is currently featured in , along with responses from thinkers like and . "We are apparently now in a situation where modern technology is changing the way people behave, people talk, people react, people think, and people remember. And you encounter this not only in a theoretical way, but when you meet people, when suddenly people start forgetting things, when suddenly people depend on their gadgets, and other stuff, to remember certain things. This is the beginning, its just an experience. But if you think about it and you think about your own behavior, you suddenly realize that something fundamental is going on." So much good stuff in there. Related: Is Google Making Us Stupid?
Here's a new Pew report on for your perusal. "Sociologists Miller McPherson, Lynn Smith-Lovin and Matthew Brashears suggest that new technologies, such as the internet and mobile phone, may play a role in advancing this trend [of becoming more socially isolated]. Specifically, they argue that the type of social ties supported by these technologies are relatively weak and geographically dispersed, not the strong, often locally-based ties that tend to be a part of peoples’ core discussion network."
A while back I wrote a gushing blog post about a company called , whose aim is to make it dead simple for anybody to harness the useful technology of mass or group text messaging. Those of us involved in youth ministry are undoubtedly aware that text messaging is an indispensable tool for effective communication with our students, so I wanted to give another push for Tatango and the services they offer. And because I love you so much, at the end of this post you will find a code for 15% off of any plan Tatango offers.
Below is a short tutorial video that covers the basics of Tatango. Since the service has recently gone under a moderate redesign/update, I'm sure that current users will find the video helpful as well:
Let me say a few quick words regarding other youth ministry texting options.
If you've bought into , then I laud you for knowing that texting is important, but I promise you that Tatango is a better bang for your buck. Just compare Simply Txt's $30/mo plan with Tatango's $20/mo plan. For $10 less per month, you get 280 more group messages, unlimited more contacts, and two keywords (which, as far as I can tell, Simply Txt doesn't offer).1
I'm also aware that was all the rage in for a while, but it simply can't keep up with the services Tatango offers. A quick comparison of pricing plans for and will convince you more quickly than I could here.
Anyway, if you're still on the fence about whether or not Tatango's group messaging service is a good fit for your ministry, . When your trial is over, the good people from Tatango have offered readers of JakeBouma.com a code good for 15% off any plan (The 15% is continuous, and is good for the lifetime of the plan). Just enter K7D0TRCL when you check out and enjoy the savings!
If you have any questions about Tatango’s services, be sure to check out their page, follow them on , and/or leave a comment below.
Keywords allow you to choose words that users can text to join the group. For example, I have "EIKON" set up as the high school keyword [↩]
JakeBouma.com is a weblog maintained since 2005 by Jake Bouma, an ecclesial junkie and (imprudently) aspiring polymath who was recently diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma.
