How To Use Social Networking Sites to Contact Loved Ones

Laptop

When your family moves away and you can’t see them every day it can feel like the end of the world. Thankfully, there are many ways to keep in contact with them. Telephone and Instant Messaging are great for conversations; however, there are will be times when you both aren’t available to talk. That’s where social networking sites come in.

Social networking sites allow families to keep in touch with each other even when both parties aren’t available. You may be wondering how this is possible. You will see that it is quite easy.

Choose a Site

In order to use a social networking site as a communication tool, everyone in the family who is going to be using it must use the same site. There are many, many social networking sites on the Internet, some more geared towards families than others. A few that are family oriented are:

Famiva – Famiva.com is a family social network that is secure and not visible to non-members. Families can communicate with one another, plan family events and build their family tree together. Families can share news, photos and calendars as well as creating a family map to everyone’s home.

Family Crossings – Family Crossings is a family networking site that offers areas for families to share family news, photo galleries, a family address book, live chat and a gift center at no cost. The upgraded version also features family history sections, a family database, wish list and special offers and more storage area for data. It is also a secure network with no contract requirements.

Facebook – Originally created for college students, Facebook’s following has become more diverse than ever, with families keeping in touch through its various pages and with its IM tool. Facebook also has an application that helps to identify relatives or possible relatives.

Facebook doesn’t contain as many of the family-oriented tools as some of the other websites; however, it is a great medium for sharing thoughts and everyday random stuff about each other. It can be used in addition to a more family oriented site to stay abreast of the non-family related news.

Itsourtree – This website lets users not only stay in touch with each other but also create family trees to trace genealogy. Itsourtree.com is great for communicating and keeps the family history in one place for all members to see.

Geni.com – Geni.com is a social networking site with the goal of making family communication easier and preserving family history. Each family has a private are to share their lives with each other through photos and videos. You can celebrate special occasions through virtual events and if you have a webcam set up you can virtually be there. Each family member can have a profile set up to share information about themselves.

Get Started Communicating

Once you have decided on a site to use for communication, you need to get your extended family members on board. Send them emails inviting them to join the networking site to set up their profiles.

You don’t have to wait for a family member to be online with you to communicate. That is part of the beauty of social networking. There will be many occasions where you are online at the same time and can use the chat tools to have conversations. However, there will be just as many times when you aren’t online at the same time.

These are the times when writing on the walls or posting news is the communication tool. You can look at pictures or videos your family has shared or read news they have posted for everyone. You can share family recipes and update the events calendar so everyone knows when the next big gathering is going to be.

Perhaps you want to send your child away at college a special note, just log in and send it to their personal profile.

Updates on the Go

Not all of the family social networking sites have mobile updates for cell phones, but for the ones that do, family members receive notifications almost as quickly as they are posted. These sites are wonderful additions to communication because they keep you updated no matter where you may be at the time.

Finding Family Members

You can also use social networking sites to find family members you might have lost touch with over the years. These sites offer search tools based on varying criteria, from email address to high school or college they attended. You get a warm feeling when you reconnect with that cousin or aunt from years ago. Not only can you chat and catch up but you can share pictures and videos to share your life.

Social networking sites have gone from friends meeting up to talk and plan the weekend to families using them to bridge the gap of distance. Knowing when your grandchild’s first tooth came in and seeing it firsthand is an amazing feeling and keeps you in the loop with your children and extended family.

Communicating using social networks isn’t the same as being with your family, but it is the next best thing. Advances in technology have made viewing your family with webcams and social network sites as close to being there as possible.