Social Networking Software Features
Social networking has become a tool for Internet users to meet people and keep in touch with their friends and family. It is undeniably an information technology phenomenon that continues to reign as the top activity among Internet users. Two websites that immediately come to mind at the mention of social networking are Facebook and MySpace. Social networking is not just about them, though. Hundreds or even thousands of websites make use of social networking for various reasons, and one of these is to earn money. Setting up a social networking site is not as easy as setting up a blog, though, and if you plan on building one, you can find help in the form of a social networking software.Which social network software you should get depends on the niche of your social networking site. You may want to focus on sports, travel, or dating. Regardless of the target, though, there are certain basic features that a social networking software should have and you should look into.
Profile
A social networking site should allow their users to set up their profile. The profile is very important because it is the first thing that users will see and check out. Since users do not see each other face to face, they rely on other users' profiles to at least get a first impression of the other users and decide whether they are willing to allow certain users to be part of their social network or not. The basic information that can be found in a profile includes the name, city where the user comes from, his or her age, and interests. However, a good social networking software does not limit the users to this routine and boring profile information. Instead, it allows the users to make their profiles as interesting as they could. They should be able to upload photos and videos on their profiles, which say something more about a user's personality than just the plain text of personal of information.
Advanced Search
People make accounts in social networking sites because they want to connect with their friends and acquaintances or meet new people. Thus, the search feature is one thing that a social networking software should have. It should allow users to search for certain people by name or email address. Or, users may want to meet new people, so they should be able to search for users according to their preferred location, age, or interests.
Quick Sign Up and Log In
Internet users may come to a social networking site because they want to check out the profiles of their friends or someone they have just met. However, for security purposes, a social networking site should not allow an Internet user to directly view a user's profile without signing up in the site first. To address this, choose a software that has a quick sign up and log in feature. By making it easy for Internet users to sign up and log in, your site will generate more members.
Invite and Add Friends
This is perhaps the lifeblood of social networking sites. Users must be able to invite people to be part of their network, accept friend requests, and eventually stay connected, which is what social networking is basically about. Moreover, it is important that users are able to remove people from their network and block them when necessary.
Inbox Messaging and Instant Messaging
Any decent social networking software should have these features. Members of your site must have the means to communicate conveniently and instantly. Sending messages and receiving either through inbox or instant messaging is one of the reasons why people join social networking sites and stay there. Without this feature, Internet users may not find the site very useful.
Photo, Audio, and Videos Uploading and Sharing
Add more fun to the users' social networking experience by allowing them to upload photos, audios, and videos and share them with their friends. By sharing photos, audios, and videos with each other, users feel some sense of bonding, which will help them appreciate your social networking site even more.
Besides the basic features, look out for other fun features such as animated birthday cards posting, rating users, and adding certain users as their "Favorites."
With the wonders that social networking allows Internet users to experience, there is indeed a good future in building a social networking site. However, your success in this endeavor will greatly depend on the social networking software that you make use of. There are hundreds of social networking software providers out there, but there are only a few who will suit to the kind of social networking site that you are trying to achieve. Thus, for you to get the right social networking software, it is important for you to determine what you need and what you want your social networking site to be.
