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Organized Groups Go ''WEB 2.0'' With CollectiveX; New Web-Based Service Combines Private, Secure Communications and Social Networking

Posted on: Monday, 15 May 2006, 09:02 CDT

CollectiveX Enables Group Members to Maximize Return on Involvement by Building Deeper Working Relationships within Existing, Trusted Group Affiliations

Frustrated by a lack of tools to help groups stay organized and facilitate member networking, serial entrepreneur Clarence Wooten, Jr., today introduced his latest venture, CollectiveX. CollectiveX is a web-based service that enables members of organized groups -- such as alumni associations, non-profits, membership and social groups -- to maximize return on involvement through private, secure communication, coordination and social networking.

CollectiveX is pioneering a new class of social networking services designed explicitly for organized groups. By combining the best of group coordination and communication (a category currently occupied by Yahoo! Groups) with social networking capabilities beyond LinkedIn and other such services, CollectiveX enables members to network and build deeper working (and personal) relationships with each other. It redefines social networking by allowing members to privately, securely share objectives and relevant connections within trusted group affiliations.

"Social networking to date has been about expanding your network, but what good is having tens of thousands of loose connections that are nothing more than entries in your address book," said Wooten, president and CEO of CollectiveX. "CollectiveX focuses on building deeper working relationships with people you're already connected to."

Social Networking Evolves

The first generation of social networking sites (like Friendster) connected the dots between people. Second generation sites like MySpace and Facebook allow users to share information about their personal lives. Most of the popular social networking sites are geared towards the under-30 crowd as a venue for sharing messages and photos.

Services built for professionals, such as LinkedIn and Visible Path, are used mainly by job seekers, recruiters and salespeople to search for and identify individuals that may or may not be connected to their personal networks. People are quick to join these sites, and as a result many of them boast millions of members. But they lack usefulness beyond merely identifying connections. Ultimately, these sites become more of a nuisance than an effective tool.

"CollectiveX is social networking the way it should have been done in the first place," said Michael Arrington, of the popular TechCrunch blog. "It's completely group focused. It leverages contacts in a much more intelligent way. Everyone you know is not linked to you. Instead, you choose which contacts you want to share with each group. This is a winner."

"The CollectiveX platform is one of the top membership benefits we promote to potential members," said The Marathon Club President Robert Greene. "This service allows succinct and comprehensive communication through the group calendar, discussion forums, email blasts, and file sharing while providing an added value to our members through the professional network management components."

CollectiveX - Building Stronger Relationships, Online

In its early days the Internet promised amazing capabilities to gather "online communities." The reality was less spectacular: beyond message boards, forums and instant messaging, Web 1.0 did little to draw together communities around common interests in any sort of meaningful way.

Now CollectiveX brings together people who are more likely to connect -- due to common group affiliation -- regardless of location, enabling them to accomplish goals and to maintain and strengthen relationships. Ideally suited for groups of all types and sizes, CollectiveX focuses on quality over quantity and makes it possible for members to build deeper working relationships with people they already know.

About CollectiveX

CollectiveX is a Web-based service that enables members of organized groups--such as alumni associations, non-profits, membership and social groups--to maximize return on involvement through private, secure communication and social networking. Beyond group discussions, calendars, file sharing, and email blasts, CollectiveX enables members to build deeper working relationships within trusted group affiliations. CollectiveX is the inspiration of Clarence Wooten, a serial entrepreneur and the founder of ImageCafe, the Internet's first superstore of ready-made web sites. CollectiveX is a privately-held company which launched in 2006 and is based outside of Washington D.C., in Columbia, Maryland. CollectiveX received funding from Clarence Wooten, private investors as well as the State of Maryland. For more information please visit http://www.collectivex.com.

Source: Business Wire

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