this one died a similar, unceremonial death.
But then of course, everybody joined Facebook, which seems to be (or at least was earlier this year) the grand-daddy of social networking for our generation. Somehow they figured out how to get you hooked. Such silly things as 'updating your status' meant that suddenly I knew that remote friends had lost their jobs, were expecting babies, or my favourite: "...stuck in Richmond for the weekend without tube or train - it's like the beginning of a posh slasher movie".
Nowadays it is the favourite website to post pictures to share (of which I am guilty as charged) and apparently the favourite website for prospective employers to check how applicants present themselves in public.
It does take work to stay involved with these things and keep in touch, so when friends invited me to Plaxo and Blue Chip Expert, I think "Please not another one". It seems that they are all similar in that it takes you a few moments to set up and then even less to forget you are a member (apart from 'e-mail alerts' about 'what's happening in my network' of course).
When Plaxo recently announced they had been sold, I wondered about how they possibly value a database of members who probably are as involved as I am, i.e. not at all. And I wondered whether me signing up might have increased the founder's payoff. It probably did, although I never added any tangible value as a user or an advertiser target.
With Facebook covering everything, it seems there are still newbies going for the niche markets. Recently I had the 'exclusive honour' to be invited to InterNations, a 'network for global minds'. Targeted at ex-pats, they have the fantastic feature of showing where members live on a map. Which means it can only be a matter of days until a compatriot knocks on my door to inquire about where to buy homegrown food.
And that makes me think that in terms of social networking, I do prefer to keep it virtual.
It seemed like a nice chance to hook up with some old classmates, but then, after emailing with a few of them, it dawned upon me there probably was a reason we had lost touch in the first place. Since then, the network has relabelled itself to the unpronounceable XING (in a bid to be more international) which was when I lost interest.
Then my brother bullied me into Linkedin, which seemed similar, but more international and actually easier to pronounce. Nevertheless my involvement in this one died a similar, unceremonial death.
But then of course, everybody joined Facebook, which seems to be (or at least was earlier this year) the grand-daddy of social networking for our generation. Somehow they figured out how to get you hooked. Such silly things as 'updating your status' meant that suddenly I knew that remote friends had lost their jobs, were expecting babies, or my favourite: "...stuck in Richmond for the weekend without tube or train - it's like the beginning of a posh slasher movie".
Nowadays it is the favourite website to post pictures to share (of which I am guilty as charged) and apparently the favourite website for prospective employers to check how applicants present themselves in public.
It does take work to stay involved with these things and keep in touch, so when friends invited me to Plaxo and Blue Chip Expert, I think "Please not another one". It seems that they are all similar in that it takes you a few moments to set up and then even less to forget you are a member (apart from 'e-mail alerts' about 'what's happening in my network' of course).
When Plaxo recently announced they had been sold, I wondered about how they possibly value a database of members who probably are as involved as I am, i.e. not at all. And I wondered whether me signing up might have increased the founder's payoff. It probably did, although I never added any tangible value as a user or an advertiser target.
With Facebook covering everything, it seems there are still newbies going for the niche markets. Recently I had the 'exclusive honour' to be invited to InterNations, a 'network for global minds'. Targeted at ex-pats, they have the fantastic feature of showing where members live on a map. Which means it can only be a matter of days until a compatriot knocks on my door to inquire about where to buy homegrown food.
And that makes me think that in terms of social networking, I do prefer to keep it virtual.
Here Is The Writer : Billy No Box
Billy No Box has worked in the city for six years, and currently works in Derivatives for a North American bank. He enjoys playing golf, reading books by Umberto Eco, singing "Copacabana" in the shower and at karaoke bars, and occasionally updating his blog about London and everything else.
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