Sorry, associations. You don’t have an exclusive foothold on the private community anymore.

Now, granted, you probably have a really good one that’s doing quite well. But there are some professional networks out there that want to eat your lunch.

So says Avectra contributor Deirdre Reid, who writes that communities like ResearchGate, GrabCAD, and Spiceworks—online sites with thousands or, in these cases, even millions of members—are surging, many with the help of venture capital.

“By giving members a platform to enhance their reputation, earn money on the side, and move their career forward, these new communities are building loyalty and numbers,” Reid writes.

So what can you learn from these deep-pocketed communities? Check out Reid’s post over this way. And while you’re at it, take a look at our recent post on another of these communities, Doximity.

On Mute

Today we're introducing mute, a feature that allows you to hide a user's Tweets and activity. Read more: https://t.co/CfGKeIyodI

— Support (@Support) May 12, 2014

It’s bad form to unfollow someone on Twitter, but sometimes you follow someone who ends up being a bit too … well, noisy. Previously, there was no way to keep people silent in your feed short of unfollowing them (or relying on a third-party app), but on Monday, Twitter announced that it would introduce an official mute feature.

“The muted user will still be able to fave, reply to, and retweet your tweets; you just won’t see any of that activity in your timeline. The muted user will not know that you’ve muted them, and of course you can unmute at any time,” the company explains.

This might come in handy if, for example, someone is taking part in a Twitter chat for a short while or tends to blow up your feed a tad too much. Seems like a good way to save face.

Twitter says the feature will roll out over the next few weeks.

Other Good Reads

Speaking of Twitter, if you rely on the link-shortening service Bitly—and if you’re on Twitter, you probably do—the company just suffered a major data breach last week. Read up about it on Lifehacker.

That recent WordPress update led to more than a little heartburn, writes Maggie McGary.

Your meetings don’t have to be sit-down affairs, nonprofit blogger Beth Kanter writes. Try a little walk-and-talk.

Don’t count out Pinterest when promoting your conference, event company Yapsody writes.

(iStock/Thinkstock)