After facebook started in 2004, it swiftly grew to become a large success and it now has many million members. Only one web site is currently rated higher than facebook on alexa's list of top web pages, the number one is google. Quite a lot of the online traffic is centered around social network sites, and lots of newbies, site owners and companies would like to figure out how to setup a social networking site.

When building a social network, you can more or less use three different approaches. The first and least difficult solution is registering with a social network service which will allow you to setup your social network by just editing your social network settings. This doesn't demand any technological knowledge, so if you are not a computer savvy individual, this might be the best choice. One can find free services out there, however I do not suggest selecting them because you should really buy your own domain name. The starting price for a great platform is about 20$ monthly, however depending on exactly what functionality you desire, you may have to pay more.

Another method you can use is getting a social networking script or downloading an open source software that you set up on your hosting server. The most popular open source social networking software is elgg, that you can download at no cost. The commercially made social networking applications range in starting price from about 99$ to 397$ based on what sort of license and options you are looking for. Creating your social internet site using a software requires some technological knowledge. The advantages are that you are in full control of your own data and that the system is normally not encrypted and it is extensible.

I will not discuss in details how you can setup a social networking site using a script in this brief article, but listed below are the fundamental information:

1. Download your software to your computer

2. Extract the contents of the .zip file

3. Find a hosting company which have the correct features and pay for a web hosting plan

4. Add a new database to your web hosting account

5. Upload the social networking script with a FTP software to your web hosting account

6. Start the software's installation wizard

7. Alter the configuration settings of your social network script

8. Change the design of your social networking site or locate a template that appeals to you

The last option is choosing a coder which can build a tailor made solution for you. This will definitely cost more than paying for or finding an open source software that has already been created. The benefit is that your online community is going to be 100% unique and catered to your requirements. Almost all social networking scripts are unencrypted and extensible, so extending a script that has been developed and tested well before hand, will help save a lot of time and money creating the basic elements that most social sites have.

All the three methods mentioned that can be used to set up a social network has their advantages and disadvantages. When determining how to build a social networking site, you need to give consideration to the cost, if you have got the technical abilities needed, what features you are looking for and if you are in complete control of your database. Personally I would never use a service provider where you can't use your own domain and are not in full control of your files and database, as I would not want to risk losing my business if my provider went out of business.