Tag Archives: Path
You Are a Social Media Product

You Are a Social Media Product

by Jay on November 29, 2010 in Anti-Social Media

You Are a Social Media Product, Sucker

Facebook, Twitter, or any social network isn’t something that can sell itself. It needs you, and preferably every single one of your friends, ever.

I recently joined a new social network, Path, and I cannot find a single person I know. I like the idea of Path. I like the limit of 50 friends and its simplicity, but if I cannot find a soul on it, then what’s the point of using Path? I want to share moments with people, not with myself. I do that all day long, and trust me, I get sick of my crazy self.

The goal of any social network is to connect people. If a social network can’t do that, then what’s the point?

So, what do you market to get people to join your network? Sure, features are one thing, but really, what else can network offer beyond sharing text, pictures and videos? People.

That’s why you see your friends and possible acquaintances constantly popping up in the sidebar on Facebook. That’s why Twitter tells you “Who to Follow.” It’s why LinkedIn shows people you may know. Because these people and what they offer to the network are the product. Everything else is secondary to providing access and information on the people.

Social networks are only fun when they are social. That’s why Path looks like a barren wasteland of ones and zeroes to me. It needs humanity. Without people, social networks are just networks.

And who wants to be a part of that?

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New Social Networks that No One Cared About

New Social Networks that No One Cared About

by Jay on November 28, 2010 in Social Media News

Path - 50 Friends away from AngerDo you want to know what week is the absolute worst week to announce anything about your brand new or improved social network?  The week of American Thanksgiving. You basically get two days, Monday and Tuesday, to attract people’s attention, because after Tuesday all people care about is turkey and getting a 40 inch Plasma TV at dirt cheap prices while trampling their competition.

So, here are two cool social networks that have a marketing and press team that has no sense of timing.

Path is a social network that limits you to 50 friends.  I’m on Path with zero friends.  The only thing more depressing than social network with a 50 friend limit is a social network with zero friends and a 50 friend limit.

Diaspora is the open source alternative alternative to Facebook made by a small group of NYU Students. Like most open source projects, they didn’t realize that real people may want to use Diaspora, so you need your own server to run Diaspora. Yeah, you all can call me when you start doing that.

Did any other social networks launch? Did anyone care? Can someone come up with a better idea than sharing, text, pictures and video with people you connect with?

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