By Chris Vary and Stephanie Agresta

Are you on Beluga? GroupMe? Yobongo? If we were to narrow down the buzz and attention for new mobile startups, it would be about these three companies. 

Everywhere we went this weekend at the 2011 SXSWi conference in Austin, TX, people were abuzz about their new ability to have conversations that go deeper than a text message or a tweet.

These three brands are looking to harness the power of group collaboration with conversations not only one-to-one but one-to-many.

Groupies
GroupMe seems to have generated the most buzz at SXSWi, as it sponsored a food and beverages service just outside the conference. All day the GroupMe folks had people stop to chat at the food stand and learn about the benefits of the service.

All great ideas start with a simple idea, and GroupMe has it. We call it ?podchatting.?

The platform connects friends via the application or a mobile phone and allows users to have a conversation with many friends all at once in a single chat session. Users can share photos, links, instant conference calls and locations.

The GroupMe platform even gives provides a unique phone number for the group chat, so that people not on GroupMe can just text the group back to add to the conversation.

While simple in theory, these mobile platforms have the attention of big brands because of the potential for integrations and conversations from brands as the service evolves. 

We really like the idea that we can have a group conversation with multiple people while sharing a similar experience such as a concert or event.

We look for the ability for brands to add to the conversation and experience, or be invited in when asked by consumers.

Reply y?all
Up-and-comers such as Beluga and Yobongo have similar business models for capturing group chat-like features. 

Beluga allows users to create conversation pods where they can interact with others about a topic or event.

Yobongo?s idea is that users can have conversations in locations where they want to have conversations, friends or not. So, if you are in an airport, you can find new friends via your mobile phone by using like commonialities or locations.

Leveraging the power of collaborative chats with  people, friends or not, is the future of texting.

SXSWi 2011 brought us a first look at these services. If you do not believe us, just look at your email. How often  do you hit ?Reply All??

Podchatting is bringing that oft-used feature to mobile and is opening a  new way of thinking about collaboration beyond email.

Chris Vary is creative director at Weber Shandwick, Dallas, TX, and Stephanie Agresta is executive vice president and managing director for social media at Weber Shandwick, New York. Reach them at and .