I happen to think there’s about a million good reasons to start a social network, but that naturally is because I live and breathe this industry, and I have an amazing team at my fingertips who happen to be skilled in all levels of social network geekery. Outside of my mania however, there are numerous sound and legitimate reasons to start your own online community. Below I have highlighted a few, and I hope to build onto this list in the future…
Fill an Untapped Niche in the Social Networking World. If you’re anything like me, you have periodic revelations about something that you’re certain hasn’t been done yet. And if you are me, you immediately think about how you can fill the void through a social network of some sort. Like Twitter but only for sports fans! A community for Twilight-obsessed moms! A network to connect tattoo enthusiasts with tattoo artists! While social networks have really become commonplace in our lives the past few years, there is still plenty of opportunity to fill a void. I will say that the chances are low that any run-of-the-mill idea can compete with social networks giants like Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. These networks target a very general and broad audience. Websites that target specific niche communities, serving the needs of that particular group, I feel have a fighting chance of gaining momentum. If successful, they could have a chance of achieving more broad appeal. Facebook, for example, was originally built for college and university students. MySpace was primarily for musicians. Both evolved from serving a specific niche community to serving literally millions of users from all over the globe, including numerous corporate giants who now use these networks as must-have microsites for their brands.
My advice? Take your idea, identify potential target audiences as specifically as you can, research competing sites and find out how you can best serve that group with the most useful tools. What if there are other tattoo networks, for example? Don’t be discouraged. If there are others competing in this market, it’s typically a good sign. It means that there actually is a market. You just need to find out how to make your concept better: more unique, more useful, more visually-appealing and valuable enough to attract the lion’s share of the market.
Hobby & Theme Sites. The vast world of fandom and all its marketing potential dawned on me when I fell deeply in love with the Twilight series, joining myself with millions of other seriously obsessed Twi-hards. I needed a place to talk about all these new feelings and ideas and sometimes just gush about Team Edward nothingness to others who would truly understand! I discovered other websites with valuable Twilight information, I read blogs that posted up-to-date Twilight news, and I followed all of the cast members on Twitter. I soon learned that there were others like me… many others. My hairdresser, my sisters-in-law, my coworkers, random people on the street whose conversations I overheard. There was clearly a need for a community, so we set to work creating TwilightDisorder (because let’s face it, this kind of obsession just isn’t normal), and in the process realized that a huge demographic of this fan base identified themselves as Twi-moms. Hot-blooded women with children and draining careers and humdrum relationships for whom the romance of the story really resonated. This was our niche market, and it would be one of the things that set our site apart from others like it.
The Twilight fan community is of course only one of many. Film, music, sports and recreation regularly take us out of our daily lives, into an entertaining world outside of our own. Everyone is fan of something. The only question being, has that community been thoroughly and effectively tapped yet?
Investment Opportunities. Nevermind personal interest and the conceptual intrigue, it’s hard to argue against the benefits of investing in social media. According to The Neilson Company, global consumers increased the amount of time they spent on social networking sites by 82% in December 2009 compared to December 2008. Think about how many people you know who have surrendered themselves to Facebook and Twitter accounts this year. Social networks are fast evolving from the “trend” to the “norm.” Before long, it will simply be the way people interact online, and businesses and their websites will be expected to have some social element to their Web presence.
In fact, despite tight budgets in this economic crunch, there are still venture capitalists and firms looking for new opportunities and are investing heavily in high-tech start-ups. Granted, most will be looking for multiple criteria to take such a risk, such as an established team and board of directors, a prototype or semi-functional demo if not a fully underway site, and the usual business plans, business models, etc. It’s even feasible to get investors on board with the idea alone. It’s a harder sell, but if the idea is revolutionary enough and the team behind it strong enough, I know first hand that it can be done!
Can you successfully pitch your idea to an investor, and do you have the ability to follow through with the network as a business?
Building a Community for your Existing Business. Ever think that you or your business could be the impetus for creating a community? Even if you build a community that isn’t necessarily centered around you specifically, you could easily position yourself as an expert in the field by creating a community for your industry and providing legitimate tools that, based on your specific experience, you know will be useful to others like you. What better way to network, learn and grow than by providing a digital meeting place for others in your industry?
Alternatively, a social network that allows you to connect with the outside world of unknown connections-to-be could just as easily serve as an intranet of sorts, connecting you with a community that already exists in real life. A medium to large sized business, an artist with a growing fan base, or an educational institution would all be candidates for establishing a network for their specific “real world” communities to connect online for the purposes of disseminating information or communicating more effectively. Share group-specific news, events, or bridge the gap between members in remote locations.
Simply ask yourself who you would ideally like to connect with in an ideal community, and what keeps you from being able to do that on the communities that you participate in now?
Building a social network of course is so much more than the idea generation that marks its birth, but that seedling of a concept is what will set you down the path of success or failure. Believe in your idea, find the facts to back up why others should too and let the journey begin!
