There are so many different instant messenger software services out there…choosing one that enables you to connect with all of your friends is pretty much impossible. No matter what, there is someone who prefers Google Chat over Yahoo or Yahoo over AIM and so on. Thus, staying in touch with people requires you to be signed into multiple instant messaging programs which takes up not only screen space, but your computer’s memory, often slowing down processes.
What if there was a software service that made it possible to manage multiple instant messaging accounts at once? That’d be pretty cool huh?
Well, for the past couple of years I have been doing this. I use a service called Meebo.
About Meebo
Meebo is a new communications and media company that’s re-writing the way people have conversations and communicate on the Web. We provide instant messaging and group chat to over 40 million people at meebo.com and via partner sites across the Web.
At meebo.com, millions of people every month keep in touch with friends on any IM network (AIM, Yahoo!, MSN, Google Talk and Gmail, MySpace IM, Facebook Chat, and more!) and chat with people in Meebo Rooms. Meebo also enables live communication integrated into any website with Meebo Rooms, Meebo Community IM, and Meebo Me. Meebo is the Web’s live communication platform – instant messaging from absolutely anywhere, no downloads or installs required, and free!
Meebo launched in September 2005. Investors include Sequoia Capital, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, JAFCO Ventures, Time Warner Investments, and KTB Ventures. We have over 75 corporate partners, including major record labels, global media companies, social networks, games portals, and some of the world’s most-talented application developers.
We (the Meebo team) are just a fun bunch of people trying to bring IM to the Web!
Click below to find out more…
News agencies and blogs from around the world and all over the internet have written about Meebo. Here’s what they had to say.
Bonus Tip
Not only do I connect with friends, family, vendors, and clients through Meebo…I also use it as a way to try and spark a conversation with future clients.
Take for instance the leads that you get via your website’s submission form. How many of these people leave both their phone number and email? Most people will provide an email and either no phone or a bogus phone number. Success rates for connecting with (and converting) leads providing only an email address is pretty poor.
To enhance your conversions, take note of the email address provided. If the email ends with @yahoo.com, @aol.com, etc. there is a good chance that they are also on instant messenger. Create a group within your buddy list labeled, “Future Clients” and add these people. If you have their first and/or last names rename the contact so it displays this rather than their screenname. Now, when you see someone signed on, send them an instant message. You’ll be amazed at how successful this is.
