Why a Listserv in the Social Media Age?
Among the most vigorous and least-talked about phenomena on the Internet are local, neighborhood email lists, of which the Cleveland Park Listserv, www.cleveland-park.com, is the largest in the United States. While blogs and news websites get all the glory, neighborhood email lists are some of the liveliest and most-visited places on the Internet. And that makes perfect sense, too: Where we live is important to our lives.
On the Cleveland Park Listserv neighbors discuss a range of topics – everything from parking and noise problems, to development and city planning issues. Lost pets are reunited with their owners on these neighborhood email lists; good plumbers are sought and found; travel advice given; a wide variety of useful but surplus items are given away to those who can use them; crime alerts issued; parking problems solved; zoning problems debated. In many ways, these neighborhood email groups are a virtual gathering place for neighbors.
Compare this to Facebook groups, Twitter feeds, and individual blogs. There's a lot of fragmentation, fighting for attention, or overload on hot button issues, and far less community building, practical advice, and neighbor-to-neighbor communication. The issues talked about may not be local or what neighbors care about around here. Twitter is full of retweets from all over, while Facebook is full of "Look what I had for dinner last night!" On a neighborhood email list you may find a last-minute babysitter or get someone to lend you a band saw. Now that's helpful! And that's why people are devoted to their neighborhood lists. Unlike blogs, and unlike affinity-groups (groups about things like hobbies, pets, or product reviews), people who are on neighborhood groups view their groups as inseparable from their lives: people read their group messages every single day.
And the proof is in the pudding: The Cleveland Park Listserv continues to grow at between 20 - 25 new members a week. We're old tech, but we're still expanding. Want to find out more about how you can use List Power to communicate about your business, your organization, or your cause? Contact us to learn more!
On the Cleveland Park Listserv neighbors discuss a range of topics – everything from parking and noise problems, to development and city planning issues. Lost pets are reunited with their owners on these neighborhood email lists; good plumbers are sought and found; travel advice given; a wide variety of useful but surplus items are given away to those who can use them; crime alerts issued; parking problems solved; zoning problems debated. In many ways, these neighborhood email groups are a virtual gathering place for neighbors.
Compare this to Facebook groups, Twitter feeds, and individual blogs. There's a lot of fragmentation, fighting for attention, or overload on hot button issues, and far less community building, practical advice, and neighbor-to-neighbor communication. The issues talked about may not be local or what neighbors care about around here. Twitter is full of retweets from all over, while Facebook is full of "Look what I had for dinner last night!" On a neighborhood email list you may find a last-minute babysitter or get someone to lend you a band saw. Now that's helpful! And that's why people are devoted to their neighborhood lists. Unlike blogs, and unlike affinity-groups (groups about things like hobbies, pets, or product reviews), people who are on neighborhood groups view their groups as inseparable from their lives: people read their group messages every single day.
And the proof is in the pudding: The Cleveland Park Listserv continues to grow at between 20 - 25 new members a week. We're old tech, but we're still expanding. Want to find out more about how you can use List Power to communicate about your business, your organization, or your cause? Contact us to learn more!