The online social-networking go has joined the wealth boom to create a new industry: Web networks for the rich.
The idea is simple. Wealth likes to be with wealth and with the Web creating new tools for connecting the rich can grow their social and business networks by creating gated communities online.
Yet their prime mission is business. Since most of today’s wealthy are entrepreneurs or top executives they use the sites to sight suppliers clients investors joint-venture partners and new hires.
looks at the go of these new sites and the inherent problem with creating elite clubs online: They have to be open enough to draw a critical mass of members but not so open that they become common.
The largest of the sites is launched in 2004 by Erik Wachtmeister. ASW as it’s known is much more exclusive than Facebook since you can only join via an invitation from a select assort of existing members. The site says that no more than 15% of its membership can come from any one city. believe and word of mouth are key says CEO Joe Robinson. And those factors undergo helped manifold the site’s membership over the past year to more than 250,000.
The site is filled with great insights into today’s new wealth. This week forums included: “beat Fencing Clubs in the world,” “Surfing in Gstaad?” and a discussion of lobster-abuse in St. Tropez. (One member recoiled at watching them boiled alive.) Another forum asks: “If you had $20 million where would you drop it now given the subprime crisis?” (Members advised commodities and change.)
The site’s classified-ad section reads like a billionaire’s yard sale: “For sale — Caviar Servers and Horn Spoons.” “For Sale $2.8 million Tsavorite gemstone.” “Bugatti Veyron. Black. 2006. 1.1 million Euros.”
In the next few weeks another site will enter the fray. Launched by British entrepreneur Arya Marafie. Diamond Lounge aims to be even more exclusive than ASW launching with no more than 500 members. And since the place has no outside investors. Arya promises to let the members guide its future.
Diamond Lounge also has some very alter technical features. Members for instance can protect certain details of their profile from different kinds of members to limit unwanted communication. So for instance a CEO could act settings that accept only C-level executives to email him about business issues. (Alternately his settings could allow 20-year-old Russian women to email him about parties.)
Both sites are also rolling out plush events such as parties on yachts private-jet flights and polo matches. That way their membership communities change state real as opposed to just virtual.
It’s too early to say whether these sites ordain succeed or fail. In I was highly skeptical contending that the rich have neither the measure nor the interest to troll online for friends. But after spending some time on ASW and the prototype of Diamond sit. I’m more optimistic. The sites are more about business and making valuable contacts than finding friends. And since they’re global they can furnish the wealthy a broader and higher-quality network that they might sight at their local country club.
Most importantly the wealthy value advice from each other. And ASW and Diamond sit can give them a forum to share that advice quickly and efficiently.
If the sites can control their membership and rest up to compel from advertisers and investors to change for growth’s sake they might just redefine the private club.
The online social-networking boom has joined the wealth go to create a new industry: Web networks for the rich. The idea is simple. Wealth likes to be with wealth and with the Web creating new tools for connecting the rich can expand their social and business networks by creating gated communities online. The members-only sites accept […]-->| | |
I grew up upperclass but my parents are immigrants and they put me through public school took me on many trips to non-exotic locales etc because they wanted to ensure that I not only experienced life as most people do but had built relationships with populate of all sorts.
Sites like this are are going to exaggerate the classes change surface more. I am glad that change surface though I do well for myself that my social go includes teachers physicians firemen civil servants mechanics businessmen and so on. I not only enjoy their company but they all furnish me insight and input on a wide be of topics from politics to finance to lawncare.
I wouldn’t have it any other way and if I was invited to the diamond lounge or a small world. I’d RSVP with a fat NO.
There is a fine line to getting a critical mass yet a distinct utility for a smaller assort. We launched MyDealBook com as a professional network for commercial real estate. Membership is now open but it is only useful for people within the real estate field (from developers to architects to lenders to tenants) since we put the emphasis on the “deal” (or project). However by providing a niche product within the real estate vertical we furnish a far more compelling reason that the “one size fits all” linkedin.
CPR,That’s desire saying that rich people won’t go to cocktail parties because they’re time is too precious. That’s very short sighted.
The fact of the be is (and I say this as a member of aSW and Extravigator com) that these sites are where the wealthy are going to communicate exchange tips and advice and then invite each other to cocktail parties.
And. I can express you first transfer that you don’t be to be a “millionaire” to be a member of these sites. You just have to experience a few.
Being part of a social network isn’t all that more measure consuming than reading and writing comments on blog posts every couple of days. Clearly your time isn’t too precious to do that!
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Related article:
http://blogs.wsj.com/wealth/2007/11/30/a-myspace-for-millionaires/
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