From techrockies today…
A new online service that aims to provide local neighborhoods with relevant news and communication is now accepting registrations. The Web site, called eNeighbors.com, includes classifieds, current events calendars, resident directories and community news. According to the company, the service will eliminate the need for newsletters and paper directories while offering social-networking features unavailable to those mediums. However, the company stressed that its site is private and secure. Founded in 2005, eNeighbors is headquartered in Denver.
The site looks well designed and professional. It appears to be an update on neighborhood association software (bookkeeping, minutes, bylaws, etc.), with a social networking add on. It appears to want the associations to hire the service and then hand over the list of neighbors.
By contrast, Front Porch Forum is ALL about helping neighbors connect and foster community within the neighborhood. Individual households join when they are ready. The service is free. It doesn’t include any of the other association management tools.
Posted in: Front Porch Forum, Neighborhood, Social Media
Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more
Michael –
First of all, thanks for the coverage. We’ve been trying to spread the word. We just launched about 6 weeks ago.
Let me clarify what eNeighbors intentions are — we aim to connect neighbors to each other via their HOA. Ultimately, we strive to increase communication within the neighborhood between the residents.
I think we have the same neighbor-centric goals in mind as Front Porch Forum does. Our primary concerns are privacy and security while fostering communication. That’s why we require a neighbor list from the HOA. That way, only the residents of that neighborhood are allowed to view the content.
We do charge an annual fee for the service in order to cover our costs, but ideally we’d like to support the service with ad revenue and offer the service for free to the HOAs. We are still developing an ad model that would not be intrusive to the users but rather provide useful homeowners services information.
You can visit our blog — http://eneighbors.wordpress.com — for the latest on our activity and to get an idea of our general philosophy on local communities.
Thanks.
Phil Freund
[…] Elsewhere, Front Porch Forum also comments on the eNeighbors new service. Front Porch Forum’s mission is to help neighbors connect and foster community within neighborhoods through email forums. […]
Thanks for the clarifications Phil. Best wishes! -Michael