The Digital Download Podcast is a show focusing on digital communications strategy, and social media marketing.

Recent interviewees include Mark Schaefer, Gini Dietrich and Stephen Waddington.

Guild Founder and CEO Ashley Friedlein joined host Paul Sutton to discuss the runaway growth of consumer and business messaging apps.

They discussed the trend towards smaller curated private groups and the 'problem' with using consumer message apps such as as WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram for business and politics - including the thorny areas of privacy GDPR/CCPA compliance, corporate governance and safeguarding.

Host Paul Sutton is @ThePaulSutton on Twitter. He ensures digital and communications strategists have an opportunity to ask the questions before the interview:

The 'elephants in the room' for many are 'why don't we simply use email for secure, private professional communications' and 'why would anyone want to download yet another app?'

Paul asked these questions and others.  

You can listen to their conversation online and below:

The key topics covered in the episode, with approximate timings are:

1:09  Consumer Messaging App Usage Statistics 2020
2:46  Econsultancy created new a B2B publisher model
3:48  Drivers of the growth of messaging as the dominant communications channel
5:40   Striking a balance -  new communications platforms that are useful but also mindful of their user's wellbeing
6:50  'The Inversion of Trust' - the retreat to smaller, private, curated messaging groups
7:42  Brands are not playing in the messaging space...yet!
8:44   So what’s wrong with email?  The professional communication platform mix and the need for discipline, new rules and behaviours
13:28  Guild is a WhatsApp for business
14:58  The ‘problem’ with WhatsApp
16:48  What is Guild’s business model?
17:22  What are the GDPR / CCPA privacy regulation implications of using consumer messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal for business and professional purposes?
21:29  Consumer messaging apps and corporate governance
22:22  The Messaging Infrastructure – the difference between team collaboration tools like Slack and interpersonal message services like Guild
23:52  Why would anyone want to download yet another app?
27:00   How do you beat Facebook Inc? The rise of specialist niche apps and their network effect business models
31:49  Guild counts CEOs, cabinet ministers, privacy specialists and defence personnel as members

Check out our case studies for examples of some of the businesses, social enterprises, charities and other organisations using Guild for professional messaging.  

Photo by Michal Czyz on Unsplash


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Contact us if you want to know more or have any questions.