Mumsnet local sites - have you checked out yours yet? What do you think?

[JustineMumsnet]

Hi all,
It's been a wee while since we our launched our new, improved Mumsnet local sites. Some of you will have already found yours and are hopefully finding it useful, others have yet have that particular pleasure - if so please do have a butchers now.

Aside from listings, local Talk and information there many Local Ambassadors organising regular group meet-ups, so do have a look to see if there's an active group Meet-up near you and join up to get news of the latest get togethers.

Most of all we'd like to know what you think of it so far. Nb it's still a work in progress

Bit quiet on mine... And takes a while for people to get back! Also, I've posted some items for sale but hugely unsure if anyone else actually looks at the site! Quite hard to access via iPhone too.

I just want to mention that the Local Editors are working hard to get up listings and getting local businesses interested in YOUR local pages but why would businesses want to get involved when the local area is empty and void of chatter.

So go on! Visit your local page today and stick with us. See what will happen.

• Mumsnet Tyneside

There is going to be a way to contact local editors right on the page but it's not there yet.

Our emails are NameOfLocal @mumsnetlocal .com so you can try that, but as has been said, not all areas of an LE yet.

I am Local Editor of Dundee/Angus and Fife, and like the others have been putting listings up and working hard to get companies to list - but it is hard to persuade companies to do so when hardly anyone is using the talk boards.

We know people are lurking but not posting. We can SEE YOU [puts spy camera on]

;)

Some areas don't have a LE yet, so if you want to get involved contact MNHQ and volunteer.

MN has 35,000 posts a day - If everyone would post on one local thread, and list one business or event, we would have really active local boards.

We have been discussing the kind of thing to get you all interested. Here are my current ideas

• bookclub

• theatre group

• knitting group (incl. Woolly Hugs and YarnBombing)

• BFing support

but am open to other ideas or suggestions.

Dundee Angus

MN Dundee/Angus

MN Dundee/Angus FB page

MN Dundee/Angus Twitter

Fife

MN Fife

MN Fife FB page

MN Fife Twitter

I'm using the Android app on a Samsung Galaxy S2

And don't forget skills swap... I offer knitting/crochet help...

Agree that it can be hard to see on the app, I've tagged the boards so they are in my topics.

I am a Local Ambassador for Bath, but post in Somerset and Bristol too as they are close by me.

I have lost the privileges I had as a tsarina, being able to create a listing without owning or reviewing it meant I could list things I'd come across without much fuss. Being able to edit listings, being able to move listings to correct categories.

If everyone listed one local event, added a service or wrote a review then local would look more full.

More meet-ups for Bath coming soon, today is my due date... No signs yet but can't wait to get out for a drink and chat :)

We have a local editor. I have tried to contact her but no reply to my email from weeks ago.

Shame because I am doing it on behalf of a local group with 1000 members and I want to help promote MN local!

I think the key is the visibility. Could there be an 'opt-in' to have the last 24 hours postings in your local area (up to a max of three, say) appear as stickies in your list of active threads?
At the moment for anyone on a phone accessing MN primarily through active threads, local threads are basically invisible. And when you do amble over to look around, ancient tumbleweed. If you can get the talk threads going then I suspect the rest will follow?

That is a good idea, Domestic.

K8
Drop MNHQ a wee note to make sure that the LE is still active.

I think she is MmeL. She's been v good at the social media.

I'll put it on my to-do list and chase it up in a bit. She may just be really really busy. Like me

I'm the LE for Nottingham and Derby. Wave. Go on. I'm currently trying to sort out some meet ups. Hopefully we'll have stay and play sessions for the little mumsnetters and carers/parents, and something in the evening for us lot that involves wine.

I really need some help with the listings so I do know that there should be more; Nottingham and Derby are huge places and I'm doing my best.

local.mumsnet.com/derby

local.mumsnet.com/nottingham

K8
Give her another wee nudge then. Perhaps your email just got overlooked.

Have emailed in about becoming an LA. There's a couple of people on my local board but no info as such and it's all a bit confusing to navigate (sorry!)

I've looked periodically and not found much going on, and before you tell me to get going myself - I'm a lurker, I don't initiate .

But anyway, just had another look and found someone looking for other people with children starting at the school dd1's going to in September, so I'm pleased with that.

I know she's been working really hard. It was via Twitter that I got sucked back in after my break. So blame the Richmond Ed I'm back!

domesticslattern that's a great idea!

oooh, she is a v hard worker. I don't think she sleeps, K8.

No more lurking. Dive in, Wem.

Don't forget to have a look at the OFFERS talk threads - where MNetters get discounts on all sorts of great stuff.

Arf

@afussyphase

I wish it were used more. I check periodically and there is never much of anything listed in my areas (Islington, Camden). And on the childcare boards people post about having had problems getting their listings up!

I like the idea of having all the things there. I'd check it more if I didn't have to click through to the various sub-topics and sub-locations only to see that there aren't any listings -- that gets boring really quickly. For example, for meet-ups, you get a whole list of neighbourhoods, each of which you have to click on, only to see the message that there are no meet-ups planned there. Why not simply list active meet-ups for the whole "Local" instead? Similarly, if you hover over 'Services', a list pops up, but you have to click through and wait for it to load to find out that there are no veg box schemes. Similarly for childcare - great that it is sub-divided, but with each set (babysitters, nannies, childminders etc) having only 1-10 entries with most having only 1 or 2, why not group them together so we can read them quickly? And allow colour-coding or some quick at-a-glance distinction between those looking for childcare and offering it?

Conclusion: just like babsmam, I like the idea, prefer never to have to look at NM again if I can help it (which I currently do for local childcare stuff), but it needs heavier use, and easier at-a-glance viewing might help with that.

Have you been on Islington or Camden recently Fussy? There are tonnes of listings on Islington and lots on Camden too. If you're looking at childcare listings, you can choose to 'see all' and scroll down through all of them in one go. Most have 'nanny' or 'childminder' in the title so it's easy to scan.

I visit mine when I have a question or need advice on a local topic. It's
very quiet and I notice it can go for weeks without a new topic in Talk. I do usually get one or two replies, however.

I've posted a few times on local and met up with other mums once but it doesn't seem very organised. I think because it's new there's no existing meetups group to join.

actually i've just looked at netmums and joined my local group there because there are meetups every week,they are all organised, i can just turn up.

on the local board on mumsnet I post and then maybe don't get a reply for a couple of weeks if at all.

I am trying!

Nan
do keep trying - it will get better once people start using it.

And if you are on FB or Twitter, look for your local site there - you can find them by searching for mumsnet and the local site name. I post links to interesting threads there.