i was reading Andrew Chen's note about Metcalfe's Law and it's corresponding inverse corollary. He basically summarizes social networks like parties, the more popular a party, the more folks show up or want to join in, but once folks start leaving the party, so does everyone else.
Well, that's mostly true, at least if the only thing keeping folks there are the other folks.
i mean, sure, they're drinking your beer and grinding your food into the carpeting, but once the attraction isn't quite so attractive, there's precious little to keep them there. They know that, so they leave to find the next fun party.
The real trick, and where things get hard, is trying to maintain the momentum and ensure that the party keeps going. For that, you have to provide them something they're not getting somewhere else, or at least provide it better than anywhere else that wants to offer it. In other words, the party or social aspect can't be the only thing you've got to offer.
It amazes me when i hear folks talk about social things as the sum total of the offering. It's one of the reasons i don't really get Facebook, MySpace, and other sites like that and don't hang out there constantly. i may go check on things, grab a beer, and talk to some folks i know that are also dropping by, but i can happily go for weeks without doing that. Sites like Linked-in offer a tiny fraction more service because they're useful as a geek social and job search tool, but again, it's not the center of my attention. In fact, i do a fair share of socializing on ye olde social sites like forums. Even there, should some of the more entertaining folks decide to leave, there's no real reason i'd stick around either.
It's one of the reasons that i think sites like Flickr and MyBlogLog are better social networks than some of the bigger players because the social aspects are secondary to the main tasks at hand. It's also one of the reasons that i think real social networks have yet to emerge.
Interesting times, eh?
Meanwhile, i'm going to go grab a plate of free nachos while they're still out.
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