Phone services to know about
by Helen Keegan
A few new North American-centric services that I’ve just been tipped off about via TrendCentral and wondered if any readers here had tried them.
The first is Jott which is billed as a hands-free messaging service. What that means is that it transcribes your voice message into a text message. Seems to me this is a mash-up of Spinvox (of which I’m a HUGE fan) and Morning Papers. It’s a simple idea, you just call a number, dictate your message and Jott does the rest. What would be cleverer still though is if you could also add your friend’s mobile number and then send that message as a text message to them. Particularly useful if you have a broken arm or something and can’t use your hands or if you’re blind and can’t get hold of your friend by voice.
Slifter is a service which helps you find products and promotions at stores near you on the web or on your phone.
It seems there are three ways you can use Slifter:
1. ONLINE at www.slifter.com
2. TEXT MESSAGE
Just text your product query and zip code to 75438. (Ex: “Nikon Coolpix 10001″)
3. MOBILE APPLICATION (it’s Java based and downloadable to your phone)
Includes:
- Mobile Shopping List
- Product Images
- Maps to stores
- Send-to-Friend
There is no cost for using Slifter both on the go and online, although your mobile carrier may assess standard text and data service charges depending on your plan.
Not sure about the name though - is Slifter short for Shoplifter and it’s actually an underground service to aid theft from stores near you?? Just joking, but it is an odd name.
And finally, young people are using a free information “FREE 411″ service reached by dialing the number 1.800.373.3411 (many have the number programmed into their mobiles’ phonebooks). A great potential space for marketers, the service requires users to listen to a short ad before making their information request.
Unfortunately, as all these services are available in the US and/or Canada only, I can’t try them out for size so I’m interested to get your feedback on them if you’ve heard of them and tried them.
