Experience-based social networks

Recently, I've run across a collection of stimulating, insightful blog posts that crystalized something I've been mulling over for awhile.

1. zengestrom.com: Why some social network services work and others don't

Think about the object as the reason why people affiliate with each specific other and not just anyone. For instance, if the object is a job, it will connect me to one set of people whereas a date will link me to a radically different group. This is common sense but unfortunately it's not included in the image of the network diagram that most people imagine when they hear the term 'social network.' The fallacy is to think that social networks are just made up of people. They're not; social networks consist of people who are connected by a shared object. That's why many sociologists, especially activity theorists, actor-network theorists and post-ANT people prefer to talk about 'socio-material networks', or just 'activities' or 'practices' (as I do) instead of social networks....The social networking services that really work are the ones that are built around objects.

2. mobilegirl: No man is an Island

While Jyri uses "object" I tend to think of it more as "activity". People love to do things together, humans are social by nature. They group together to get things done. They meet one another based on similar interests.... When I was interviewing people about sharing pictures back at school last year, they talked a lot about "group sharing", but the groups were of specific purpose or activity. Some talked of making slideshows for the soccer team others talked about sharing with their burning-man friends. People oriented their groups of friends around things they like to do.

3. Seth's Blog: Nouns and Verbs

Investments are a noun. Investing is a verb.
Paint is a noun. Painting is a verb
A gift is a noun. Shopping for or giving one is a verb.

People care much more about verbs than nouns. They care about things that move, that are happening, that change.
They care about experiences and events and the way things make us feel.

I come out of the games industry, where people socialize around structured fun -- AKA games. Many (not all) games are object-based social experiences, as Jyri describes. But games are activities -- and as Anita points out, socializing around shared activities is much more powerful.

Activities and experiences are verbs -- and verbs are what get our attention. That's why online, persistent-ID games are so powerful, and so good at holding our attention - they're experience-based social networks where your persona evolves over time.

I'm looking forward to seeing today's object-based social networks evolve in this direction.

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