There’s a new(ish) social media app at the top of the App Store charts, which of course means I had to give it a try.
Circle bills itself as the “most popular local network,” boasting that, “Each month, more than a million people are joining Circle for real-time information and conversation about nearby crime, traffic, natural disasters – as well as places to go and things to do.”
According to a direct message I got from the CEO (he also sent me an email, and I’m fully expecting him to arrive at my door any minute), I’m the 3,623rd member from Des Moines to join Circle. But the only content I see is from local TV stations, a local newspaper and weather updates.
I assume all of that is automated and not actual accounts run by those media companies, but I’m not sure. As a user, I don’t like being “not sure.”
Some more things I did not like:
– The app immediately had me following 31 people with 28 followers. I signed up via Facebook, so I assume they all came from my Facebook friend list. But it’s still strange (and robot-like) that the app automatically followed people instead of just suggesting people.
– It wrote a profile for me, again based on what it saw on my Facebook profile. What’s worse, the profile had me working at the wrong place. But that was easy enough to change.
– It also seems to want me to send invites to everyone I know at every step of the process. I clicked on some “karma” thing and it offered to send text messages to everyone in my address book. Um, no.
What I do like:
I do think there is serious potential here. I was a huge fan of the location-based social networking app foursquare – especially while traveling. But the whole concept of checking in at locations has lost its luster for me.
So I’m looking for that next location-based app that will bring value to my life. Will it be Circle? Hard to say without much content on there at the moment.
If I can learn something new and useful based on my current location (special offers, info only the locals know, traffic updates), then I see value. If it’s just content I can get in other places I’m already checking (Facebook, Twitter), then I don’t see any reason to use Circle.