Text any local business and get a response

thedealmaker · 25th Nov 2011, 08:21 PM

This is a pretty cool idea.

talkto: text ANY local business and get a text response

You can text any local business and actually get a response back.

This would make a good service you can offer to local businesses.

It could work as a customer service device to help with questions that they might have coming their way on regular basis.

I'm curious to see it in action.

But right now the company is in beta mode right now.

Haven't heard back from them yet but hopefully it will be soon.

herbaluss · 26th Nov 2011, 12:53 AM

Very interesting... butttttt... why would somebody need this when they can just call the place themselves.

noxid101 · 27th Nov 2011, 02:32 AM

This day in age some folks would rather text than actually talk in person. So this service would be used for sure.

thedealmaker · 27th Nov 2011, 05:48 AM

noxid101 you are absolutely right.

Some people would rather text then talk.

I've found this to be primarily true when it comes to the younger generations who grew up on texting.

They tend to text first and speak later.

For this target group the idea of texting a business for a response isn't something that is weird. It fits right in with what they are already doing with everyone else.

EvanBeck · 27th Nov 2011, 11:15 AM

I tried to get on the beta testing list. Let me know if there is a way to get a "code" to speed up the approval. Thanks

thedealmaker · 27th Nov 2011, 03:16 PM

Yea, I'm on the beta list as well.

I'm hoping that they will let me know something soon because I'm interested in seeing their service in action.

As for the rates charged, I don't know that just yet. Once I do know I will let you know.

HawaiianSon · 27th Nov 2011, 05:15 PM

Great concept!

I know there are a lot of people that prefer to text questions rather than calling. Will wait until they come out of beta before considering the service for our clients.

thedealmaker · 28th Nov 2011, 06:24 AM

I've emailed them and I'm waiting on a response.

When they do respond I will post their answer here.

I had heard that it was supposed to be coming out of beta soon.

So that's why I sent over a quick message.

More Ideas · 28th Nov 2011, 06:41 AM

I do agree with herbaluss in the sense why text when you can call, but I've learnt not to go by what I would do, but what others do - and it is true a lot of the younger generation prefer to text.

Those of you on the beta list, if you get in, please keep us updated.

WillR · 28th Nov 2011, 06:44 AM

I'm not sure this is something that will catch on. I don't think business owners will want to sit there typing out messages - they aren't a very efficient form of 2 way communication. I think encouraging customers to call up is much more efficient for the business owner.

thedealmaker · 28th Nov 2011, 04:03 PM

As I stated earlier, I would let you guys now when I heard back from the company.

Today I got a response from the co-founder Stuart.

Here is what he said:

"not communicating to those that signed up for our beta is terrible, and my fault.

So many signed up after our Techcrunch debut that we decided to very carefully and purposefully scale. We are getting closer to opening it up more widely, but still letting them everyone in on a first come basis.

I'll keep your note and will personally let you know as we know more."

I replied back to find out some more info.

When I get that response I'll let you know.

Aaron Doud · 28th Nov 2011, 04:45 PM

My guess is they are taking the texts and someone working for them calls the busy. Like relay. Hell if they really wanted to cheat they could use the reply system.

And relay calls suck but they help the deaf so business owners respect them.

I doubt many business owners would put up with a relay call for normal people. They are slow and take too long.

Centurian · 29th Nov 2011, 10:27 AM

Sounds like a great tool. People just want an answer to their question, not a conversation or hassles with voice mail systems.

Obviously, most will just call, but a growing segment prefer the convenience and brevity of texting.

Opted in for the beta as well. Thanks for sharing.

bryson · 29th Nov 2011, 10:39 AM

I have used the online chat with my host provider and i found it very useful and i am not part of the younger generation. The trick for business is fast reply. You know how irritating it is to be stuck in phone hold hell? Well this system will require less than a 20 second response to keep customers happy. Mobile is awesome but the expectaion will be literally, instant gratification.

thedealmaker · 30th Nov 2011, 04:23 AM

Bryson you are absolutely correct.

That's the idea behind the site, a fast response.

Some people want instant gratification. Sure they can call the business to talk to someone, but they also know that there is a possibility that they might be put on hold or not get an answer at all.

