Brad Brooks from TigerText on real-time messaging for enterprises

TigerText?s co-founder and CEO shares more about the opportunities messaging brings for businesses

Social Media Portal (SMP): What is your name and what do you do there at TigerText?

Brad Brooks (BB): My name is Brad Brooks, I?m the co-founder and CEO of TigerText. In this role, I lead the strategic direction and oversee the day-to-day of TigerText.

SMP: Briefly, tell us about TigerText (for those that don?t know), what is it and what does company do?

BB: TigerText is the leader in secure, real-time messaging for the enterprise. TigerText?s encrypted messaging platform keeps communications safe, improves workflow and complies with industry regulations.

Developed to address the security needs, BYOD policies, and message restrictions in the enterprise, TigerText is committed to keeping mobile communications secure, private and impermanent. More than 2,000 facilities have adopted TigerText, including leading organizations like Adventist Health, the University of Kentucky HealthCare and Scottsdale Health Partners, which rely on TigerText to replace unsecured SMS text messaging that leaves confidential information at risk.

SMP: When was the company founded and how many people work at TigerText?

BB: The company was founded in 2010. We have approximately 65 employees.

SMP: How does the company generate revenue and are there any investors?

BB: For our fully secure, HIPAA compliant messaging platform, we charge $10 per user, per organization. Our investors include Easton Capital, New Science Ventures, and more.

SMP: Who are your target audience and why?

BB: Our targeted audience is organizations in regulated industries like healthcare, finance, legal and government. Our 100% secure messaging platform enables organizations to send, receive and transmit information in a safe and compliant manner, which is crucial for industries that must abide by compliancy rules and regulations.

SMP: Why is text messaging important for consumers and in particularly for businesses to use?

BB: Text messaging has become the priority communication channel for most people. We rely on text messaging for fast or urgent answers from colleagues, friends and family.  As we become more reliant on messaging in all aspects of our daily lives, we need to think carefully about the digital footprints we leave and the risks we take when transmitting sensitive information.

Businesses in regulated industries, especially, are beginning to understand the real risk facing them - employees transmitting sensitive information via their mobile devices in an insecure manner using SMS. TigerText ensures that all information sent and received is sent securely, encrypted and 100% compliant.

SMP: Why is security such an important feature and how to do ensure TigerText supports this?

BB: Security is extremely important as we see the world becoming more and more reliant on text messaging in their daily lives. People have a right to privacy when texting and TigerText ensures this by using 256-bit AES and TLS encryption to comply with HIPAA and other regulatory standards. Our technology encrypts all communications in transit and at rest, as well as authenticates receipts before sending.

SMP: What are the high moments of what you have been doing so far?

BB: We've experienced immense growth in the past year. The number of our paid users jumped not only 400%, but we've several new organizations onboard including Hoag Health Network, Adventist Health and Health Alliance.

SMP: What do you see as your biggest challenges and opportunities in the messaging space (e.g. over the top (OTT) messaging)?

BB: OTT messaging has grown exponentially since 2011, when research companies Informa and Portio both pegged OTT messaging volume at about 4 billion daily messages. By year-end 2013, daily OTT message traffic is expected to more than double the amount of daily SMS texts. This is a huge opportunity for OTT messaging companies like TigerText to act on. The challenge will be keeping up with this growth.

SMP: What are your top tips for choosing a messaging supplier?

BB replies with:

1. If you're in the healthcare industry, make sure your messaging provider is 100% HIPAA compliant. A recent study by Manhattan Research found that 80% of physicians use smartphones at work, including to send and receive text messages, but hospitals and health care facilities can face fines up to $50,000 per violation for sending sensitive patient information via insecure SMS.

2. Use a solution that provides admin controls to add users, maintain and monitor staff usage, as well as be able to provision and de-provision users immediately.

3. Look for a messaging provider that enables you to separate personal contacts and conversations from business contacts and conversations. Being able to streamline and organize all your messages and conversations into groups is crucial for saving time.

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