Social Network Development - Advantages, Challenges, Types & Technologies



 In today’s digital age, social network development is on the rise as it brings people sitting miles apart together and also attracts a lot of investments. People spend more than 2 hours of the day on social network platforms. So, you should not be surprised that every individual has a profile on more than 7 social network sites on average. These social network platforms can serve as a great tool for businesses to increase their customer base, brand recognition, and business revenue. This article focuses on the advantages, challenges, types, and technologies for social network development.

Advantages of Social Network Development

  • Constant, Real-time Connection

Social network sites help people, families, and friends living miles away stay connected. Building a social community around your brand can help you keep in touch with your customers and build brand awareness.

  • A Community of Like-minded People

Building a community of people who share common interests and needs helps you provide greater value to your customers. It can help you understand your niche market in a better way.

  • It’s Beyond Just Networking

Social networking sites like Facebook provide businesses with an opportunity to sell products to their target audience. So, it’s a great tool to boost your business revenue and drive more traffic to your website.

  • Brands Promotions

Social networking websites are not only amazing trading platforms but also are powerful promotional and PR channels. Customers share their experiences and feedback on the company they have interacted with or purchased products from. Positive reviews and experiences can promote your brand. Your customers can be your brand advocates and promote your brand through word-of-mouth.

Challenges of Social Network Development

Social networking website development can be a challenging task, especially if you’re developing a new, fresh, and progressive platform. Here are some of the biggest challenges that you might encounter during social app development.

  • App Performance

Your app cannot survive in the market if its overall performance is poor. Customer needs and expectations are changing every now and then. You must ensure that your social networking website loads within 3 seconds. The social app should additionally load and perform fast with no slowdowns. This can be achieved by using powerful technology and proper structure.

  • Safety & Security

Your users expect that your social networking website is comfy and they have the freedom to control their privacy. Users should be able to hide their personal information, post visibility, etc. Moreover, messages and chats among users have to be personal and encrypted.

  • Social Network Website’s UI/UX Design

Your social networking website’s UI/UX design matters a lot for your platform’s success. You should create an intuitive user interface that is easy to use, visually appealing, and reliable. By partnering with social apps development company can help you build an attractive, user-friendly, and intuitive social networking application.

Types of Social Network Platforms

Before you partner with a social apps development company, make sure you are aware of the various types of social network platforms. The different types of social networks can help you understand the market players and provide you with new ideas and inspirations.

  • Web-based Social Networks

Social networking websites can be accessed through web browsers. Popular social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter initially started as web-based sites. If you want to build web-based social network, then you should consider investing in a social networking website development company.

  • Hybrid Social Networks

Hybrid social networks have web as well as app versions. This is one of the most practical ways as users can download an app to their phone and would prefer to get admission to it through a web browser.

  • Mobile Social Apps

Mobile social apps are responsive and work only on mobile devices and tablets. Most of the social networking websites have created mobile app version of their sites which users can download and have them on their device’s home screen.

Technologies for Social Network Development

  • Notifications

Notifications can prompt your users to return to your social app. Push notifications, SMS, or emails are a great way to encourage your users.

  • Payment Systems

If you want to app to handle payments for products or services, you can integrate your solution with popular payment gateways such as PayPal, Stripe, Braintree, etc.

  • Social Network Integration

You can add Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn APIs to help users sign in easily without requiring them to fill out identical records including calls or e-mail again. Relevant data can be extracted from current social networks. You can even add social sharing buttons to help users share your app’s content with others, giving you more brand publicity.

  • In-app Interactions

You can offer users chat options and allow them to comment on posts. You can typically build chat capability with WebSockets as they allow you to enforce real-time text exchange. You can even use socket.io technology which combines WebSockets and lengthy polling, the technology that can be used to get real-time occasions.

  • Database

Your app can accumulate various forms of information such as text, audio, video, and other content materials. You can select the best database such as PostgreSQL, MySQL, Microsoft square, or Oracle for your social app’s development.

  • Admin Dashboard

There should be an admin dashboard for user and content control. To be aware of which interactions show up and who signs up, you need a robust and reliable admin panel. Using an admin dashboard, you can manipulate users and critical records.

  • Data Integration

Integration of records resources is crucial for your social network development. When you need to add additional record assets, say maps or locations, you can integrate your social app with Google Maps or Google locations API.

Final Thought

Investing in a social networking website development company can help you build an excellent product for your target audience. While this can be an expensive affair, this can eventually help you get a product that is worth all the efforts and investments.

You can even choose open-source technologies like Social Engine to build social networking websites and online communities. The Social Engine community constantly improves the software so that users can build social networking platforms with utmost ease. If your social app is going to be complex, it is wise to hire Social Engine experts who can help you build one cost-effectively.


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