The service is not designed to replace an entire customer service staff or an business owner, it's simply there as a tool to help with some of the questions.

WillR · 30th Nov 2011, 05:41 AM

Originally Posted by bryson

I have used the online chat with my host provider and i found it very useful and i am not part of the younger generation. The trick for business is fast reply. You know how irritating it is to be stuck in phone hold hell? Well this system will require less than a 20 second response to keep customers happy. Mobile is awesome but the expectaion will be literally, instant gratification.

Originally Posted by thedealmaker

Bryson you are absolutely correct.

That's the idea behind the site, a fast response.

Some people want instant gratification. Sure they can call the business to talk to someone, but they also know that there is a possibility that they might be put on hold or not get an answer at all.

The service is not designed to replace an entire customer service staff or an business owner, it's simply there as a tool to help with some of the questions.

Cmon guys, you honestly believe that for a small business, they are going to be able to answer text based messages quicker than a simple phone call? I don't believe it for one minute. Your argument of instant gratification would lean more towards phone calls than text messages.

This is not something I would be recommending to any businesses I work with. All it would do is slow down their productivity for very little reward, if any.

Too often marketers get caught up in tools simply because they are new. New doesn't necessarily mean good. You need to evaluate the tool and it's effectiveness for both your client and their customers. I can't see a big need for this at all. There are loads of things I would be recommending my clients spend their money on before something like this. If you hook them up with flashy tools like this that don't actually increase their bottom line you will find it very hard to build a long-term sustainable business with repeat clients.

Each to their own.

thedealmaker · 30th Nov 2011, 08:33 PM

Ok, I asked the co-owner the question of how does their service work.

And here is his reply back to me:

"You'll be able to tell talkto where you'd like to receive your customer's messages, so that if anyone asks a question it will simply show up as an SMS or email. When you reply it goes back to your customer as a text message.

If you'd prefer to respond in real time, then you can use the talkto app as well. This allows you to have real time chats with customers. But either way, talkto is about making it easier for your customers to reach you to ask any question.

If you don't tell talkto where to send your customers' messages, then a call center will contact you on your customer's behalf to get their answer. Then the call center will send the reply to the customer.

thanks!
Again, we know it's taken longer than we expected to launch, but the feedback from the beta program has been amazing so we're excited that launch will happen soon."

So far so good. I like where they are going.

Hope this helps.

eliteandres · 7th Dec 2011, 11:02 PM

Originally Posted by thedealmaker

noxid101 you are absolutely right.

Some people would rather text then talk.

I've found this to be primarily true when it comes to the younger generations who grew up on texting.

They tend to text first and speak later.

For this target group the idea of texting a business for a response isn't something that is weird. It fits right in with what they are already doing with everyone else.

I never thought about that! In you experience do business respond more or less positively when contacted via text?

eliteandres · 7th Dec 2011, 11:14 PM

Originally Posted by WillR

I'm not sure this is something that will catch on. I don't think business owners will want to sit there typing out messages - they aren't a very efficient form of 2 way communication. I think encouraging customers to call up is much more efficient for the business owner.

I could see the argument from either direction... I definitely understand the changing trend in personal communication from voice calls to text messages, but I am also a little weary of text communication in the business world... I think it might take a little extra time for business communication to fully convert to match what people use in their personal lives. Be that good or bad, I'm afraid that it might be a fact.

However, I don't think its any secret that sometime in the near future we'll all be using text messaging in some form or fashion (that isn't e-mail) to communicate business to business. I guess only time will tell.

WillR · 7th Dec 2011, 11:14 PM

Originally Posted by eliteandres

I never thought about that! In you experience do business respond more or less positively when contacted via text?

Yeah there's no doubt some people would use it but that's not to say it's a worthwhile addition/investment for a small business to make. As I stated earlier I would be selling services like sms marketing, etc before we ever got around to anything like this.

All a business owner cares about is ROI and reducing their work load. That's it. I DON'T see a service like this significantly increasing a businesses ROI but I DO see the potential of a service like this to increase their workload. Both of these factors would make it a very hard sell to small businesses compared to other solutions you could be offering them.

Bananaprod · 8th Dec 2011, 05:56 AM

Looks like a promising tool. Keep the updates coming guys, and thanks for sharing.

