My ears really perk up when people start using app names as action verbs. Major brands have been able to make this transition- Xxerox, Google and Facebook to name a few- and it seems to signify a game-changing type of product or service.
The most recent app I’ve heard verb-ified is HeyTell. As in “That guy HeyTell-ed me last night and it was hilarious.” HeyTell is fairly similar to the walkie-talkie-like application TiKL (reviewed earlier this month on MONEY SAVING APPS) except that HeyTell is a voice messaging system. This means that unlike the walkie-talkie format – where if you miss a message, its gone – HeyTell stores these messages as conversations, like your text message system but for audio clips.
Developed by the husband-and-wife team who created the company Voxilate, HeyTell touts over 4 million users generating 1.5 million messages a day. Not too shabby for a company with no traditional advertising money behind the product.
Honestly, I didn’t get it at first. I already have a voicemail box. Some people rarely listen to voicemails, why would they want to listen to a “conversation” full of short tiny voicemails? Seemed like an unnecessary step backwards.
Alas, in this digital age when every second counts, even the minute and a half it takes to dial and leave a voicemail can be diminished. Plus- God forbid- when you call the other person might actually answer. And how often do you really want to talk on the phone anymore? I’ve already used HeyTell to:
- send more personal ‘Happy Birthday’ messages
- remind my boyfriend to pickup a line list of things from the grocery store that were much easier to SAY than to type
- answer the “where are you” question quickly and easily using a touch of the ‘locator’ button which displays my location in my message
Added bonus, while any kind of device-using while in the car is dangerous, the voice technology of HeyTell requires much less hands-on usage to deliver a message on the go.
What are your thoughts on HeyTell? Is Audio Social Messaging taking a step backwards or the next big thing?
By Meredith Red
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