nextdoor-logoI’ve been connected with the social platform Nextdoor for a couple of years now.  It’s an interesting concept which connects people who live near each other in actual, physical neighborhoods.

It’s fascinating to me, because with all the online connections we have these days, we’ve lost touch with people who live just next door.

So it was interesting that they just recently opened up for businesses to join as a recognized entity.  And it’s clear that they’ve put some good thought into who their customers actually are.

The problem with most social networks is that they get lots of subscribers, then essentially “sell” them to advertisers.  It’s not terribly intrusive, until you find out that YOU are the product they’re selling.  You’re not the customer.

Nextdoor has been smart to design their system so that companies can’t reach out to consumers – that’s not the purpose of their site.  Instead, the consumers can reach out to companies, offering recommendations and making contacts.

I find this to be an extraordinarily sensitive model.  Often, social networks will do whatever they can to make money from companies – because that’s where they think the big bucks are.

And in the process, they really burn their subscribers.

If you have a business and would like to connect with people in the local area, this is worth checking out.  I created my own business page but I don’t know if it’s visible outside the local area.  Try it and let me know!