Bibi Veth realised the importance for working women to be able to exchange experiences  and thoughts on their career and offer each other help in furthering it. From that realisation sprung the Dutch network  'Haarnetwerk', a community for all kinds of women with an ambition, a career (freelancers, employees, businesswomen etc.) who want to come together to do just that.  The network allows women to present and promote their work, but is also used by women who are looking for a job. We asked how she got to set up this network and what makes her unique in a online world that sees more and more networks for women.

How did you come up with the idea for haarnetwerk? And what made you decide to actually set it up?
For the last 14 months I was an editor for an online women's  magazine, Vrouw.nl. This was my first full time job after graduating. Working for Vrouw.nl has given me the opportunity to learn about websites, communities, writing, editing and design.

However, I missed an important aspect, one of my passions: the possibility  to bring together (ambitious) career women. The focus on those women and the necessity of women's emancipation. That is when I came up with haarnetwerk.

I have attended several readings and workshops about women's emancipation, female leadership, gender differences etc. The one thing that pops up every time during these events is the need to share experiences and perhaps to change the rather conservative mentality towards women and career or women on top.

What distinguishes the network from other platform with a similar mission of bringing women together?
When I started haarnetwerk in October 2008, there weren't many women's online communities in The Netherlands. (Now they are popping up like mushrooms and it is becoming a hype.) Because of my job I am quite experienced with communities and networking, so this step seemed an easy and logical one to take.

I wanted to give these women a place to meet online. I know businesswomen are very busy -  for most women the day doesn't end at five, besides having a career, they run a household, they have children to look after, husbands, parents/parents in law etc.  My network distinguishes itself from other platforms, through its accessibility.  Apart from that, the members have the freedom to participate in their own time and it has a very simple content management system, so it is user-friendly. haarnetwerk is informal, I want people to be civilized and friendly there, it is an easy going place, but with quality content. Members do not have to pay a fee. That also makes it easily accessible.

How did you fund it? Do you intend to make money with it? If so, do you have a business model for it?
I don't make any money with haarnetwerk at the moment, but it doesn't cost me any money either. The site is built upon free community software called Ning. The reason for this is that I want to test this initiative before I invest in it. First of all, is there any interest? Secondly, do women participate actively? I have experienced that women participate less in online communities than men, or that it is harder to persuade women to be an active member. In my opinion this is strange,  since the main issue is that these businesswomen WANT to meet and share knowledge, or so they say. I understand the underlying motive however, women have lots on their minds and have little time, will or energy to spend the evening online. There is also a difference in online behavior between men and women. Men spend much more time online and are not afraid of the un-anonymous nature of some communities. But maybe I am completely mistaken and the future success of haarnetwerk will prove me wrong!

Making money with this community is not my first concern. I do want to make it an active community with a lot of members, who are all able to invite their friends, colleagues and so on. Didn't all successful communities (for example Facebook or Twitter) start as a hobby or from a personal need?

Tell me one experience you had in setting it up that others can learn from?
The most important thing - cliché or not - is that you have to take certain risks once in a while, be impulsive, follow your heart and do what makes you happy regardless of  whether you are afraid. Everything in life comes with ups and downs, nothing is easy, but it is worth fighting for. You can learn a lot from stepping out of your secure habitat and by taking a different path. It is definitely scary. But there is nothing wrong with admitting that fact.

What is the next step you plan to take?
Actually, I have decided to resign my job and start my own business as a freelance editor and photographer. The need to develop myself is the driving force behind this. Therefore, my first step would be to cut some deals with new employers and clients to make a living. Second of all, I have time left to promote haarnetwerk and achieve my goal: to make it a florissant and busy community.