10 Mobile Communication Portals of a Social Savvy 22-Year-Old

By Jenna Starkey

Like most mobile-dependent 22-year-olds, I enjoy taking advantage of the variety of communication portals available to me.  Not only am I in awe of the constant evolution of mobile technology, I am also impulsive about keeping up with trends and the people that mean the most to me. Below are 10 forms of communication I use on my cell phone almost every day. With so many options to choose from, there’s always a way to reach me … as long as my battery is charged!

1. Standard Text Message – Without the standard text message, millennial like me would be very difficult to get a hold of – just ask our parents. Call me impatient or maybe at times dinner-table-texting disrespectful, but I would rather shoot a quick text regarding my whereabouts over any other means of communication.  I bet some of you would agree it’s a bummer we don’t have another pair of eyes or hands to be able to safely text while driving.

2. Twitter – If you’re wondering what I’m doing first thing in the morning, chances are you can find me on Twitter. Twitter is my morning newspaper, and I am notorious for interacting with friends and followers from my cell phone before I even get out of bed. I’m energized at the first flow of information via timelines early in the morning, and you can count on sharing Tweets, RTs and Direct Messages with me as early as 7 a.m. if you feel so inclined.

3. Facebook – Facebook is always the first application I download on my phone and the feature that consumes most of my energy and time. I recently tried deactivating my account a few weeks ago. It was my version of a technology detox. The mere thought of being disconnected from friends was shamelessly harder than I’m willing to admit. Hence the reason the project only lasted me four days. Facebook wins again.

4. Voice Messaging Apps – These apps function just as easily as a standard text message but also include voice! I recently heard about these cool voice messaging apps from a crew of tech savvy folks in San Francisco, and had to try it out. Cloudtalk (pictured) is my personal favorite voice messaging service, which just so happens to be one of our clients here at Racepoint Group. It’s the place on my phone where dozens of my best friends all over the world and I exchange in conversation, but on our own time. I sure hope this platform takes off, because it’s pretty awesome.

5. LinkedIn – Maybe we don’t check job prospects as frequently as we check our Facebook friends, but at least we have the option! LinkedIn is the master site for balancing a professional and personal life through social media, and I like it enough to be suckered into downloading it on my mobile phone. Whether you’re looking for a job, or just looking to network, this communication platform is just plain good to have on hand.

6. Mobile Games – Words-With-Friends is my most recent mobile obsession. If you are one of the nine friends playing a game of Scrabble game against me, go ahead and use the game as just another fun way to communicate with me.  Words-With-Friends, like many other mobile games, comes with a chat feature to talk with your opponents.  I often catch myself making plans to hang out through the chat feature on my games. I figure I’m just cutting out the middleman!

7. WordPress/Tumblr – If you’re a big blogger there is no better way to check on your blog than with a proper blog formatting mobile app.  I recall trying to edit my blog from my Blackberry browser – once. Talk about frustrating. That’s why I’ve added the WordPress app to my arsenal, so I can blog literally wherever and whenever the inspiration strikes me.

8. Email –This is the place I receive newsletters, family correspondence, a sea of notifications, junk mail and whatever the world feels inclined to inform me about all day long. I tend to receive the most important and heartfelt messages from close friends and families on my personal email account as well. I’m also most likely to respond to sales pitches or daily deals here. I think it’s a miracle we can manage so much communication in one portal at once!

9. Check-ins – Most of my friends use Foursquare or Yelp as their check-in service of choice.  Facebook check-ins are also gaining popularity these days too. It’s pretty cool, and sometimes fairly creepy, knowing where my friends are based on the places they’ve checked-in to.  Every once in a while I’ll receive text messages from friends regarding the places I’ve checked in, providing the opportunity to share tips or even meet up in person!

10. Instant Messaging – Back in my Blackberry days, BBM was my lifeline. AIM, Skype and Gmail chat might be the alternative for Android or the iPhone, but in the end all these applications do the same thing –  send instant messages for free. At one point in college, you could send me a text or a BBM at the same time to see which I’d respond to quickest. Usually it depended on my mood which one I used. Funny how the practicality of a free service becomes obsolete when friends are involved and we realize we had unlimited texting to begin with.

Thanks for letting me share my top 10 list with you. Are there any mobile communication portals you would add to your list?

A little bit more about me:   I am a former loyal Blackberry user and passionate consumer of news that I can absorb in 140 characters or less.  I admit to sleeping with my phone in my hand on a regular basis, and, as much as I loved my Blackberry, I broke down and bought an iPhone so I could play Words-With-Friends and Angry Birds on my morning BART ride.  In addition, I am currently saving money for an iPad, which I will use if for nothing else than to read magazines and The New York Times.