KyleGolemMedia · 11th Dec 2011, 07:59 PM

Thanks for the link! I just signed up. Hopefully we can see some cool stuff soon

abbadox · 11th Dec 2011, 08:07 PM

Do you know if this is going to be in the United States only or will it work in other countries also?.

John Ruddy · 13th Dec 2011, 11:05 AM

text the clients to inform about products or services provided by company, later on the interested clients should be call.

hotlinkz · 13th Dec 2011, 11:23 AM

This sounds great... but is the beta for end-users or business users?

If it's set up like I think it is, it provides great free viral marketing for talk.to. It would be nice if they offered some type referral fees.

25th Nov 2011, 08:21 PM	#1
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Text any local business and get a response Share on: This is a pretty cool idea. talkto: text ANY local business and get a text response You can text any local business and actually get a response back. This would make a good service you can offer to local businesses. It could work as a customer service device to help with questions that they might have coming their way on regular basis. I'm curious to see it in action. But right now the company is in beta mode right now. Haven't heard back from them yet but hopefully it will be soon.
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26th Nov 2011, 12:53 AM	#2
herbaluss HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2011 Location: Ontario , Canada Posts: 128 Thanks: 15 Thanked 9 Times in 9 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Very interesting... butttttt... why would somebody need this when they can just call the place themselves.

27th Nov 2011, 02:32 AM	#3
noxid101 Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2010 Location: Berkeley, CA Posts: 84 Thanks: 16 Thanked 29 Times in 25 Posts Blog Entries: 1	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: This day in age some folks would rather text than actually talk in person. So this service would be used for sure.
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27th Nov 2011, 05:48 AM	#4
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: noxid101 you are absolutely right. Some people would rather text then talk. I've found this to be primarily true when it comes to the younger generations who grew up on texting. They tend to text first and speak later. For this target group the idea of texting a business for a response isn't something that is weird. It fits right in with what they are already doing with everyone else.
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27th Nov 2011, 11:15 AM	#5
EvanBeck Mobile Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: 2011 Posts: 123 Thanks: 31 Thanked 30 Times in 24 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: I tried to get on the beta testing list. Let me know if there is a way to get a "code" to speed up the approval. Thanks
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27th Nov 2011, 03:16 PM	#6
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Yea, I'm on the beta list as well. I'm hoping that they will let me know something soon because I'm interested in seeing their service in action. As for the rates charged, I don't know that just yet. Once I do know I will let you know.
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27th Nov 2011, 05:15 PM	#7
HawaiianSon Active Warrior Join Date: 2011 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 54 Thanks: 10 Thanked 8 Times in 7 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Great concept! I know there are a lot of people that prefer to text questions rather than calling. Will wait until they come out of beta before considering the service for our clients.

28th Nov 2011, 06:24 AM	#8
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: I've emailed them and I'm waiting on a response. When they do respond I will post their answer here. I had heard that it was supposed to be coming out of beta soon. So that's why I sent over a quick message.
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28th Nov 2011, 06:41 AM	#9
More Ideas Warrior Member Join Date: 2011 Posts: 25 Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: I do agree with herbaluss in the sense why text when you can call, but I've learnt not to go by what I would do, but what others do - and it is true a lot of the younger generation prefer to text. Those of you on the beta list, if you get in, please keep us updated.

28th Nov 2011, 06:44 AM	#10
WillR Digital Marketer War Room Member Join Date: 2010 Location: Australia Posts: 12,475 Thanks: 1,984 Thanked 8,187 Times in 4,079 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: I'm not sure this is something that will catch on. I don't think business owners will want to sit there typing out messages - they aren't a very efficient form of 2 way communication. I think encouraging customers to call up is much more efficient for the business owner.
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28th Nov 2011, 04:03 PM	#11
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: As I stated earlier, I would let you guys now when I heard back from the company. Today I got a response from the co-founder Stuart. Here is what he said: "not communicating to those that signed up for our beta is terrible, and my fault. So many signed up after our Techcrunch debut that we decided to very carefully and purposefully scale. We are getting closer to opening it up more widely, but still letting them everyone in on a first come basis. I'll keep your note and will personally let you know as we know more." I replied back to find out some more info. When I get that response I'll let you know.
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28th Nov 2011, 04:45 PM	#12
Aaron Doud Sales & Marketing War Room Member Join Date: 2011 Posts: 2,813 Thanks: 716 Thanked 1,696 Times in 954 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: My guess is they are taking the texts and someone working for them calls the busy. Like relay. Hell if they really wanted to cheat they could use the reply system. And relay calls suck but they help the deaf so business owners respect them. I doubt many business owners would put up with a relay call for normal people. They are slow and take too long.

