Last September, Aaron Potts, creator of the website Today is that Day, soft launched Personal Development Partners (PDP). PDP is an online community of individuals who want to learn about personal development, teach others about personal development, or who simply want to interact with other people who are interested in personal growth and self improvement concepts.
Now, with a new year ahead, Potts is ready to take this easy-to-use and information-filled personal development social networking website to the next level.
Aaron Potts (pictured) joins us today with his thoughts, ideas and goals for PDP. It is my hope after reading this interview; you will be inspired to join Personal Development Partners like I have.
What is the mission, or purpose of Personal Development Partners?
To bring people who are interested in improving their lives through personal growth and development together with other people who are interested in the same. The Personal Development Partners interface was put together very specifically to make it very simple for people with similar goals to find each other through an easy to use and accurate search algorithm.
Why did you start PDP?
After having been heavily involved in “the blogosphere” for more than a year, I saw a stark contrast between the incredible personal development writing that was available on the Internet vs. how many people were actually improving their lives in any measurable way as a result of having access to all of that wisdom.
I knew that if people didn’t start taking it “off the ‘net,” then a year later bloggers would still be blogging, readers would still be reading, and nothing much would have really changed out in the real-world lives of those readers.
What value can visitors expect to receive when visiting?
The core value at Personal Development Partners is the community members themselves. I have added a lot of value to the site via tons of free products, cool profile and instant messaging options, etc., but the real value comes from the community itself.
We’ve got people over there who are just getting started down their path to personal growth and development, while at the same time we have seasoned writers, bloggers, and life coaches who have been working in their professions for years. All of those people interact in a community forum which has become the impromptu centerpiece of Personal Development Partners. When I first built the site, I almost didn’t even have a forum, and now it is one of the most used features of the site!
How do you see PDP growing and moving forward in 2008?
The fastest answer to that question which comes immediately to mind is to crank up the membership levels. The site didn’t soft launch until September of 2007, and working out the bugs while still maintaining my own blogs did not allow very much time for additional marketing to get the word out about the site. In 2008, I have already gotten started on the process of generating interest in the site via a wide array of marketing efforts, and the membership is already increasing as a result.
In addition, although the site originally launched with both free and paid membership options, I decided to “clean up” the community by only allowing people to participate who were willing to see enough value in the community to pay for a low-cost premium membership. The membership rates are dirt-cheap, and that was by design. It’s not about raking in the dough by getting a bunch of people to join the site, but rather about people demonstrating their commitment to personal growth by actually paying for a site that is dedicated to that very concept.
As far as new things to look for in 2008, I’ve got plenty of wonderful ideas that I am tossing around, but I’d rather not get into too much detail at this point because my real goal is for the community itself to say what they would like to see. If I’ve got a bunch of bells and whistles planned, but the community members say that would rather have a weekly conference call than a bunch of “bling” for the site, then I am going to listen to the members in that regard!
How is PDP different from other social networking sites?
In a word – Progress. The entire point of the site is for people to be able to partner up with others in order to effect actual positive changes in their lives. There are plenty of social networking sites out there, and some of them are pretty cool. However, most of them are geared more towards entertainment or business networking than the simple act of creating positive changes in the lives of the members. At PDP, networking with others for mutual benefit is both encouraged, and fully facilitated.
In addition, since the personal development field has blown up so explosively over the last year or two, PDP gives the true leaders in that field a chance to get in front of an audience that is actually interested in what they have to say, rather than an audience made up of people who followed a stray link from somewhere else on the Internet. The PDP Junior and Senior Thought Leaders are exactly that – leaders. By going to any of their blogs and/or websites, you will see real-world information, products, or services that can help anyone to experience personal growth. PDP gives those Thought Leaders a place to interact with – and prove their expertise to – their target audience.
Show me another site that offers all of that to both personal development students as well as teachers – and for less than 4 bucks a month – and I’ll be the first one to run right over there and sign up!
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