FriendFactor.org – connecting a social network to a phone.
This is the first of a few examples I would like to give illustrating the use of digital gestalt. The rational being that if I can’t methodologically explain what it’s all about, It would be best to start from a few examples and work our way back from them. Here goes…
FriendFactor defines itself as a social network for friends of gays, but it was started by Brian Elliott as much more than just that. Brian sent out to leverage the power (and numbers of ) his straight friends to help in the struggle for gay equality. the goal was to get people to lobby their state senators to past legislation for full gay rights. Most people don’t know who their state senators is, not to mention his or her phone number, and even if they had it, which is a big even, they surely wouldn’t feel comfortable calling them.
So here’s what FriendFactor did. Gay people would invite their friends to the site there they could learn about the discriminating laws against gays in their state. it would then show them a picture of their senator and ask them to put in their phone number if they would like to be connected for a short call. of course it also had a script with the key points that where to be conveyed to the senator. as easy as that but nothing short then Brilliant.
So let’s try examining what we have here:
1. Network – Using a simple network, to get x times the number of people which are in the gay community.
2. Database – The system pulls the right senator for each of the friends and along side with all the details + picture.
3. Cross platform functionality – to close the deal, without leaving the site, it offers to connect your phone with the senator’s.
This is all topped with a layer of Content that helps give the whole thing meaning, be it the text in the invitation, the picture and info that turn the senator from a distant abstract to a person you can call and the list of points you are given to convey it all.
I think I’ll leave it at there for now, hope after I do a few of these patterns will start to emerge.
You can read more about the project in this NYT bolg post by Tina Rosenberg and this is Brain’s LinkedIn.