By Chris Lee

New start-up Loccit promises to bring “social memory boxing” to the masses, enabling users to store content in a secure online diary, create offline photo albums and even make merchandise out of them, such as personalised mugs.

The Loccit platform captures a user’s social network content to compile a private online diary or “social memory box” containing their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Flickr or Foursquare updates. Loccit compiles details of where people have been, their favourite photos, status updates, business achievements and more. This content is aggregated in a secure, personal and permanent online diary that allows a user to add chapters and write additional comments next to entries. This social memory box can then be printed with a hard or soft-backed cover via the Loccit store.

According to Luke Aikman, founder and CEO of Loccit, social media users have moved from “dusty shoeboxes full of memories under the bed to our precious memories being spread all over the Internet”.

He believes that the popularity of Facebook Timeline and the launch of services like Path have shown there is a market for capturing online memories and preserving them forever.

Creating a private self-writing diary

Aikman is keen to stress that Loccit is not another social network, more of a “private self-writing digital diary”.

“We definitely don't need another social network,” he told NMK. “We all spread our lives thin over the Internet; between the networks are our emotions, thoughts, photos, places and more. Loccit brings that together to give the user back their life story in a private forum. We give the user back their content; their memories.”

So what was the inspiration behind Loccit and how will the site make money?

“The realisation when working with some teenagers that everything goes into Facebook and they have never printed a photo,” Aikman explained. “My most treasured possession is a box of photos. They've moved to underneath every bed I've owned. When digital cameras and then phone cameras came along, the box stopped growing. My memories are still as important as they always were, I just stopped archiving them.”

Aikman believes that since the advent of social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more, people have stopped putting things in those physical boxes.

“There is nothing safe and secure to look back on so Loccit replaces those dusty boxes of photos. It's more comprehensive, as safe and your diary can even be printed if you like in hard or soft back,” he added.

Aikman believes Loccit will make money through premium features and accounts, to be launched next year, and through the Loccit store, where users can print their diaries and a range of other photo gifts.

Loccit is currently only available on the iPhone but an Android-based app will follow in the coming months.