MeetingWave makes social networking social

If you're one of the thousands of people who believe that online social networking just isn't social enough, you've got a new outlet. MeetingWave is a new social application that helps users connect - offline.

by Kristina Knight

MeetingWave members can post when and where they would like to have coffee or plan a dinner meeting; other users respond and the connections are made. The appointments can then be synched to a calendar and contacts. In addition to the online platform, there is a mobile platform which allows users to import contacts. Only members of the site can respond to invitations and events.

To ensure that meeting coordinators have some control, they can specify the types of people they want to respond, I.E. members from the same industry, in the same town or who attended the same college.

This old-school type of social networking adds a new level of intimacy to social networking, which is sure to appeal to business people. Already sites like LinkedIn are attracting business people who want to make connections but are somewhat polarized. A recent report from eMarketer found that business-to-business marketers can see great returns from social networking sites. Giving likeminded people a place to meet in the real world to talk business, make connections or simple exchange information can only increase the returns that B2B marketers are expecting to see from social marketing.