Whatsapp groups have changed my life. Creating and maintaining contextual groups on the service allows me to send family messages to the family group, discuss and confirm dinner plans with others, and send porn and silly memes to a whole bunch more. It’s all about everyone sharing, together.

However, often some groups are created to act as a broadcast service to a large group of people for a particular event (babies being born, birthday parties, engagement parties, wedding info, family members sick in hospital, etc.) with the sole purpose of keeping their group in the loop of what’s going on. More often than not, these groups are created with a wide range of group members that may not all know each other.

Problem? Absolutely. I can’t begin to count how many groups I’ve been added to where people will reply to the group (much like email’s ‘reply-to-all’ debacle) with responses ONLY intended for the original creator and broadcaster, yet everyone who is a part of the group gets to receive your “We’re unable to make it as we’ll be at the Vaal that weekend” or the obligatory thumbsup emoticon.

My personal stance on this is to reply to the broadcaster of the message directly, as to not interrupt everyone else’s day with information that they:

• don’t need to know.
• have zero interest in.

Pretty admirable if I do say so myself. However, most people don’t do this, so I’m inundated with my phone buzzing during meetings with comments and replies that I don’t care for.

Enter Whatsapp Broadcast lists.

A broadcast list is simple. It allows you to send your broadcast messages to a large group and, more importantly, any replies will come directly to you and not be shared with 50 strangers who couldn’t give a rat’s arse about why you can’t make it to the event, how many tequilas you intend to smash in your face at said event, or how many prayers you’re sending for <insert newborn or dying person’s name here>.

So, if you have something to share that requires a conversation to happen, use a group.

BUT, if you have something to broadcast, with an understanding that the rest of the group doesn’t need to know what the others have to say, please, for the love of peanut butter, use a Broadcast List.

Thank you. Really really. Thank you.