Social Networking Software: 12 Ways to Build the Next, Best Social Network

Feb

07

2012

Social Networking Software: 12 Ways to Build the Next, Best Social Network

Internet Marketing Posted by TonyMack / 1 comments

Do you want to be the next YouTube, Flickr, Match.com or Facebook? Then, you need to find the right social networking software. Dating sites, friend networks, video sharing portals are all built on networking platforms that give members control over their personal profile and encourage user-generated content.

If you can get it right, Social Networking is the key to the kingdom. You will never have to worry about your next blog post, because users will post and manage their own content. You will be free to focus on the important stuff like marketing, partnerships and monetization.

Of course, great social networks need great software. No one wants to play on a slow network and users won’t create profiles if they think your software isn’t secure. When choosing a social networking platform, you need to make sure the software looks professional, is stable and will be around for the long haul.

Here are the programs and platforms you’ll encounter in your search for social networking software.

BoonEx Dolphin Social Community Software

Now on version 7, Dolphin is a fully mature network platform with lots of Web 2.0 features: forums, blogs, groups, video sharing and recording, private chat with video, built-in music player, whiteboards, and even an open source iPhone App that you can connect to you social network. Dolphin has an community of collaborators building extensions and offering support — this is an important thing to look for when choosing any open source software! There is a nice marketplace set up that allows new users to purchase things like installation services and templates.

Though open-source, Dolphin isn’t exactly free social networking software. You’ll need to pay licensing fee if you want to completely brand your social network as your own.

Elgg Social Engine

Elgg is the underlying social engine which provides the building blocks to create social applications and sites. The default install includes profiles, groups, blogs, the ability to embed or upload a variety of media, simple social bookmarking tools, tags and categories, and a microblogging feature called “The wire” which is akin to running your own twitter service. Elgg is a fully extendable networking platform with an active development community and 766 available plugins at last count. There are plugins to add everything from geolocation capabilities to an in-network marketplace.

For users that require more robust support for their social networking site, there is also a fee-based Enterprise edition available from elgg.com.

Mahara Social Networking Software for Educators

Mahara, which means ‘think’ or ‘thought’ in Te Reo M?ori, features a weblog, resume builder and social networking system to connect users and create online learner communities. Basically, this social networking software helps webmasters set-up an online community centered around sharing ideas and files in pursuit of education. Users can upload a variety of portfolio items and then control who has access to which files. Mahara is in-use by several universities internationally. For even more educational awesomeness run Mahara and Moodle together.

~~Community Engine~~ Plugin for Ruby on Rails

~~CommunityEngine~~ is a free, open-source social network plugin for Ruby on Rails applications. Drop it into a new or existing application, and you’ll instantly have all the features of a basic community site. The software has everything you need to get started — profiles, blogs, private messaging, events and forums. Visit curbly.net for inspiration and to see what types of social nets are currently using the CommunityEngine.