When I first started on line like most I had absolutely no understanding of how many social media sites there were out there. AND it is growing daily. With sites like Ning everyone can now create their own social media site, will it ever end?? As I learn more I continually hear people talking about the aggregation of their social media sites and have read a few blog posts on how to use them. Here is the wikipedia definition:

Social network aggregation is the process of collecting content from multiple social network services, such as MySpace or Facebook. The task is often performed by a social network aggregator, which pulls together information into a single location,[1] or helps a user consolidate multiple social networking profiles into one profile.[2] Various aggregation services provide tools or widgets to allow users to consolidate messages, track friends, combine bookmarks, search across multiple social networking sites, read RSS feeds for multiple social networks, see when their name is mentioned on various sites, access their profiles from a single interface, provide “lifestreams”, etc.[2] Social network aggregation services attempt to organize or simplify a user’s social networking experience,[3] although the idea has been satirized by the concept of a “social network aggregator aggregator.”[4]

As you join more sites your content becomes spread all over the place and it becomes necessary to take some sort of control. If you do not then social media can be a BIG waste of time. Just think if you were using 25 different social media sites, how long does it take just to sign into them all? Here are 3 of the social network aggregation sites I have looked into…

Friendfeed “Read and share however you want – from your email, your phone or even from Facebook. Publish your FriendFeed to your website or blog, or to services you already use, like Twitter.” I admit to not really getting this one, I signed up for an account months ago and almost never use it.

Fuser “Manage your email and social networking messages from one inbox” Looks interesting but I have never invested any time to learn how to use it. I would love to hear from people who are successfully using this one.

Spokeo is a “search engine specialized in organizing people-related information from phone books, social networks, marketing lists, business sites, and other public sources.” This one was recommended to me by an associate and it does look interesting

You will need to decide exactly what you want the aggreation site to do for you, because there are many out there and more to come. Each one will do a little something different for you so it is best to look at the sites from the perspective of what you want it to do for you rather than what it has to offer. Take control or it will take control of you!