Matthew Savage's Blog

The evolution of social networking sites show they develop new functionalities.

1. First generation sites only let users manage friends’ lists. There are mainly flat, single entry lists by schools or classes you attended. Examples: Copainsdavant (FR), Classmates.com
2. Second generation sites can be seen as the first social networks. They are centered around an individual and his friends, and friends of friends : they follow the 6 degrees rule. Examples: LinkedIn (US), Viadeo (FR), Xing (G).
3. Third generation sites could represent the first social media sites. They allow multi-dimensional connections, real conversations between users, in compliance with the social graph theory *. Examples: Myspace (US), Facebook (US), Bebo (UK).
   
4. Fourth generation sites are what I am proposing already exist and will flourish in the future. They would represent social media sites that facilitate face-to-face meetings. They allow people to come together off-line around common interests, building real communities and friends in the real world. Examples: Meetup.com (US), Match.com (US).

We are already seeing a huge amount of green social network sites that are flooding the market place. I think that we are already maxxed-out on these sites. Most of my friends use Facebook and LinkedIn, but are unwilling to belong to any more social networks.

Unless…the rules change. The climate is right, we just need the right solution that might integrate into these pre-existing sites. Why reinvent the wheel?

There is still a huge opportunity here to provide some real value to people through the internet. People are craving to be heard and to interact with people off the computer. This is not regression, but progress facilitated by technology.

Sources: faberNovel analyses, Stanley Milgram (1967) Facebook; 03.10.2007 – Facebook study;
FaberNovel Consulting.

* As exposed by Mark Zuckerburg (US).