I have thought about writing about the new online service called Nextdoor for a while now. I personally set up a 'neighborhood' for my area a while back and have been trying to get it off the ground. But with their latest innovation, it seemed like a good time to talk about it.

To back up, Nextdoor is a service that allows you to set up a social network for your neighborhood. As a founder you can set up the geographic limits. If you are in a suburb or planned community, the boundaries may be set already. If you are in a city or community that doesn't have set boundaries, this could take some additional planning. Once you set up the boundaries, you can send out postcard invitations to everyone in your area. You can also print up flyers, posters and send out emails to invite your neighbors to join. Once your community has at least 10 members, your community is set. Neighbors can use Nextdoor to share news about lost pets and break-ins. You can look for baby-sitters, offer up things for sale or for free, or even direct message a fellow Nextdoor neighbor. The uses are pretty open once you get folks using the service. However, the newest addition to this service is the beginning of much more to come, I would guess. This Halloween season you can mark your house (on the Nextdoor map) with a candy corn to show that you are giving away candy for trick-or-treat. Just another neat way to grow stronger communities.