Social Network Update V – Start Your Own Revolution

This week's social network update focuses less on my experiences in the already-established Obama-related groups on Facebook and Care2 and more on what it might actually be like to get in on the action myself. One of the thing that I've seen touted regarding the political social network revolution is the ease with which any member of the community can create and organize a real-world event using online tools. Since this is obviously something to crow about, I figured I should give it a shot.

Now, I've been creating events on Facebook ever since they added the option all those years ago. Thus, going the the process of creating yet another event there wouldn't really give me any insight into the process. So, I've decided to fudge things a little and use, in addition to Care2, Barack Obama's official social network as the proving ground for my event experiment. One of the great advantages Obama's site has over the other social networks is its complete focus on the candidate. This approach allows community members to appeal to an already-friendly base, but also requires them to stand out among all of the other Obama-related events. Thus, it should be interesting.

MY BARACK OBAMA

Creating an event on Barack Obama's social network is... well, really easy. I mean, really easy. The designers behind this site definitely seem to grasp the fact that Obama's network will be used by masters and neophytes alike, and their design choices reflect an understanding of how both groups operate.

Upon signing in to your network pages, a button click will take you to your event portal, which shows you what events you've signed up for, what ones you've attended in the past, and how to set up an event of your own. Clicking the creation button brings you to the event setup page, where you'll determine the location and type of event you'd like to host. Would-be hosts are given a list of event types to choose from, along with simple descriptions of each type. This makes the selection process quite simple, which in turn must do wonders for the site's internal organization system.

Once the initial step is out of the way, things open up a bit. Like most social networks that offer event setup, Obama's site is fairly open and customizable. The setup categories are organized in a simple "What, When, Where" format, a style that would be uncomplicated for even the most novice networker. One thing that Obama's site has that is missing on Facebook (at least in my experience) is an email alert system; depending on your preferences, the site will automatically remind anyone signed up for the event a certain number of hours prior to the start. As someone who often slogs through email lists doing this kind of thing by hand, I can tell you that this sort of added touch is immensely handy.

CARE2

Care2's approach to events is different from any other social network that I've come across. The site splits its "Get Togethers" into two categories: Events (which consist of traditional physical gathering) and Action Days (which are collective calls to action unrestricted by physical location). This approach is convenient, especially when it comes to coordinating large groups of activists or volunteers.

The Events page is set up similarly to all other basic social network event managers; however, Care2 does have a unique trick up their sleeve. Included with all of the necessary event management tools is the promotion features, which allows event creators the option of advertising their gathering, free of charge, to up to three groups of which the creator is a member. This feature allows for maximum visibility while still maintaining the sense of community and boundaries that makes Care2 the network that it is.

On the other side of the coin, the Action Day option, while less detailed, is arguably easier to execute. Without the physical constraints/demands of an event, an Action Day request requires less commitment from potential participants. Action Days are also eligible for Care2's promotion feature, allowing even more people to get in on the same low-impact call for action.

I think this may be the first time since I've started this examination that Care2 has come out on top of Facebook (which, although it wasn't analyzed in this particular article, does not feature anything remarkable in the way of event management). Since the Care2 community is built on the premise of political action, I guess it stands to reason that organization might be one of their strong suits.