Frequently Asked Questions

General

What is Neighborology?

Neighborology is where neighbors come together online to meet, talk, share info, and have fun!

Neighborology gives you the tools to:

• Contribute to a lively discussion forum
• Write and share reviews about local restaurants and businesses
• Publish photos, videos, and blogs
• And much more!

Best of all, you decide where you meet and interact with your neighbors: in your Home, Community or Region. Your Home is your own personalized space on Neighborology. A Community is a members-only space for you and your closest neighbors. A Region is open to all Neighborology users.

How do I get started?

It's easy to get started:

1. Build a Home » 2.  Join or start a Community » 3. Invite neighbors and friends » 4. Participate

1. Build a Home:
   Click on "Join Neighborology" at the top of any page and follow Step #1 to build a Home.
2. Join or start a Community:
   If you want to join or start a private, members-only Community, follow Step #2. Go directly to Step #3 if you just want to hang out in a Region.
3. Invite Neighbors and Friends:
   The more neighbors and friends you invite to Neighborology, the more fun it is for everybody.
4. Participate:
   Now you can browse Homes and Regions, read reviews, ask questions in the Forum or write your first blog entry! Have fun!

Is Neighborology free?

Yes, every feature is free!

Home

What is a Home?

Your Home is a personal space where you can:

• Contribute to a lively discussion forum
• Write and share reviews about local businesses
• Publish blogs, photos, and videos
• Keep track of your neighbors and friends
• Send and receive messages
• And much more!

How do I change my Home settings: appearance, name, shortcut, etc?

To edit your home settings, log in to your Home and click on the "Settings" link at the top of the page.

Here, you will be able to change all preferences related to your Home and account including name, shortcut, colors, appearance, email settings, and more.

Who can see my posts?

At Neighborology, you control who sees your posts!

When posting a review, forum post, blog entry, or other message, a "Share With" option will be displayed. Here, you can choose whether you wish to share your post with your Region (everyone) or only with members of your Community (Community "Announcements" are only displayed to members of your Community).

We do everything we can to protect your privacy and have strict measures to protect your personal information.

Community

What is a Community?

A Community is a private, members-only space for neighbors who live nearby or who share a common interest. A community can be a subdivision, building, town, complex, city, organization, county, or any other group of people! Users are granted access to a Community only through an invitation code or verification question. In most cases, a Neighborologist manages access to a Community.

Is Neighborology in my community?

Neighborology is expanding quickly, but if we're not in your Community yet, you can be the one to bring us there. It only takes a few seconds. Really! Just click on "Join Neighborology" at the top of any page and follow the four easy steps. After starting a Community, we'll help you invite your neighbors!

What is a Neighborologist?

A Neighborologist is a person in charge of managing Community membership and settings. The Neighborologist is, in most cases, a resident of the Community that is being managed. Neighborologists also serve as a liaison between Neighborology and its users. There are many benefits to being a Neighborologist.

What is an invitation code?

An invitation code is a unique numeric code that is required to gain access to a private, members-only Community. In most cases a member of a Community sends an invitation code to a neighbor. You will also be asked to submit an invitation code during Step #2 of Join Neighborology. If you don't have an invitation code, you may be asked to answer a verification question.

What if I don't have an invitation code?

Don't worry, you may still be able to join a Community!

In order to verify you are authorized to join a Community, you may be asked a verification question.

Your request will then be reviewed by the Community Neighborologist. When you are admitted to the Community, you will receive an email notification.

What is a verification question?

A verification question is a question set up by the Community Neighborologist to verify that you are authorized to join the Community.

Example questions might include some unique information about your community or other personal information.

How do I become a Neighborologist?

There are three ways:

1. Start a new Community. When you start a new Community, you automatically become the Neighborologist of the new Community.
2. Express your interest in becoming a Neighborologist when joining a Community by checking the appropriate box.
3. Send a message to your Community Neighborologist(s) by clicking on the "Contact Neighborologists" link in your Community and checking the appropriate box.

Why should I become a Neighborologist?

Neighborologists serve a crucial role in creating vibrant communities at Neighborology.

Neighborologists receive unique benefits including the ability to manage Community membership and Community settings as well as invitations to exclusive Neighborologist-only events in your Region.

Region

What is a Region?

A Region is a city or group of cities within a distinct geographical area. Regions are open to all Neighborology users and allow you to meet a broader circle of neighbors and friends. Remember to visit your friends' Regions to see what's happening around the country!

Account

How do I change my email address?

To edit your email address and password, log in to your Home and click on the "Settings" link at the top of the page.

Who can see my name?

Only your Home Name will appear on Neighborology.

The only time your name will be displayed is when you send an invitation to join Neighborology.

How do I verify my Neighborology account?

After you have built your Home, you will receive an email with a special link. Click on the verification link, or copy and paste it into your browser, and your account will be verified. If you do not receive your verification email, you can have it resent by accessing your Home Settings. Please contact us if you have any problems.

How can I cancel my account?

