groupme:

Neighborhood watch group uses GroupMe to stop crimes as they happen 

This week, we received an amazing email from Bob in Detroit, who is using GroupMe with his neighborhood watch group to stop crimes as they happen before the police can even jump into action.

We’re too amazed by this use case to try to summarize it any further, so we’re publishing it in its entirety. Please read his note:

Crime. Drugs. Murders. Corruption. Homelessness. Crappy schools. Everything you’ve heard about Detroit is true.

But there’s a lot you may not have heard about. Urban gardens. Bike culture. Green space development. A redeveloped riverfront. Growing neighborhoods. Arts. Music. Detroit’s a long way away from Shangri-la, but small pocket neighborhoods featuring low rent are attracting young professionals who want an urban experience.

My small neighborhood, Hubbard Farms, consists of about 250 homes and has been consistently solid for over a century. That’s not to say we haven’t had to face up to typical urban issues on a weekly basis. Car theft and B&E’s [Ed.: breaking and entering] are common. The infamous Hotel Yorba, a pay-by-the-week rental behemoth, sits at one end of the neighborhood. This is the last chance for most of the people there to have a roof over their heads. Many are fine citizens. But once in a while, you get some meatball who makes or draws trouble.

The neighborhood has a well-used listserv but email communication is not the best way to communicate emergencies. We wanted to reach each other faster, and GroupMe was our answer with group texting.

Since March, we’ve been able to stop a home invasion, interrupt a car theft in progress, and snap a clear photograph of a vagrant chucking bricks through picture windows, all due to our ability to amass a large number of persons very quickly to the scene of the action.

GroupMe has provided a sense of empowerment in our community. We always know we have dozens of eyes and ears on the street. And if there is trouble, we know our neighbors are just a text message away. Detroit has a long way to go, but with communities using technology that supports the more positive efforts, we are just that much closer to where we all want to see things go. Better.

Bob

Thanks, Bob. We’re humbled and inspired by your story.

As always, we want to hear how you are using GroupMe in your everyday life. Send us an email at stories@groupme.com. 

Photo via bbcworldservice on Flickr.

Love this.

groupme:

Families on GroupMe

Judging by the hundreds of emails we get from users every week, we’ve had a hunch for a while now that families are some of GroupMe’s biggest users. Plus, most of us here on the team have groups with our own families—it just seems like a natural fit.

So this week, we decided to go further than that and get the real story on families using GroupMe. At the end of last week, we tweeted a quick request for stories about families using GroupMe, and put it on our Facebook page. Within an hour, our inbox had dozens of awesome stories from people who are in groups with their families. 

Right off the bat, users were telling us about how GroupMe had changed the way they communicate with the people closest to them. One email from a pastor in Illinois said “we just used GroupMe to set up our Memorial Day plans as a family!”.

Another was from a father in Washington who told us about his group with his “wife, 2 teenage daughters, father, 2 sisters, and 2 teenage nieces,” where every Friday, everyone sends around messages wishing everyone else a good weekend.    

There are a lot of stories. So before we get into those any further, let’s take a step back and look at the statistics. 

A search of our group database revealed that over 10% of groups are called “Family”, or something similar (“Parents”, “Siblings”). That’s huge!

Those family groups have an average of 4.5 members per group, accidentally lending credence to the old “2 parents and 2.5 kids” chestnut. 

Now, 11% is a lot of groups, but without figuring out what the rest of those groups are for, it’s hard to say just how powerful GroupMe has become for families. That’s why we looked into the names of group members next. 

A comprehensive top-level analysis of all groups on GroupMe (not just the “Family” ones) led us to some great findings, displayed here in this very complicated infographic:

That’s right. By a huge margin, Moms and Dads are the most popular people in groups. (For what it’s worth, numbers 3-5 are Chris, Mike, and Alex. Go figure). 

And the stories we received totally back up these statistics, and then some. 

Check out this one, for example:

My family is spread out from Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee.

We are all super-close despite the distance. But it was hard to have to make 4 phone calls just to tell them what is going on.

GroupMe has made it SO much easier to keep them updated even on the small things of life that you would never really want to call about.

[…] Our ages range from 13 to 60. (Grandson to Grandpa)

It’s made it so nice, and kept us close. My whole family loves it and I constantly get texts from them! 

Thanks GroupMe.

One of our other favorites is from Jayne, an American who recently moved to London. She writes:

I use GroupMe with my twin and little sister (well she’s 17 so not really little anymore) now that I’m living in London. It works – we send each other jokes and family/friend gossip. I miss them so it’s almost like we’re in the same room again when we text each other on GroupMe.  

