Contxts is an SMS business card

Robert Hallock 13 Mar, 2009 at 9:57am ET Article published in Tech

Register for contxts, and then people need only text your user name to 50500 to receive an SMS containing all the information you would normally put on a business card.

Comments

13 Mar 2009 ~ 10:50am CB and I suppose I should get little cards made with my contxts username on them?

I fail to see how this is real-world useful.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 11:27am QCH CB, forget your business card because you're in your speedo on a beach...

Now you can "network" with that CEO of a boardgame company with just your user name for him to find out all the info...
13 Mar 2009 ~ 11:29am Thrax There are times where people have requested a business card from me, and I don't have one. People Brian and I network with for Icrontic always have their smartphones and often prefer electronic communication to a piece of paper.

Perhaps you're in a place where you can't carry business cards.

Perhaps you actually work with people who are actually phone/internet savvy.

I can think of a dozen reasons why this would be useful, and where I could have used this in my own life.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 11:55am QCH Or my example
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:44pm NiGHTS More for the internet-media/tech savvy crowd - I can't really see "traditional" business using this for any advantage over the tried and true physical card.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:47pm CB I guess I'm just picturing someone telling another person to text their username to a certain number, and having to go through the rigamarole of explaining why they're doing it, then maybe spelling the username for them. I don't know... It feels like it would be awkward unless you got in early and got a good, easy username.

When you hand somene a card, you never have to explain anything

I agree that it would be a good thing to have if you are in a situation when you don't have your cards with you, but I don't think it would be wise to allow this service to replace your cards.

I mean, I can also think of a few times when this would have come in handy, but, frankly, remembering my card-box that day would have come in even handier.

Also: Text-msgs are less permanent. Most people don't/can't keep every text message they ever get, and they are not easily searchable.

Also Also: If this ever got so well-known that people start asking each other "Hey what's your Contxts name?" Then it will be very useful.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:50pm NiGHTS "I don't have my business card on me, but if you text 'dkenkel' to _____ you'll have an electronic version of it for the time being while I follow up with you at a later date."

...I'm not sure I see how that'd be tedious by any means.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:52pm CB

NiGHTS wrote:

"I don't have my business card on me, but if you text 'dkenkel' to _____ you'll have an electronic version of it for the time being while I follow up with you at a later date."

...I'm not sure I see how that'd be tedious by any means.

You're making my point for me. A card is still better, and you're only using the service because you forgot your cards (Which I admitted is a good use for it).
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:54pm NiGHTS Well sure, after editing your post.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:58pm CB Also: Once you sign up, it gives you a bit more information.

If you txt someone's number to the service from your phone, then it'll automagically txt your info to that number. Now that sounds useful.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 3:59pm Thrax Or you could read the "about" page which tells you the same thing...
13 Mar 2009 ~ 4:18pm CB Indeed. I didn't because the front page explained it so clearly that I thought that's all there was to the service.

However, I just tested it, and it doesn't seem to work...
13 Mar 2009 ~ 4:34pm Thrax Seth and I exchanged contxts this morning (both sending it to the other person and retrieving the other's info).
13 Mar 2009 ~ 4:35pm CB When I send a phone number to them I get a txt back "We don't understand your request". It is still in Alpha testing however, so I'll try again later.
13 Mar 2009 ~ 4:36pm Thrax Did you type: "send ##########" or simply "##########"