Spotted in the TechCrunch Disrupt NY Startup Alley today was Twoople, a newly launched web and mobile chatting service that lets you give out a simple, memorable URL that allows anyone to start chatting with you on either web or mobile. The tool is especially useful for business owners, explains Twoople founder Patrick Arlia, as the unique URL provided can be added to an email signature or business card, for example, while a Twoople widget can even be embedded on a company website for customer service purposes.
It’s really simple to get started with Twoople: you just sign up on the website and create your personalized URL (e.g. twoople.com/johnsmith). Then you share the address however you wish – the same way you’d share your phone number or email. Those who want to chat with you don’t have to create an account, however. They can just go to the URL and start chatting.
The idea was born out of the founder’s frustrations with communicating today, we’re told. He prefers chatting, but thinks it’s an exclusive model. He thought it should be more inclusive.
The bootstrapped startup was only soft-launched a month ago, Arlia notes, and is still somewhat limited in functionality. For instance, one feature due out in a few weeks’ time would allow you to configure which hours you’re available to chat. That way, you’re not inundated with chats all the time, but instead could control whether you’re online or offline.
An HTML5-based mobile app built with Phonegap is also live now on both the iTunes App Store and Google Play.
To date, the startup has grown the service in the few weeks it’s been live to over 800 users who, in turn, have engaged with over 4,000 others on the Twoople platform. The longer-term plan is to make Twoople a freemium product, with paid service available for power users.