It may sound strange, but the first time you visit the nearest housing society, you might notice a somewhat crooked corkboard hanging by the entrance near the lift. It is full of notices of different kinds, some from three weeks ago about the water supply issue; some about Diwali celebrations organized by the residents of the housing society and featuring tambola. Also, the board is covered in a note about cars parked in unauthorized places.
This board was always responsible for informing the society's residents about various issues, but very rarely did anyone pay attention to it and read the notices. Today, however, many societies are replacing these outdated notice boards with a modern community app that delivers instant updates, event notifications, maintenance alerts, and important announcements directly to residents’ smartphones. Instead of relying on faded paper notices, residents can now stay connected and informed in real time through a single digital platform.
The First Challenge to the Notice Board Authority – Group Chats
One of the biggest challenges to the authority of the notice board has been the emergence of group chats. While providing an alternative solution to the problem, they led to a certain disorder and created many problems while communicating in groups.
Firstly, you never know what kind of information will be posted at what time. You could get notifications about festivals forward right after somebody reported a gas leak near the basement.
Furthermore, it could happen that a complaint in your group started a discussion and even led to arguments. Moreover, it was impossible to filter these kinds of notices out from others.
Finally, old notices became outdated rather quickly in such an environment, and there was no way to find them anymore. All of these disadvantages proved that something should be changed. The old way seemed to be pretty outdated.
A Silent Revolution: The Emergence of Neighbourhood Apps
The arrival of the first neighbourhood app marked a real revolution, as it silently took all the power from the notice boards. As soon as a resident of the committee suggested this solution in the meeting, half of the society immediately installed the application. It took some time for others to understand how it works. But it has already worked. This new way allowed getting all the information you wanted to know at any time, without being disturbed by anything or anybody else.
Why Neighbourhood Apps Have Succeeded in Replacing Notice Boards
What were the reasons for changing notice boards to apps? These are things that contributed to the success of the revolution.
Security
In case of suspicion of any suspicious behaviour, you do not need to write down all of the relevant details in a notebook anymore. All you have to do is to alert the security personnel about the situation immediately through the application. No need to wait for security persons to answer your phone
Lost Items
With the help of the application, neighbours can respond to your post about your lost pet. Lost and Found can become so much easy..
Societies' Celebrations
Everybody receives instant notifications about all the celebrations held in the societies. Furthermore, the organizers can estimate the number of visitors accurately because of the RSVP.
Buying and Selling in Your Societies
If you wish to sell anything you no longer need and do not want to store at home anymore, you can easily sell it through the application. The only thing you need to do is to post your request and your neighbourhood will find you some buyers.
The Benefits of Neighbourhood Apps
Imagine that you have seen an unfamiliar bicycle park located near the basement of your housing society. Previously, you had to come to the guard and tell him about it. In addition to this, you could even forget about this incident if it disappeared the next day. Today, you can post the information immediately through the application. Other people confirm your observations, you notify the security personnel, and the situation is resolved.
These are the things that are done easier now. This is a big plus.
The Difference between Neighbourhood Apps and a Traditional Notice Board
Neighbourhood apps have made everything more convenient for us. Traditional notice boards had one great feature- face-to-face communication but with busy schedules, people leaving early in the morning and coming back late, they had little time to read the notice boards.
With community apps, residents could share an interesting announcement on the platform and share funny moments, stories, and experiences anytime.
Notice boards had handwritten notes but with community apps, those messages can be shared digitally and a large number of people have reading probability.
To summarize everything mentioned, the neighbourhood apps provide many advantages and increased security aspects as well.
What Does a Good Neighbourhood App Do for Your Housing Society?
What advantages can neighbourhood app by Neighbrsnook app provide that regular applications do not provide?
First of all, it significantly simplifies the information exchange process. Instead of spending time preparing your requests or complaints, you can post everything instantly, and you will be promptly notified of any developments concerning your matter. Every visitor will be digitally logged, hence you have a record of who came in and went out.
Furthermore, if you are using a Neighbrsnook app in your society, you will hardly miss any events. Because of the obligatory notifications, your participation becomes mandatory.
In general, the only thing these apps allow doing is to facilitate communications and nothing more.
Conclusion
The corkboard is still hanging above the entrance to the elevator in most housing societies. Despite the fact that the announcements on it are outdated and infrequently replaced, the functions of it have long migrated to the apps.
Societies who use Neighbrsnook as a neighbourhood app say that they can feel a huge difference. There are fewer cases with forgotten announcements and a faster response rate. Thus, if you are still using a notice board in combination with a regular group chat, you may consider switching.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is a neighbourhood app and how does it help housing societies?
It is a digital platform for housing societies' internal communications. It helps keep track of various information and facilitates residents' interaction.
What difference does a neighbourhood app make compared to a regular group chat?
Group chats are chaotic. There are no filters for unnecessary information. A neighbourhood app keeps it structured and provides easy access to all data.
Can a neighbourhood app help organize society security?
Indeed, neighbourhood apps can improve security thanks to visitor management, instant alerts, and real-time communication with the security guards.
Are neighbourhood apps suitable for smaller housing societies?
Of course, these apps are suitable for societies of all sizes. Its interface is flexible enough to adapt to the unique characteristics of every society.
How can we deal with non-tech-savvy residents who prefer notice boards?
Usually, societies manage notice boards and group chats simultaneously during the transitional period.
Is it possible to buy and sell items within the society using a neighbourhood app?
Yes, these apps include a marketplace where you can buy or sell goods within your society.