So now I never miss an awkward moment to share or be shared with my sisters or ask them for advice *cheesy thumbs up* - but seriously - it makes home a bit closer for me.

Carol in California has lots of groups for different uses within her extended family. Last one, I promise!

We use GroupMe all the time.  In fact we use several different groups within our family for different purposes.  I come from a big family, so I have many sisters and brothers. Using GroupMe simplifies the process of communicating and staying in touch with family. Try coordinating 10 brothers and sisters for a simple event […] with GroupMe there is no question what the plans are or who was invited.  

We also have one that we use for our immediate family and I don’t have to worry that my husband has picked up my daughter […] We are all on the same group so when she says she’s out of school or any event she attends I know she’s ready and when she’s been picked up.

We live in San Diego and about a year ago two young girls about my daughter’s age were picked up and killed right outside of her high school so you don’t know how much that peace of mind really means.  I could go on and on with how we use GroupMe. GroupMe has really been a blessing to have.  Thank you so much for this awesome communication tool.

Then there are stories from college students using GroupMe to keep in touch with their extended family while away from home, young parents using it to coordinate with babysitters and carpools, and whole family reunions planned and re-planned entirely over GroupMe. Families love GroupMe.

And needless to say, we love that families are using GroupMe to make their lives easier and more enjoyable, across generations and across oceans. Thank you all very much.

Of course, we want to hear how you are using GroupMe and feature it here. Send your story to stories@groupme.com.

Spillman whipped up an amazing piece on GroupMe and disaster relief.  This is some incredibly inspiring stuff.

groupme:

When Disaster Strikes
Staying in touch when it matters most 

Our users continue to surprise us with unexpected and utterly amazing uses for GroupMe. Today, we’re digging into some data and emails from our users to look at a vital use of our service: communicating during emergencies. 

At the end of April, an outbreak of tornadoes in the American South devastated towns across the region, killing hundreds and causing billions of dollars in property damage. It already ranks among the most tragic natural disasters in American history.

As expected, GroupMe users nationwide were definitely talking about the tornadoes in their groups. Look at how the trend spiked during that period for messages mentioning “emergency”, “tornado”, or “disaster”.

With the news about the impending tornadoes spreading through the media and public social networks, talk about emergencies on GroupMe skyrocketed to nearly 4 times the usual level.

More interestingly, though, we also found that people on the ground in affected areas found a much more practical use for GroupMe. With the power out across most of the state, landlines didn’t work, and data networks were congested. In Alabama, simple SMS and cell phone calls were sometimes the only technologies that worked. 

Indeed, our data shows that usage in Alabama spiked to over 208% normal usage levels during the tornadoes. The graph is stunning:

What followed were amazing emails carrying stories of people using GroupMe to check in with family and friends, or even communicate with first responders. Just look at this one, from a user in northern Alabama:

With power out across North AL I was introduced personally to GroupMe’s use and it is awesome when all that really works is text. I’m promoting use with small groups of people that are narrowly focused on specific relief pieces [… e]ven promoting it as a business continuity tool within my company since we lost touch with all of our staff and had a few people directly located within the path of the storms.

Or this one, from a county EMS coordinator in North Carolina:

During our recent tornadoes in North Carolina we were able to coordinate our emergency response group via GroupMe. The simple interface and rapid setup allowed quick use of SMS to get folks informed and moving in to help. I know this is not the “intended” use of the system, but when time is limited and the need is there to message and establish a group phone conference, things worked really well. SMS has become a unified message system with so many of our staff on different phone platforms. GroupMe helped unified our tasks as well as assisted in the timeline of events.

This use case is something we didn’t see coming, but we couldn’t be more proud that GroupMe is helping people stay in touch when they need it most. This kind of story is exactly why we are so devoted to making GroupMe the best way to keep in touch with your groups, anytime, anywhere.

Of course, the process of rebuilding after the damage is nowhere near done. Please consider donating to funds dedicated to helping affected areas in the south. 

Also, we want to hear how you are using GroupMe and feature it here. Send your story to stories@groupme.com. 

(photo via jamiesrabbits on flickr)

I love the Android love!

groupme:

We’re featured in Android Market!

Our Android app is better than ever, and it looks like someone noticed… we’re featured this week at the top of the Android Market. How exciting!

If you’ve been using GroupMe via SMS, now’s a great time to try the app (on BlackBerry, Android, or iPhone). Start groups more easily, share photos and locations, and stop paying for text messages… all for free. 

Some massive GroupMe love from Bon Jovi!!!

We’ve got good views (Taken with instagram)