Can anyone recommend a good social networking software?

[Donald]

I have an idea for a social networking website but it's success relies heavily on one feature. Much in the same way as Yahoo Answers works, I want to be able to reward points to members for good answers and allow them to achieve higher status in relation to the number of points they have. Also I want a software where it is possible to prioritise the posts of higher status members over others.

Do any of the many social networking software offer anything similar to these feature or would I have to get a programmer to make me a bespoke service?

Thank you

[sewrobb]

No such thing as they are built up from scratch.

Also before you venture out on something like that do you happen
to have a couple of million quid in loose change to get started.

You know, little things like programmers, testing, server capacity,
advertising which has all got to be paid for up front.

Then it is a total gamble that it would even take off seeing that most
of all the Social Networks are already well established.

[Sandy]

Hi Donald. There are plenty of pre made social networks available online. Price range from free to thousands of dollars per month to use.

To build a custom social network with a reputable social software firm, you can expect a social network to start at around $15k.

You will also need a budget for a managed dedicated server, as basic hosting is a big no no for communities.

A good plan would be to start off small, build out the important features then test with a small group of members. Use what information they provide like improvements, suggestions and/or changes requested. Modify your network to meet these requested needs, then re launch.

Use the remainder of your budget to market, market and then build relationships with related sites. Incentives and so on.

You could start a new social network with software, marketing and servers for less than $60k easily.

I would recommend you take start up boot camps, classes and seminars to learn as much as you can. Most of the big networks started out with different feature sets than they have now. They listened to their community and conformed to them fast!

You will be growing and evolving constantly, so budget in the ever changing developer costs that will come with a successful community site. Check out our Google+ plus page to keep up to date on ideas, advice and important updates in the online business world.

All the best!
Sandy Rowley
Megastarmeida.com