Back in 2005, Michael wrote that the user-configured AJAX homepage space was getting crazy crowded, with prominent competitors including Netvibes, PageFlakes, and iGoogle, along with a host of others. Each of these services offer an array of widgets that allow users to tailor their homepages to suit their tastes, but for the most part they do it exactly the same way and do little to differentiate themselves.
Nesting, a new startup that launched this week, is taking a shot in the crowded space by combining the traditional AJAX homepage with a basic social network. To further separate themselves from the rest of the pack, they’re going after one audience: moms.
The site sports a very soothing look that is well suited to its target demographic, with lots of pastels and rounded corners. The widgets themselves are also well designed, presenting an adequate amount of information without becoming overwhelming or cluttered. At launch, the available widgets include weather, news, and a photo-sharing “Memory Manager”, with a calendar on the way in the next month.
Beyond the widgets seen on other homepage services, the site also includes some basic social networking functionality, including support for Friends and Groups. Data from the social network can be drawn into the widgets – for example, your child’s soccer team could create a group, which could then automatically update your calendar wiget with game dates and information. For the time being calendars can only pull data from within Nesting, but the site plans to support importing from iCal and Google Calendar soon.
In terms of customization, Nesting can’t compete with the likes of PageFlakes and iGoogle – there simply aren’t very many widgets available. But many moms may not care if they can’t embed the latest Digg posts or sports scores, provided they have access to more personal content like their child’s soccer schedule. Nesting may fill this role well, but there is no shortage of sites geared towards mothers that it will have to compete with, including Maya’s Mom and CafeMom.
Whenever you think there could not be anymore new social network, one pops. The niche design is quite elegant and its simplicity could help attract moms.
Aim for single moms. There is one left out field that should not be at all.
This is DOA. All of this stuff is available in a lot of other places and then there is Netvibes and Pageflakes.
See also Bigtent, Wikia, etc.
Chasing Moms!! Good luck with that. IMO Too late and off target on this one…
Journal (blogging) is also live at this time
Thanks TC!
It’s great to see this puppy live!
The design is simply second to none.
This is just another shot at social networks that will fizzle quickly. Why use this just cause it’s tailored to moms? that means the site will only get moms. How does the site generate loyalty?
See screenshot, “365 days of sex”. I was curious, ok! Link here: http://www.nest...ays-of-Sex.html
Big sex topic in the middle. Big turn-off on a family site. Do these people know their target audience?
The site is for you, not your kids. The point is to help organize your hectic life and get the resources and info you need as busy mom.
Don’t pay attention to the shills.
It may be a good site, but shills turn me off.
Nice logo concept!
Seems to me that they are copying the style of this site to a certain degree. A lot I should say. This is the site my wife has used since we got married, http://www.thenest.com/ , and before that she used http://wedding.theknot.com.
I think that techcrunch reviewed this property: http://www.thenestbaby.com/
So my first impression was “great…another one.” I’ve been on all of the mom sites…mayasmom…cafemom…mothersclick. The reason none of them have hooked me is that I always felt a total disconnect with the fact that I have little time to waste and I already have “real” friends (and 3 kids).
Nesting.com clearly recognizes this and has taken a shot at giving moms something they can actually use. Would like to see some more the integration of my ical and an ap for my iphone but I think they’ve hit the mark. I know a lot of moms who can’t stand mom social networks that would actually use this.
Written like the head of the marketing department, even with road map like suggestions.
Will these shill ever learn?
Nails the demographic with style and ease of use. I can honestly say my wife and her friends know nothing about pageflakes; which makes this site all-new to them. The right alliances with media and brands will bring them clients for sure.
Re: busy tech mom
I agree. Also, seems like a lot of the other sites are just a lot of advertising and tips- this is more for organization which is nice and actually useful.
Shill. Total Shill.
When I scanned TC I read this as “Nesting: A PageFlakes For Noms” which I thought was clever until I realized I was an idiot.
Always amuses me when geeks dismiss tools that aren’t at all meant for geeks. It’s like dismissing the value of a tricycle because it can’t be used for the Tour de France. Guess what? Moms don’t need an ultralight carbon frame.
Why use this over PageFlakes? Because non-techie Moms don’t want to have to sort through millions of options to find the ones that are relevant to them.
And guess what? 90% of American moms have never heard of PageFlakes or even TechCrunch. Easily. And that 90% holds the majority of the household purchasing power in this country.
Geeks like reveling in all the options and flexibility. Parents are pressed for time and don’t want to have to learn about all the different places you can get an RSS feed or widget or gadget or whatever I haven’t yet learned about to cram on a page.
They just want you to help them find the information they need so they can continue with the busy pace of their lives. Which, by the way, occur mostly offline, unlike most TC commenters’, apparently.
When will the culture shift so developers are spending less time trying to impress their friends and more time trying to tap in to the vast potential of middle America?
Or are we just going to let Wal-Mart develop the interface?
if I could digg this comment I would
(link back) Thrive or Fail? Nesting – an Ajax web aggregator for moms [VOTE] – http://www.thri...rfail.com/36a98
introducing the 3,451st mom site
This site is nothing special, I still prefer mysurfpad.com over this one!!
@fred, do you know any words other than shill?? haha you crack me up. and unless your parents are some mean ass social deviants who wanted to name their daughter fred, i find it hilarious how you comment on other people’s potentially honest feedback of the site when clearly you know nothing about the demographic or the site. utility focused vertical social networks are here to stay because they add value to the lives of people who engage with them. that being said, not all will be winners and it will be interesting to see where this goes.
Maya’s Mom was purchased some time ago by BabyCenter, which (last I saw) was owned by J&J. They’re a large mom’s site, though there are lots of others. Don’t know why Tech Crunch pegs competition to a company that’s wholly owned by another one in the same space. One word of caution; on the corporate site of one of the founders he quotes himself, which even by South CA standards is a little strange (dude: normally you make up the quotes and attribute them to others, like your marketing people have done above). Whatever … good luck, Nesting.
Good luck Nesting…
I agree with Busy Tech Mom and Knee Jerk Cynic Hater. This site is different because it has more useful features than others I’ve seen. Not one of my bazillion mom friends in the real world have ever heard of PageFlakes, but this is very accessible. If Nesting.com can get their calendar to sync with my iPhone, get the group functionality going, and add more “nests,” I’d be a happy mom and I’m sure my friends would be inclined to use the site as well.
Connie and any others who think going after the mom market is a waste of time should read “Trillion Dollar Moms” by Maria Bailey. We moms make the world go round. Get used to it.
I’ve also found another great parenting website which everyone should check out.
http://www.minti.com
Site looks ok but I really prefer minti.com because it has so much more in the way of parenting advice and you are able to blog and communicate with other members. A great parenting community and it is easy to navigate around so mums of all ages can use it!
I have to agree with MeSheHer.. Minti is another great parenting website that you all should check out..
I’ve been with this site for over 2 years and find it wonderful
minti is fantastic. I have also been a member for over 2 years. A great parenting community.
yqfdo jnkptmfw wlzpgdr uihrjtl egjxaob gzhwrbtu dseziapgr