29th Nov 2011, 10:27 AM	#13
Centurian Advanced Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2011 Location: Washington, D.C. Posts: 559 Thanks: 368 Thanked 230 Times in 146 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Sounds like a great tool. People just want an answer to their question, not a conversation or hassles with voice mail systems. Obviously, most will just call, but a growing segment prefer the convenience and brevity of texting. Opted in for the beta as well. Thanks for sharing.

29th Nov 2011, 10:39 AM	#14
bryson HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: 2010 Posts: 216 Thanks: 77 Thanked 33 Times in 24 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: I have used the online chat with my host provider and i found it very useful and i am not part of the younger generation. The trick for business is fast reply. You know how irritating it is to be stuck in phone hold hell? Well this system will require less than a 20 second response to keep customers happy. Mobile is awesome but the expectaion will be literally, instant gratification.
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30th Nov 2011, 04:23 AM	#15
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Bryson you are absolutely correct. That's the idea behind the site, a fast response. Some people want instant gratification. Sure they can call the business to talk to someone, but they also know that there is a possibility that they might be put on hold or not get an answer at all. The service is not designed to replace an entire customer service staff or an business owner, it's simply there as a tool to help with some of the questions.
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30th Nov 2011, 08:33 PM	#17
thedealmaker HyperActive Warrior Join Date: 2005 Location: us Posts: 122 Thanks: 32 Thanked 45 Times in 26 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Ok, I asked the co-owner the question of how does their service work. And here is his reply back to me: "You'll be able to tell talkto where you'd like to receive your customer's messages, so that if anyone asks a question it will simply show up as an SMS or email. When you reply it goes back to your customer as a text message. If you'd prefer to respond in real time, then you can use the talkto app as well. This allows you to have real time chats with customers. But either way, talkto is about making it easier for your customers to reach you to ask any question. If you don't tell talkto where to send your customers' messages, then a call center will contact you on your customer's behalf to get their answer. Then the call center will send the reply to the customer. thanks! Again, we know it's taken longer than we expected to launch, but the feedback from the beta program has been amazing so we're excited that launch will happen soon." So far so good. I like where they are going. Hope this helps.
	**Learn how to profit from mobile marketing and web 3.0 marketing in under 2 hours Click Here Now http://sixfiguresuccesssecrets.com/h...under-2-hours/

8th Dec 2011, 05:56 AM	#21
Bananaprod Warrior Member Join Date: 2011 Posts: 10 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Looks like a promising tool. Keep the updates coming guys, and thanks for sharing.
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11th Dec 2011, 07:59 PM	#22
KyleGolemMedia Entreprenuerial-blooded War Room Member Join Date: 2011 Location: US Posts: 368 Thanks: 45 Thanked 38 Times in 32 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Thanks for the link! I just signed up. Hopefully we can see some cool stuff soon

11th Dec 2011, 08:07 PM	#23
abbadox Seo Expert War Room Member Join Date: 2008 Location: Seattle Posts: 459 Thanks: 36 Thanked 56 Times in 51 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: Do you know if this is going to be in the United States only or will it work in other countries also?.

13th Dec 2011, 11:05 AM	#24
John Ruddy Warrior Member Join Date: 2011 Posts: 21 Thanks: 0 Thanked 5 Times in 4 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: text the clients to inform about products or services provided by company, later on the interested clients should be call.

13th Dec 2011, 11:23 AM	#25
hotlinkz Old Internet Relic War Room Member Join Date: 2004 Posts: 803 Thanks: 40 Thanked 224 Times in 130 Posts	Re: Text any local business and get a response Share on: This sounds great... but is the beta for end-users or business users? If it's set up like I think it is, it provides great free viral marketing for talk.to. It would be nice if they offered some type referral fees.
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