5 social networks to get to know your neighbors

There's no doubt that social networks have made the world a smaller place. In recent years, Facebook has connected far-flung friends and lost-lost acquaintances, while Twitter has made it possible to share intimate snippets of life with total strangers. Yet with all this modern-day cyber chatter around us, a recent study shows that a more traditional and arguably more important connection is being lost. We don't know our own neighbors any more. Ironically, that's a problem a new tech trend aims to fix.



The original social network

A Pew Research report suggests nearly one in three of us don't know the people who live next door. While some might think that's a good thing, research shows... not so much. According to some studies, neighborhoods where people know and trust each other enjoy less crime and juvenile delinquency. Also reported, people who have relationships with the community around them tend to save more money and have less anxiety in general than people who live amongst total strangers. 


The new neighborhood network

A new San Francisco-based social network called Nextdoor is one of several new websites and services aimed at shrinking the divide between sharing a recipe on Facebook and walking next door to borrow a cup of sugar.

The way it works is simple. One person signs up and then invites their neighbors. But unlike a simple canvassing of contacts, Nextdoor has a system set up for people to prove they actually live where they say they do. Once a new neighborhood network is up and running, topics of discussion are as varied as local events, school activities, plumber and babysitter recommendations, recent crime activity, upcoming garage sales, or even lost pets. 

Real value in the real world
When I was sitting in my local coffee shop in Oakland, California, interviewing a Nextdoor employee for this story, a pretty young woman walked up to our table, apologized for eavesdropping, and said she couldn't help but say something about Nextdoor. "It's one of the best uses of technology I've ever come across," said Caitlin Young, a total stranger who turns out to be my neighbor. "There's so much you can do online today. There's social media for everything except what you need most — a real community. This is real. It has real value in the real world." Young went on to explain that she had recently moved to the area and felt somewhat isolated until the service gave her "a less intrusive" way to meet her neighbors.

Hyper-local socializing

Nextdoor is one of many services encouraging stronger ties between people who can benefit from knowing each other but often don't. Others I've covered in some of my recent television appearances are:

• UrbanSitter, a community match service for parents and babysitters who connect online through Facebook and their existing networks.
• Zaarly, a localized swap meet of sorts that lets people buy what they want or to sell what they have to other people who live nearby.
• TaskRabbit, another service I'm fond of, a sort of eBay for odd jobs.
• Neighborhood Fruit, which lets you find and share fruit locally, both backyard bounty and legally on public lands. Currently, there are over 10,000 registered trees nationwide, and more get added every day! The fruit is free.

These sites are currently free to use but will likely sell targeted advertising to local businesses. Please let us know if you have tried any of these services or used any others you feel we should know about. And we'll continue to keep on top of this growing trend.

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