Comments on: Ning’s Gina Bianchini on Using Custom Online Social Networks for Politics and Advocacy

By: e.politics: online advocacy tools & tactics » Winning in 2010: Online Fundraising and Mobilization

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:07:07 +0000

[...] Bob McDonnell’s 2009 campaign for Virginia governor featured a community based on the Ning platform, for instance, which provided an outreach and fundraising hub for [...]

By: Evan

Evan — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:44:56 +0000

I work for Ning, and just wanted to reply to these posts, even if they were made a while ago. It’s true that if someone joins a Ning Network, they have an account with Ning. But that’s pretty standard behavior on the web these days (join a Yahoo group, group on Facebook, etc.) and it’s one of the things that allows our platform to scale efficiently.

That being said, we don’t contact your members and if you want to take your Ning Network elsewhere, it’s easy to export everyone’s contact info and profile questions. It’s a little harder to export your content (largely because there aren’t a ton of social networking platforms out there, so it can be difficult to find somewhere to import the files) but we have seen a number networks move elsewhere.

If you have any questions, feel free to drop me a note.

Ning’s a great tool, and I’d hate to see people not use it for a silly reason.

- Evan,
Ning Product Manager

By: TJ Barnes

TJ Barnes — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 21:15:09 +0000

Are you aware that when you use Ning, you non longer own the community members? Ning treats them like part of one big Ning facebook.

Ning uses you to build their own community. Very different than you might expect. Just try closing down your community — you’ll see that your “members” are actually Ning members.

By: Bobby B

Bobby B — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 00:41:08 +0000

ning is a total scam. they steal your members…beware!

By: Ed Pierce

Ed Pierce — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 14:25:04 +0000

As most media outlets this site does not feature or have a resource for the Africain American. The issues surrounding this racial group should become an intrest to all people.
How we feel about current events? What is the impact of the current economy? How our social patterns have changed? Have the line of division increased or decreased? What can be done about our current status?
These and so many other topics about race needs to be brought more into the front for dicussion. The playing field has not been leveled because our president is black. In most cases we are being treated worst than ever.
Your site along with other sites, are non- exclusive in it’s attempt to be socially constructed.

By: Sees in the dark

Sees in the dark — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 21:29:50 +0000

SEE YOU IN FEDERAL COURT SOON!! THE SIX NATIONS OF THE HAUDENOSAUNEE.

By: Shana Glickfield

Shana Glickfield — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 00:37:00 +0000

Something we are exploring for our nonprofit clients. Thanks for posting the great info!

By: Chris

Chris — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 18:58:17 +0000

Colin thanks for this post. I am using Ning for a political client and so far it has been great.

By: Matt

Matt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 04:12:08 +0000

Hey Colin,
Nice post. We integrated a Ning network with our new site at http://community.youstreet.org. We haven’t done much of a launch yet, so activity is pretty low, but the possibilities are promising for members who want to participate. Ning’s a great option if you don’t have the budget for a custom social network (and want one to begin with).

Trellon did a great job integrating Ning with our Democracy In Action database, but it’s worth noting that Ning has since moved in a different direction. We had a bit of a scare when Ning decided to stop supporting their own REST API (with absolutely no advance notice) and decided to integrate with OpenSocial apps instead. The API access was restored for us, fortunately. OpenSocial might be a better long term strategy for them, but wasn’t so great for groups like us that had invested in using the Ning API.

By: links for 2009-01-16 | Company K Media

links for 2009-01-16 | Company K Media — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 01:30:09 +0000

[...] e.politics: online advocacy tools & tactics » Ning’s Gina Bianchini on Using Custom Online So… (tags: e-mail politics socialnetworking advocacy facebook community socialnetworks myspace viral listgrowth ning) [...]

By: Marc "Zeke" Kossover

Marc "Zeke" Kossover — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 00:57:14 +0000

I teach high school science and sponsor a Battlebots team. We use Ning to communicate among the members since, between athletics, drama, and actual schoolwork, there is no single time when we can all meet. Ning lets us communicate drawings and ideas with ease, but leaves me — the teacher — the ability to control the site should something get out of hand.

By: links for 2009-01-16 - Kevin Bondelli’s Youth Vote Blog

links for 2009-01-16 - Kevin Bondelli’s Youth Vote Blog — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:31:06 +0000

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