Gather is a social networking site
Shocking revelation I know, but for those of us who've been here since 2006 or before, social networking wasn't always the central focus of the site. Back then, the focus was more on content than connections. If we look back to 2005, Gather was "a unique online experience that allows you and other Gather members to express and share your diverse interests and perspectives with each other". So at the very beginning, we can surmise that Gather was about sharing and promoting user generated content. In 2006, Gather became "a place where informed, engaged people share perspectives on everything from politics to parenting. And all content is created by Gather members." So in 06, the focus was still on user generated content. In 2007, Gather evolved into a leading social networking and media site for adults, with some of the highest quality user-generated content on the internet. Sure, the term "social networking" makes an appearance, but the focus is still on user-generated content).
What is Gather today? According to the press release regarding the latest upgrade, Gather is "the premier online social network for the 30+ demographic". Basically, a Facebook for the over 30 crowd. The emphasis has shifted further away from content and onto connections and pings, or more specifically, the kind of stuff that turns the 30+ demographic away from sites like Facebook.
When I joined Gather, I didn't join "the premier online social network for the 30+ demographic." The site I joined was "a place where informed, engaged people share perspectives on everything from politics to parenting". I'm not sure that site still exists.
So, if Gather's a social networking site, what does that mean about user generated content? Well, here you go:
Gather is not in the business of promoting your content
Let's be honest, there's no money in promoting your content. Zilch. Nada. Oh, there could have been had Gather chosen to pursue that business model, but with this latest upgrade that ship seems to have sailed.
This is a bitter pill to swallow, especially for anyone who counted on being featured on the now extinct Gather homepage for exposure. All of the Gather Correspondents whose work received a guaranteed turn in the Gather spotlight will now have to resort to other measures to bring readers to their work. Not new readers mind you; only Gather members. With the newly redesigned homepage Gather has become even more of a gated community, shutting out non-members from finding content unless by accident. So unless you have a healthy following already, the chances of it growing any more have been put on ice.
(yes, I realize that's a bad pun)
So those of us who joined Gather with the hopes of growing our reader base and perhaps pursuing legitimate paid writing work based on our articles (I'm sorry, "posts") here at Gather, we're basically left scratching our heads and wondering what to do next. Do we sever our ties with the site and try to start over somewhere else, or do we weather through the upgrade in the hopes that good content will continue to find an audience?
I'll let you know when I figure that out.
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Comments: 75
I figured out quickly how to publish new content. And, that's the only plus.
I think Gather is going to chase all their members away with this new "upgrade."
No Chris, that was a really really GREAT pun.
Excellent 'post'.
I like looking at my connections photos, reading articles about their lives & making friends. So I guess I am here for the social networking.
I was so tickled when one of my stories, uh...posts, ... articles.... got featured on the main page. Now there is no main page.
I believe that I will learn the changes and just go on like I have the last two. Ah, well.
sigh
When I have an article (yeah, I said article ) that I really like, I put it on my blog. When someone asks me about my writing, that's where I send them. I've hated directing people here since Hawthorne. The blog site is cleaner and easier to navigate. I don't feel embarrassed for people to see that.
Chris, I feel your pain. When Gather blew off the home page email capabilities, my readership fell dramatically. (I couldn't rely on the Gather Home page, they'd never feature me. I'm just a plain ol' joe trying to draw attn to my work.)
I guess I'll try to get used to it but it really puts me off, so far. I'd say Gather is two for two in terms of 'upgrade' disasters. Somebody at Gather please correct me and tell me that Hawthorne and Ice have increased user metrics. I highly doubt it, it seems pretty dead around here since Hawthorne.
I was surprised to see that we now share instead of publish.... Having published for a long time here and elsewhere.... it has a separate meaning to me....
Have a magical day....
Angel
WHY do sites and people think that we all have to keep changing and doing stuff differently? Why can't we just leave stuff as it is???
Just about the time you get used to stuff, some idiot braniac decides to change it.
I do miss the home page. It was a great way to find new reads and explore topics. The artsy fartsy wheels are not cute or inviting. I signed up on Gather but sort of forgot about it for a year, so this past month was when I really discovered what's here. And just when I was getting the hang of it, it changed. Fine, I can adapt.
Can we move this format to the right?? I keep wanting to adjust the screen.
Gather is most noted for connecting at an intellectually-stimulating level that involves writing prose, poetry, short stories, novellas and even a few chapters of the next best novel. We, as writers, are not meant to be boring but some social butterflies just want to play instead of play and learn . . . or even teach us through a few of their creative expressions found in the literary achievement they strive to succeed at !
I am published and working to be published many more times, but gather is a great community and I don't want to see it dwindle away in the ashes where FaceBook or mySpace is headed . . . hell to be in there and make sense of anything !
Many aren't.
What I don't get is how their business model is supposed to work. It's got to be based on advertising revenue, so one would have thought they would open that up to as many people as possible, i.e the general public.
But like you say, Gather is now a gated community, so the focus of all that advertising is... us. The people who create the content are also the people the advertisers want to sell their cr** to.
Now I didn't mind if Gather made their money partly by shilling my content. I bloody well do mind if they want to use my content to sell cr** to me. It's not like the bl**dy points are of any use to me anyway. For all their "upgrades" and "revised business models", they still haven't found a way to reward their foreign gatherers. I can't even give away my bl**dy points...
