A new off-the-shelf software platform that intends to give companies a way to launch their own social networking community within 30 days will begin shipping in August. The platform will sell under the company name facesinabox.com.
Social networking site DowntownWomensClub.com's founder and CEO Diane Danielson said it will cost about $10,000 to license the new software. The price includes minor customization. There's also a 20 percent fee for maintenance and support, which is being outsourced to an IT company in India.
The platform, when released, is a simplified version of DWC Faces, a feature installed last month on DowntownWomensClub.com that profiles the member. Keyword search capabilities let members personalize their profile to help drive Web traffic to promote products and services
For businesses, facesinabox.com will help management search on keywords to find the perfect person for the job based on information in the profile. "Maybe your manager is looking for someone who worked at a franchise in China," Danielson said. "That's easy enough to find. It's all right there in your profile."
But are job opportunities and personal ties really built in social networks? Absolutely, says Bobby Beck, president and CEO at AnimationMentor.com. The online animation school has invested nearly $1 million to build a social network where students from 37 countries can study character animation along side 54 working artists from Pixar Animation Studios, Disney Feature Animation, Sony, Blue Sky Studios and others.
"Funny thing, when we built the school, social networking was one of those things we didn't quite know if it would work," Beck said. "When students come to in-person gatherings from all over the world, like London, Brazil and New York, they meet face-to-face and instantly have a bond."
