US-based software Crystalknows is an AI type software that helps users write emails in a tone that would connect more specifically to their recipients.Â
Email app Crystalknows thinks it knows how you like to be spoken to, and also knows how others like to be spoken to. The software looks at characteristics of a person according to the public information available on sites such as LinkedIn and Google to create a personality profile of both themselves and a person that they would like to connect with; and then considers a tailored approach. While Artificial Intelligence is not perfect, our road tests proved that it was worth getting in touch with the company to find out more. We spoke to Head of Growth Luke Thomas and here is what we found out about the company and the benefits of using the software.
In a nutshell, tell us about this software?
Crystal is a coach for every conversation. As more and more communication happens online, it leaves much to be desired versus in-person conversations where you can identify tone and body language.
The pain we aim to solve is when you communicate with people you don’t know well, you end up guessing how they prefer to communicate. Our software uses the DISC behavioural framework to give you insights on how to communicate and be more productive. Additionally, we have tools in Gmail and LinkedIn that act as a coach, guiding you to communicate according to the recipient’s personality.
We use a variety of sources. We analyse public information (i.e. – what shows up when you Google your name) and combine that with info that Crystal users provide as they use the tools. The software is geared towards analysing your writing style, so that can happen in a variety of places online.
Facebook is much more closed off compared to other websites, so we don’t analyse as much information there.
How many users do you have at the moment and which countries is it used the most?
Would prefer not to say, but it’s in the hundreds of thousands range. The United States is the most popular market. However, we’ve seen interest in all English-speaking countries.
Is this technology available in different languages or only English?
Not at this time. It’s something we’d like to do in the future though.
How much does it cost?
The free version provides access to people you know and communicate with. The paid version is if you want insights on people you don’t know. It’s aimed towards people who work in fields (sales/biz-dev/recruiting/etc.) where they are regularly communicating with people they don’t know.
With that being said our free plan is very robust. You can take a free personality assessment, invite coworkers and perform 1-1 and group reports. Other providers charge $50+ for this functionality, but we’re giving it away at no cost.
What’s in the pipeline?
We are going to be introducing more robust group reports and calendar functionality. For example, we’ll send you an email before your meetings and help you prep for the conversations that ensue.
Tell us a bit about the company’s history?
Drew D’Agostino founded the company in 2014. He finished up at a previous company and was exploring DISC and how he could become a more efficient communicator. He then combined that curiosity with natural language processing (i.e. – analysing words/phrases and combinations of them) and Crystal was born.
How accurate is this software?Â
Based on the data we have users say the profiles are 80 percent accurate. We are constantly trying to improve the accuracy – it’s a huge focus of ours. Last year we raised from Salesforce Ventures, CEB Ventures, and others. Our focus is on improving the product and adding more value for existing customers.
