ReplyAll is a content creation/distribution startup based out of New York City. Founded by former college classmates Zach Abramowitz (CEO) and Ari Gold (CPO) {now joined by Emanuel Ilyayev as CTO}, ReplyAll came into being as the result of ongoing, daily conversations among a group of friends. The founders were regularly engaging in daily messaging sessions on topics like sports, pop-culture, and current events. These intriguing and often humorous conversations among friends begged an audience. It was this realization and search for a distribution platform that led to the creation of ReplyAll.
Ari tried his hand at podcasting. Zach sought an audience as a stand-up comic. They examined the possibility of blogging. Between the solitude of blogging, the scheduling conflicts of podcasting, and the uncertainty of the comedy circuit, it was obvious to the two that none of these platforms was the solution they sought. Enter ReplyAll.
ReplyAll offers a platform for invited participants to engage in an ongoing online conversation. Unlike comment platforms, ReplyAll participants are community members that are invited to contribute to conversations via an email.
No need to worry about drive-by comments littering a feed or derailing a topic. No need to worry about trolls and spammers. ReplyAll allows an ongoing conversation to take place between interested participants, and that conversation can happen in real time. Invited participants are able to add their contribution to the discussion when their schedule allows.
No need for a pre-scheduled meetup time. No need for all participants to be in the same time zone or location. The conversation can happen naturally and proceed according to the will of the invited participants. Community members and onlookers are able to offer their contributions too, but those contributions are only added at the will of the existing, invited conversation participants. If your contribution doesn’t add to or further the conversation, chances are it won’t be included.
Now you might be saying to yourself, “Whoopee a closed conversation for invited-only participants…Big deal, what’s in it for me?”
ReplyAll is launching an embeddable widget that allows these ongoing conversations to be embedded on any website or blog. SEO friendly, these conversations can be indexed by search engines and offer a way for online content creators to add fresh content to their site on an ongoing basis without having to be the sole creator of that content.
Think group blogging meets podcasting.
As the conversations evolve over time, no single party has to be solely responsible for the creation of the content. Want a way to boost your site’s presence on the web and grow your community at the same time? Host and embed a community discussion on a topic near and dear to the hearts of your community. From investment chat on a startup blog to trade talk on a baseball blog, the options are only limited by your imagination.
See a conversation happening on Twitter amongst your peers relevant to your website? Why not invite specific participants to expand on that conversation via a ReplyAll discussion? No need for 140-character contributions; the conversation can grow and expand inside a ReplyAll discussion. Unlike question and answer sites or comment platforms, ReplyAll captures the camaraderie of a conversation. A group blogging platform where the conversations are the content; winning concept, right?
Their business model is pretty straight forward: premium accounts to be offered, native advertising, and white label offerings.
Think ReplyAll’s content creation/distribution platform might make a profitable addition to your portfolio? Connect with the team on AngelList.
Eleanor Wall (aka Tech Tidbits) is a freelance tech blogger and startup cheerleader. When she’s not busy unearthing intriguing startups, Eleanor ghost writes brand marketing content for corporate clients.