The hottest trend on the web is the smallest. Micro-social networks are the latest to make the news in the ever-evolving tale of how people communicate online. Distinct from macro-social networks like Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, this coterie of communicators prove bigger is not better.
Micro-social networks have a higher ad revenue than the maco sites.
Online advertisers calculate the cost per thousand page views or the number of requests to load a single web page. Google, the web’s biggest advertiser, calculates website ad revenue on CPM—the cost per thousand, M being the Roman numeral for 1000. Despite Facebook’s 321 million user accounts, CPM can run as low as $.20. Because topics range so widely, ads seldom match the content.
At DYI Drones, on the other hand, CMP is $7. This micro-social site, custom built with free software, is the hip gathering place on the web for drone enthusiasts. Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired magazine, spends his leisure time building drones, a passion he wanted to share with others. So, he launched DYI Drones to attract people who are interested in discussing the minutiae of building and flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
He attracted 4,000 members who are nuts about the arcane hobby. They didn’t have to sort through tons of web content to find him.
Ning is king
Micro-social networks are solidly built. Ning and rSitez provide free social network software so individuals and organizations can create their own social networks. You can create and launch a custom social network in 30 seconds, says Ning CEO Gina Bianchini.
Ning’s application has 50 visual themes and offers offers videos, photos, chat, music, groups, events, blogs. Features also include real-time streaming, member profile pages, friends, messaging, email notifications and RSS support.
More than a million social networks are on the Ning platform of which 200,000 are active, according to Gina Bianchini who co-founded the Palo Alto, Calif,-based company with Marc Andreessen.
The rise of the niche
Chris Anderson developed DYI Drones on Ning’s social networking platform. Because this audience is so niche, the advertising placed alongside the content is well targeted to the interests of his members. The ads are usually for companies selling kits, model parts and books. Anderson receives CPM’s of up to $7.
Aerial robatics aside, Chris Anderson is also interested in the business opportunities in the new economy. In his book The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More, he pinpointed the rise of the niche as a powerful new economic force.
Anderson is knowledgeable, insightful and articulate on the subject of niches. The future of business, he claims, is selling small quantities of more things to the few people who want those things. Together these small communities make up a vast market, which advertisers can tap.
People are online connecting, communicating, having fun and shaping a new revenue source. These niches sites will get the advertisement revenue in the future because they guarantee an audience that is easier to target than mass market sites. Type a few words into the search field at Ning. You’ll be amazed by all the content that exists that you never thought to search for.
The tale is being written as we speak. Ning is growing at a rate of almost 4,000 new social networks each day.
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