Social Apps

"Social Apps"

There are really 2 types of "social apps":

pure social apps socialized apps

core functionality is social core functionality is standalone;the social is an enhancement

Pure Social Apps

These apps often don't exist prior to a network, and are often "super" versions of an existing social network function.

Orkut examples: chats, pokes, (s)craps

Socialized Apps

These apps often exist before being introduced into a social network, and could stand on their own 2 legs if disassociated from the network. Many are mashups.

Orkut examples: music search, games, tests, etc.

Socialized Apps: How-to

To socialize an app, you find a way to take advantage of the 3 aspects of social networks (and OpenSocial):

• Profileso How can I let a person paint a picture of themselves?

• Activity Streamso What kind of updates are a person's friends interested in?

• Friendso How can I let a person share or connect with friends?

Bonus: Take advantage of a side effect.• Global

o How can I usefully aggregate the collected social data?

Socialized Apps: Flickr Search & Share

See this app in action. 

Core fn: Users browse and search for flickr photos.

Friends: Users share photos with friends that have the app.Profiles: Users pick photos to be their profile picture. Activity Streams: None.

Socialized Apps: Neighborhood

See this app in action. 

Core fn: Users mark current location and favorite locations.

Friends: Users share locations with friends that have the app.Profiles: Users pick current location to be shown in profile.Activity Streams: Changing image is shown in stream.

Socialized Apps: TypeRacer

See this app in action. 

Core fn: Users play a game where they type as fast as they can.

Friends: Users see friends' ranks, and invite them to races.Profiles: Users' current rank and friends' ranks are shown.Activity Streams: None*Global: High scores across all users are shown.

Socialized Apps: More...

More examples: Classifieds, Videos, Slides, Books, Blood

Socialized Apps: The point?

What's the motivation for socializing an app?

• User perspective: Users are more inclined to engage in something if it's visible to others, and if it helps them connect with other people or build their image.

• Developer perspective: Social apps are more viral than non-social apps. The more social you can make an app, the more users you'll have. This means: mo money, mo data.