Sorry, but as I write this I'm getting more and more pissed off.
I don't like being treated like a bl**dy mark.
I joined the same site that you did, for the same reasons; and now that site seems to be gone. Bummer !!
I'm trying to adjust to the new scheme, but I'm getting tired of the system booting me out every ten minutes. THAT IS SO ANNOYING !!
Here's hoping it gets better, but I'm not holding our any hope. I'm firmly convinced that Team Gather is trying to flash-up their image so they can get a buyout.
I really miss the "myspace for writers."
I was suprised to see that Lisa Walker's press release regarding the new layout states that Gather is for "affluent" folks. Talk about "gated" communities. I guess the non-affluent aren't really wanted; just tolerated since they bring membership numbers up.
Oh well, Best of luck to all of us.
I was one of the people who joined for the writing aspect. If I were to see Gather's main page today as a newcomer, I wouldn't have a clue as to what the site is supposed to be about. Maybe that's what the powers that be at Gather truly feel about the site; who knows? They seem to be directionless as they make upgrades that are really downgrades.
I doubt seriously that the people controlling Gather care enough about the members to take anything they say into consideration. They never have in the past.
When you log in, there is a checkbox that says, "Keep me logged in."
I appreciate your article because, being relatively new here, I was having a problem understanding why others are so upset by the changes. This helps, thanks.
To be honest, when I publish, I do so for money on another site. I joined Gather as a social network (yes, I fit their demographic). I feel badly for those of you who have been here the longest and are not happy with the evolution of the site, but frankly, it fits my needs pretty well.
I do totally agree with you on the business side of this and gather missing the opportunity of promoting the writing on the site. If page views is key to the revenue stream, this would seem like a no-brainer — but that term (minus the last two letters) has been overused in the past 24 hours :)
I repeat: We control the quality of the content, not gather.
The site I joined was "a place where informed, engaged people share perspectives on everything from politics to parenting". I'm not sure that site still exists.
This article has been viewed 150 times and received 51+ comments.
For those of you who don't like the left hand orientation of the comments: They are simply in line with the post. I would look really bad if the comments shifted out of the column just to avoid some white space.
For those of you who do not like the ads, Gather must sell ads to support the site and pay for those gift cards. Yes, they pay for those cards: This is not a charity raffle where the prizes are donated. Most members seem to like those gift cards, even if they are not their primary focus. It would be foolish of them to turn down advertising revenues simply because one member thinks that ads for IQ tests and Dating sites is inappropriate for Gather! Good grief! It's not like they are "escort services" or "adult" video stores!
Chris, I generally like your writing. I read and comment. These changes won't change that. I'm sorry that you're disappointed that Gather hasn't stayed the same for you instead of changing to meet the needs of all its members.
Kevin, aren't you a Gather employee? If you are not, I apologize. If you are, don't you think that it would be a little more professional to keep all the snarky little comments that I have been seeing on numerous posts in the workplace? It just seems rather slimy of you to be airing your discontent publicly. Of course, that's just my opinion.
Susan, go to the internet wayback machine and see how Gather has repositioned itself over the years. It was a site for public radio listeners, then a site for writers, then a site for social networking. Had Gather positioned itself this way when I first heard of it I probably wouldn't have signed up.
I have no qualms with people who enjoy the site in its current state, honestly I don't. Please don't interpret my dislike of the latest upgrade as a sign that I look down on those who are here for social networking or those who are here to earn points. All of the functionality to perform those tasks are still readily available. So please, be happy with the latest upgrade if you so desire, it's just not for me.
I have tried to sell people on disaster preparation methods and even put many parts of my book on my articles. This is my quest and if you look at my points you will think I just arrived. With this new design, is there a better way I can meet my need to help people? I don't want to spend what little time I have trying to make points money.
A confused old man,
I think making the home page harder to reach is a huge mistake. Part of the fun in Gather last year was in the serendipity of seeing a cool article and jumping over to meet someone new. The feed approach introduced a while back is like a snake swallowing its tail -- you only get exposed to content of people you know.
John, I agree with you that we the community are still the ones that produce the content. However, Gather doesn't seem to value that much anymore. There is such a thing as Marketing based on thought leadership and Gather had a shot at going in that direction. Instead, they are following the pack.
Gather once had many tools for sharing and they have been disappearing bit by bit. In my view, they have lost their way. As members, we can either hang in and roll with the punches or move our communities elsewhere.
I first found Gather by googling my name and it was there, my book had made a review on gather, so I joined and continued writing, now it is a convoluted MySpace and that is not what I am looking for.
"About Gather
Gather is social networking grown up - the site where adults go to keep up with the people, conversations, and moments that matter. Since launching in 2004, Gather has emerged as the premier online social network for the over-thirty crowd.
On Gather, you can share your latest photos with friends, talk about the day's hottest topics, and meet all kinds of interesting people. Gather members share info and insight with each other with no risk of being "hit with a sheep," asked to play an adolescent game, or bothered by former acquaintances they never wanted to hear from again.
Unlike other social networks, Gather's design, features, and content are geared towards grown-ups. Privacy features like our "friend sets" guarantee that you can share what you want with who you want and you can customize your Friend Feed to see updates from your different circles. Gather saves members time and trouble by aggregating thousands of shared interest groups, so you can participate in the ones you care about. And the personalized news feed (Feed Me), allows you to keep up with the topics that matter to you most."