Group Messaging For 2011

Group messaging seems to be the upcoming trend in social media this year. Back in 2007, Twitter made a big splash at SXSW for its ability to reach a large group of people through basic text message.

The Twitter model works wonders when you follow up to a couple hundred people. Beyond that, it’s like trying to take a sip of water from a fire hose. The volume of information that comes at you is a bit much.

Add to that a Facebook stream. Again, following a few people works well; but once you become popular, simple messaging amongst friends can be a problem.

What makes these services popular also makes them a bit unmanageable. Group messaging promises to make the utility of Twitter available to small, private groups of people.

Imagine having Twitter-like messaging between just you and some close friends. There are a few services that may steal the show at this year’s SXSW.

Belugapods.com, aka Beluga, is my front runner as the service that will be popular amongst groups this year. Beluga makes it easy to sign up and has apps for both iPhone and Android. If you have neither phone, you can still participate via text message.

What makes Beluga nice is that you can add photos and your location into each message. This makes it easy to see where your friends are so that you can get together. During events like SXSW, this is very useful. All your messages are private to your group.

Another group messaging service you can use, if you don’t mind spelling out your location, is GroupMe.com. GroupMe lets you create private text messaging groups of up to 25 people.

The main difference between Beluga and GroupMe is that GroupMe’s text message number also allows you to conference call your group. Anybody in the group can call the number; GroupMe will dial the other participants.

These services have other uses beyond communications at events. I can see them being used within a small business where instant, private team communication is advantageous. The closest communication medium that comes to mind is walkie-talkie radios.

Nextel offers group communication options; but, these require everybody use the same type of phone. Beluga and GroupMe don’t care what kind of phone you have...much. At a minimum, you need text messaging. Of course, you get more options with an iPhone or Android phone.

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Shaine Mata scrapes gum off his shoes around Mission, Texas.