We've added "Groups"!

Since the beginning when we first conceptualized FoodieLink.com, The FoodieLink Team has had an ongoing discussion regarding the best way for members to discuss their interests in food. After weeks of brainstorming, we concluded that the concept of "Groups" is the best means for members to get engaged.

• With the vast array of topics and areas of interest in the world of food, providing a platform for Groups creates an organic member-driven structure to discussions.
  
• Groups allows members to find other like-minded members around specific topics of interest.

So here is how we have implemented Groups on the site:

• Members have the ability to create a Group. The Group can be formed around a specific topic (eg. "Healthy food for kids"), or even around an organization (eg. "Foodielink"). Each Group should have a good description and can have a photo/image associated with it.
• Once a Group is created, other members have the ability to "join" it. Once joining a Group, a member will be notified when other people join the group (reminder: you can configure your notifications to send you email here)
• Within a Group, members have the ability to create "Topics" for discussion. For example, within the Movies That Feature Food group, you could create a Topic to discuss a specific movie that you like.

We still have various functions and refinements to add around the Groups feature, but we've launching it this week because we have had much feedback from Beta members who have wanted to engage and start some dialog. So give it a go and let us know what you think!

Other notes for the Beta:

• Profile Photos and Information: As you can see from the "Newest Foodies" section, we do have a good flow of new members joining the site every day. But very few Profile photos! Once you join, please take some time to upload a Profile photo and enter some information about yourself!
  
• Invite your friends via email: Some of you have asked if there is a way to invite friends to join the site. The answer is "yes!". From your Inbox, go to "Invitations" and you'll see a place to enter an email address plus a note to invite someone to join the site. They will receive an email with a link that will allow them to activate an account. Please give it a try...your friends will thank you!
  
• As much as we'd love you to invite your entire Google or Yahoo Contact/Address book, unfortunately that function currently does not work. We hope to have it fixed soon.
  

As always, you can contact us with questions and/or feedback at support@foodielink.com, as well as reaching out to phil.

Sincerely,

The FoodieLink Team