So, you’ve signed up to Kalido, matched with some great people, and are generally getting on with life. But what’s this notification you keep getting about sharing your phonebook? Should you dismiss it (again), and carry on with your life? Here are 5 reasons why you shouldn’t dismiss the notification, and should share your phonebook:
1. You’ll get more out of Kalido with trusted matches
Kalido ranks your matches to help you prioritise the most relevant ones. And one of the most crucial factors the app looks at is whether you have common contacts with someone. Having a common contact means you can ask that person for their opinion on your match (so you can do your due diligence before you work with them). The common contact can also help you break the ice by making an introduction. In short, having a common contact helps you build rapport and trust with your matches, and get the most out of Kalido’s very very smart matching algorithms. However, the only way the app will know if you have common contacts, and the only way for you to get trusted matches, is for you to share your phonebook.
2. You’ll really get the most out of Kalido by increasing your trusted matches
In addition to getting referrals about your trusted matches, and introductions to them, your contacts can also help you in another important way: they can introduce you to a .whole new bunch of people. You can let your contacts know who you’re looking for (whether it’s a service provider, or a client for your service), and your contacts can then introduce you to someone suitable from their list of contacts. This basically doubles your chances of finding someone excellent, as both Kalido and all your contacts are recommending matches for you.
3. You’ll know who’s nearby so you’ll never miss an opportunity
Kalido can let you see phonebook contacts who are nearby (at a non-creepy distance of general neighbourhood, and never any closer than 250m). That means you can schedule a quick business proposal in between your other meetings, an impromptu catch-up in person on an ongoing project, or just…catch up. Wherever you are in the world, Kalido will show you who’s around, and available to work or hang out.
4. You can call and text for free from the app
In many countries, mobile airtime is not cheap. And even if you’re fortunate enough to live in a country where it is cheap, nothing is cheaper than free. Kalido lets you call and text your Kalido Contacts (people in your phonebook who are also on Kalido) for free. So, as long as you’re connected to a Wi-Fi network (and thankfully there are plenty of public ones in many countries), you’ll be able to call and send a bunch of messages to your Kalido Contacts, without paying anything. If you don’t have Wi-fi, calling will use mobile data, but even that’s a better deal than airtime in many places.
5. You can get all these benefits without compromising your or anyone else’s privacy
Getting trusted matches, introductions, referrals, and the ability to call and text for free is great. But ‘Hey Kalido,’ you say, ‘What about my personal privacy? And the privacy of my friends and family and other contacts?’ Well, User, you should know that we are fanatical about protecting your privacy and the privacy of everyone connected to you.
Firstly, know that we will never contact any of your contacts without your express permission. The purpose of sharing your phonebook is to give you access to your contacts on Kalido, not to give us a database to spam. Importing your phonebook contacts onto Kalido helps you see if you have anyone in common with matches, and gives you access to your contacts’ contacts (increasing your trusted networks).
Secondly, you can always choose what information you share on Kalido. For example, your location is shared with all your contacts by default, but you can also restrict access to certain people only. This means you can individually select the contacts you want to share your location with. So, you won’t ever have to worry about your boss (or a nosy acquaintance) checking up to see where you are if you are uncomfortable with it.
In short, sharing your phonebook really doesn’t have a downside. And since you have 5 great reasons to do so, why not log in now and do it! Or if you somehow *gasp* still don’t have Kalido, download us on your favourite app store now.