Braggie actually encourages you to show off online

Let’s be honest: social media was built on bragging. Sure, there’s a lot of TV show hashtagging and linking to the Sidebar of Shame, but whether it’s your hot new dress or cute new baby, everyone posts pics of stuff they want to show off.

We just usually try to frame it so it doesn’t seem like we’re boasting about how brilliant we are and how great things are going. But as un-British as it might sound, a new London-based social networking app called Braggie is about to ask us to drop the pretence and blatantly ask for (virtual) pats on the back.

Co-founders Simon Jenns (“a thrill-seeking adventurer”) and Forrest Smith (“an international traveller”) plan to release the app this summer and they’re hoping it will become the next big photo-sharing platform. Users will be able to upload photos of things they’re proud of, see how they compare with everyone else’s pics with the same tag, then sit back and wait for the respect to come rolling in.

The inventors are currently trying to raise £1000 on Kickstarter so they can add more features, including geo-location, video sharing, and private messaging. With (at the time of writing) three weeks to go and only £123 in the kitty so far, they still have a way to go, but some blatant self-promotion could probably get them there.

Diane Shipley