To cancel your account, log in to your Home and click on the "Settings" link at the top of the page.

Invitation

How do I invite neighbors and friends?

The more neighbors and friends you invite to Neighborology, the more fun it is for everybody. We encourage you to invite all your neighbors, friends, family, and colleagues to your Home and Community.

To invite people to your Home, click on "Invite Neighbors & Friends" at the top of any page on Neighborology. Next, click on "Invite to Home" and enter the email addresses of the people to whom you wish to send an email invitation.

To invite people to a Community, click on "Invite Neighbors & Friends" at the top of any page on Neighborology. Next, click on "Invite to Community" and choose one of the three options for inviting a neighbor:

1. Send Email Invitations: Here, you can enter the email addresses of the people you wish to invite.
2. Distribute Your Own Printed Invitations: Here, you can choose to generate a poster that you can print and then distribute to people in your Community. The poster will display an invitation code as well as instructions on how to join your Community.
3. Order Neighborology Printed Invitations: Here, you can place an order to have Neighborology mail you invitations that you can then distribute to people in your Community. The invitations are free but we request that you only order invitations that you intend to distribute. We require your mailing address for this option.

When your recipients accept your invitation, they will automatically appear on your Home "Neighbors & Friends" page.

What is an email invitation?

An email invitation is one way to invite your neighbors and friends to Neighborology. You can send an email invitation to your neighbors and friends during Step #3 of Join Neighborology or by clicking on "Invite Neighbors & Friends" at the top of any page on Neighborology.

Email invitations to your Home will automatically contain your email address in the "From" line as well as your first and last name. It will also include a link that brings your friends directly to your Home.

Email invitations to your Community will automatically contain your email address in the "From" line as well as your first and last name. It will also include a link to your Community and an invitation code.

You can also customize the text that will appear on an email invitation.

Messages

How do I send a message to someone?

Log in to your Home and click on “Messages” at the top of the page.

How do I block someone from sending me messages?

To block someone from sending you messages, click on the "Block Home" button that appears at the bottom of the page when viewing a message.

Forum

What is the Forum?

Neighborology's Forum is a place for lively discussions with your neighbors and friends.

What should I post on the Forum?

You can post anything about a topic that interests you or that relates to your Community or Region. Basically anything is acceptable as long as it doesn't violate our decency standards. Topics may include:

• Suggestions for restaurants, entertainment venues, doctors or other services in your local area.
• Hobbies such as gardening, writing, skiing, cooking, traveling, etc.
• Real estate trends in your area, including popular locations to buy a home.
• Interesting local events, such as an arts festival, a street fair or a special exhibition at a museum.
• Requests for information about local school districts.

What shouldn’t I post on the Forum?

It's our goal to make Neighborology a pleasant, safe, and healthy community for everybody. Therefore we ask all users to respect your neighbors and friends and use Neighborology for enjoyable, friendly discussions.

Behavior that will not be tolerated includes:

• Defaming a third party
• Harrassing or abusing other users
• Posting material containing profanity, vulgarity, hate speech or threats of violence
• Posting any pornographic content, including sexually explicit pictures
• Posting other users’ personally identifiable information (last names, email addresses, phone numbers, postal addresses, etc.)
• Posting under multiple identities by the same person

If a user engages in these behaviors we have no choice but to consider removing posts or suspending the user’s account. Please read our Terms of Service for further information on using Neighborology.

Will Neighborology ever remove posts?

It's unlikely, but Neighborology will remove any post that violates our decency standards or Terms of Service.

Reviews

What should I review?

Any business, service or public venue can be reviewed on Neighborology. These include restaurants, salons, spas, hotels, shops, doctors, plumbers, auto mechanics, golf courses, parks, churches, etc.

How do I write a good review?

Neighborology reviews are a fun and useful tool for learning about businesses and services in your area or in an area you would like to visit.

The best reviews are based on personal, first-hand experience and offer specific details. We welcome both positive and negative reviews, but please do not post false information.

What if I’m connected to a business I’m reviewing?

Any personal or professional connection to a business should be explicitly disclosed in a review, as should any special treatment or discounts from a business. We ask that you post reviews that are reliable, honest, and impartial, in order to maximize their usefulness to other users.

Will Neighborology ever remove reviews?

It's unlikely, but Neighborology will remove any review that violates our decency standards or Terms of Service.

Privacy

Who can see my personal information?

We never reveal your name, email address, postal address, identity or personal information on Neighborology, except when you send an invitation to a neighbor or friend, which will display your email address and first and last name.

Your Home will only display your city and your Region. We only display your Community information to other members of your Community.

We advise you never to reveal your personal information except through private emails with people you know and trust.

What does Neighborology do with my personal information?

Neighborology takes your privacy very seriously. We do not sell, share or trade any of your personal information, unless required to do so by law. We use strong measures to protect your personal information as well as to prevent spam.

If you receive spam from another Neighborology user, or a message that is harassing, abusive, or violates our Terms of Service, please forward the message to info@neighborology.com

For further information please review our Privacy Policy.