Archant partners with local social network Streetlife.com

Archant and local social network Streetlife.com have today announced a partnership to enhance the publisher's social media capability, allow titles to discuss issues of interest with their readers in real-time, and to "create new commercial opportunities".

Streetlife.com is an online platform that is free to use and allows people to exchange practical information, advice and opinions with other people in their local community.

This includes nearby news, events, information about crime and public services and advice. It also helps people arrange events such as street parties, coordinate the swapping and lending of skills and goods and can be used for "getting deals from local businesses".

Archant's expects the partnership will fit with its local strategy, "enhancing our social media capability and enabling our audiences to interact with their local media and community, discuss issues of public interest in real-time and add multimedia messages, events and polls, while also creating new commercial opportunities," Serge Taborin, group business development director, Archant said in a release.

The collaboration will see Streelife.com "rapidly extend its reach to local communities across the UK, building on Archant's portfolio of 60 newspapers, 80 magazines and 200 digital products, reaching almost five million people", the release states.

Nina Whittaker, head of communities for Streetlife.com told Journalism.co.uk the local social network is in no way aiming to be a hyperlocal news site but instead "complement's Archant's local news sites".

"It's the online equivalent of chatting over the garden fence," she said.

Whittaker said the aim of the partnership for Streetlife.com is to grow its user base as Archant titles will "invite readers to come onto the platform".

"Our aim is to build vibrant communities, which means getting clusters of users in particular geographic areas; this partnership will enable us to do just that."

In its pilot area of Wandsworth, London, Streetlife.com "has become a dependable source of local knowledge for thousands of users, who use the site to share common issues and recommendations, organise social groups and discuss public services with council officials, police and other residents", the release states.

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