iMessage and the future of Apple Messaging

Apple’s annual WWDC Keynote was this week. As usual, it did not disappoint. There were a few notable items, however, one in particular stood out to me: iMessage.

With iOS 10, iMessage gains its own App Store. iMessage Apps are third-party extensions that expand the functionality of a standard conversation. Is this Apple’s take on chat bots? Not exactly, but this native experience may provide something even more powerful.

In a previous blog post, I talked about the landscape of Facebook Bots and how I think they can help demonstrate brand value and speed up customer acquisition. So, what are the key things to know about iMessage Apps? Let’s see.

Here’s what I believe iMessage apps will be great at:

• Collaboration & Sharing. The Grubhub example was genius. You and two other co-workers are trying to order lunch. Just open up the Grubhub iMessage app inside of a group chat and one by one everyone makes their selections until it’s time to order. The Grubhub card is dynamically updated for everyone’s selections. No need to pass your phone around the office.

Deconstructed Samosa?

• Real-time Actions & Events. Imagine you’re watching the NBA finals in your apartment and you‘re sharing the experience with your friend waiting to board a flight at JFK. Dynamically updated cards around real-time gameplay can keep an entire group chat updated and connected around the game so you can trash talk with your Fantasy League. iMessage apps could provide an amazing framework for a shared game experience. Possibly, even better than watching the game on TV.
• Brand Emojis / Stickers. The ability to install custom Emoji/Stickers is a no-brainer. iMessage Apps will make this process way easier. This market is huge. The Kimoji app was reportedly downloaded 9,000 times per millisecond.

That beat is damn good tho.

These are things iMessage apps probably won’t be great at:

• Lowering the friction of downloading an App. Be under no illusion, the iMessage App Store will be just as flooded and overwhelming as the normal app store. I’m also not convinced it will be easier to find and download an iMessage App than it is a normal App.
• Single-user interactions. iMessage apps are meant for sharing and collaboration. Applications that are designed to provide single-user value such as productivity, lifestyle and utility will have a hard time. However, I’d be surprised find an app that isn’t social in some way shape or form.
• Broaden your user base. Similar to my first point, don’t expect iMessage apps to magically improve brand awareness or exposure. I don’t expect the first mover advantage we saw with the launch of the original app store in 2008.

Simply put, I think the brands that are poised to really thrive in the iMessage ecosystem are brands that are intrinsically social and collaborative.

Before Monday, everyone viewed iMessage as a thin layer of convenience that sits on top of your of your text messaging, nothing more. This fall, I believe people will look at iMessage like a new wave of social networking. One in which your brand profile is your iMessage app, and your user engagement is injecting your brand value inside everyday conversations.

In the coming weeks, Black Ops will be releasing new bots and tools that will help push bots and chat messaging ecosystem forward. Be sure to follow me on Twitter where I’ll continue to share my thoughts on apple, bots, tech trends and startup culture.