Turn Texts Into Conversations That Drive Engagement
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This session explored how organizations are turning text messages into meaningful conversations that boost engagement, strengthen communication, and improve audience interaction. Transcript below.
Patty Ruland [00:22]:
If you are not familiar with Engage by Cell, we are a 100% U.S.-based organization offering cloud-based solutions, and we’ve been around for about 21 years now. We engage with many, many people. In one of our earlier stats from 2015, we had 2.4 million app pages viewed and nearly 8 million text messages exchanged. We are a very large text message provider.
Probably one of the things I’m most proud of at this organization is that we provide human customer support. We’re not bots — we’re real people. We do not have an 800 phone number. You call us, we answer. You email us, we reply. Even when someone asks for information through our website, 9 out of 10 times our CEO is going to be the person responding. We’re very big on human customer support and service.
I’m going to talk a little bit about how things have changed over the years. If you’re anywhere around my generation, you’ve seen all these changes. Back in the dark ages, people wanted to talk to people. They picked up the phone, dialed it, and had conversations. Nowadays, phone calls are ignored. People let them go to voicemail and think, “If it’s important, they’ll call back.” Plus, there’s so much coming at us nowadays that it’s difficult to answer phone calls all the time.
We then switched and pivoted to email. I remember in one of my early jobs still asking people, “Do you have an email address yet?” It was amazing because you could send information instantly instead of going to the post office and mailing it. But we’ve kind of beaten that horse until it’s dead, and people don’t necessarily respond to emails like they used to. Between promotions, spam, social media, and everything else, we’re all guilty of ignoring messages. I challenge each of you to look at your inbox and count how many unread emails you have. I have quite a few myself. Work emails? Of course, I check those. Personal emails? Hardly ever.
One of the great things about the COVID era is that people became much more technologically savvy. QR codes had actually been introduced many years before COVID, but they fell out of favor for a while. During COVID, though, everyone learned how to use them. I don’t care if you’re 5, 15, 50, or 80 — everybody was scanning QR codes to access menus and information, so they became very commonplace.
In the past, resources were usually accessed either in person or on your computer. You went somewhere physically to gather information and ask questions, or you sat at your desktop computer to find resources. But now smartphones are the primary way people communicate and research information on the go. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been out somewhere and wanted to quickly look up venue hours or information about a specific place. We now do on-the-go research through our smartphones.
Texting has evolved too. It used to just be for family and friends, but nowadays people expect timely responses. I call it the “I want it now” era — kind of like Veruca Salt from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory saying, “I want an Oompa Loompa now, Daddy.” We live in a world of same-day delivery, DoorDash, and Uber Eats, where people expect immediate communication and quick answers.
We offer several platforms at Engage by Cell. We offer mobile web apps for content storage, engagement, and more. We also offer text messaging platforms that allow organizations to send messages one-to-one or one-to-many.
One of the newer features we’ve added is what we call Text Chat. Our biggest segment of users for this feature is workforce development agencies, where case managers push out information about job opportunities to participants. But it also translates into many other industries. It gives organizations the ability to have conversations with people via text.
For example, in HR someone might ask, “When is open enrollment?” or “When do I need to complete my paperwork?” In education, someone might say, “I want to add or drop a class,” and a counselor can respond directly. Retail organizations, wholesalers, and service providers also use text chat to communicate with customers. It’s not just about sending out an Old Navy discount coupon — it’s about allowing patrons to interact with you, ask questions, and receive support.
If you have a cell phone and want to follow along, there’s a QR code on the screen. Go ahead and scan it. What this does is automatically open your text messaging platform and pre-populate it with a keyword. You don’t even need to type in a phone number anymore — we make it that easy.
It should say “demo chatty.” Once you hit send, you should receive a reply message that says:
“We’re here to assist. Reply to this message if you have any questions.”
Simple. Basic.
Now I’m going to jump into the back end of our platform. All of our clients have their own logins and accounts. This happens to be a demo account, and I’m currently under the text messaging and conversations section.
I can see all the questions that have come in, and I can also set up notifications if I’m not sitting at my desk. For example, desktop notifications can alert me whenever a new message comes in. If I’m out at a venue or working in the field, I can also receive notifications directly on my phone instantly.
I see a few new messages here. One came from Dave, our CEO, asking, “How was the meeting?” I can simply respond, “Going great,” hit send, and now he’s received that message.
Here are a few other sample questions:
- “When do open enrollments need to be submitted?”
- “Where is the bathroom located?”
- “I want to discuss my thesis. Can I come in to discuss?”
Another message asks, “What are your zoo hours this weekend? We want to plan ahead for our kids.” I can quickly respond, “We are open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.”
Everything is saved, logged, archived, and stored within the system. If the inbox gets full, messages can be archived, sorted, and saved. We live in a world where transparency in communication is important, so it’s great for compliance purposes to have records of text messages and replies.
There are many different use cases across industries and venues. Earlier I mentioned that you can also push out text messages. For example, I can send a quick message to everyone in today’s webinar list saying:
“I really appreciated everyone’s participation in today’s webinar. We will email the recording to you tomorrow.”
I simply choose my list, decide whether I want to send the message immediately or schedule it for a later date and time, and then hit “Send Now.”
One attendee asked, “Can multiple staff members respond to a text message at the same time?” Absolutely. Multiple people can have access to conversations, whether they manage employees, students, or venue guests. Organizations can also assign conversations based on shifts or working hours to ensure timely responses.
Another question was, “Can someone text us first, or do we always have to start the conversation?” If you already have a list of users who have opted in to receive text messages from you, you can send messages directly to them. Otherwise, they would need to opt in first by scanning a QR code or texting a keyword to your number.
Another great question was, “Can we automate or use templates for frequently asked questions?” Absolutely. We offer templates that can be pre-programmed with responses. We also have an integration with ChatGPT to help generate ideas and assist with message creation based on specific scenarios or topics.
Someone also asked, “Can I respond from my phone, or do I need to be logged in on a computer?” Yes, you can absolutely respond from your phone. Notifications show up directly on your device, and you can reply just like you would from the desktop dashboard, only formatted for a smaller screen.
Another attendee asked whether organizations are using text conversations as part of live exhibits or scavenger hunt experiences. Absolutely. It works great for real-time engagement. For example, organizations can send alerts like, “This activity is starting now,” or notify zoo visitors when an animal feeding is about to begin. Some organizations even allow audiences to text in questions during artist talks or live presentations so speakers can respond in real time.
One final question was whether conversational platforms like this could evolve into digital facilitators or interactive guides instead of just messaging tools. Absolutely. There’s always the possibility that someone scans a QR code and is directed to wayfinding information, guided experiences, or interactive content that helps move them through a venue or experience.
Well, that was a very high-level overview introducing this type of service. If you’re interested in learning more, please feel free to reach out. We’d be happy to schedule a customized demo, walk through the back end of the platform, and share examples tailored to your specific situation.
As Megan mentioned in the webinar chat, this session was recorded and will be sent out tomorrow. Once again, thank you all for joining us today, and I hope you have a great one.
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