In Coaching a Community (ISSUE 280 MARCH 24, 2009), LAURA BRUNOW MINER says:
“A key to running successful “social networking sites” is to remember that they’re just communities. All communities, online or off, have one thing in common: members want to belong—to feel like part of something larger than themselves. Communicating effectively, setting clear and specific expectations, mentoring contributors, playing with trends, offering rewards, and praising liberally (but not excessively) can harness your members’ innate desires—and nurture great content in the process.”
From this and other reading as well as setting up a Facebook page, the difference between social networking and online communities is becoming clearer. The distinction seems to be dependent on the nature of the relationship that binds together the participants.
Social networking (as in Facebook) seems to assist the connection and reconnection of people using the ‘six degrees of separation’ premise. If you can find a friend and see their friends, then chances are that if you know one person, you may know or want to know their friends and if you continue the search the number of people who are within reach increases exponentially. This creates an enormous number of potential ‘new friends’ and leaves it up to you to develop relationships from there.
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