Aug 25, 2017 A father tired of his son ignoring or failing to see his messages decided to do something […]
Aug 25, 2017
A father tired of his son ignoring or failing to see his messages decided to do something about it – he built an app.
“I have a son, Ben, who is at secondary school. When he started secondary school I bought him a smartphone so that I could contact him and he could contact me (obviously not while at school),” says Nick Herbert, who created the app.
“There are times that I need to get a message to him and he has no way of knowing that the call or text he ignores / doesn’t see is important or not, and I have no way of knowing if he has seen it (and I mean really seen it and not just moved it so he can get on with his game). There are messaging apps that tell you when a message is delivered and seen, but the point is the message can be ignored or not seen because he didn’t hear it.”
So Herbert created ReplyASAP, which allows users to send urgent messages to others that cannot be ignored without the sender knowing. When one person sends a text using the app, the recipient will get an audible alert – even in silent mode – until the message is read. The ReplyASAP message will also appear over whatever is currently on the screen.
Herbert said he developed the app so that he and other parents could immediately reach their children.
ReplyASAP also has “grown up” uses, Herbert says, like a last-second drink order change as a friend walks to the bar, extra help in finding a misplaced phone and relaying messages in crucial work situations.
The app is currently only available for Android devices but an iOS version is coming, according to Herbert.
The process of building the app — which is currently only available in the UK — has taken eight months and has been complicated and expensive, but Mr Herbert believes it will take off.
The first connection is free, but to connect with more than one person costs $1.27.