Text Messages – Do They Have a Place in the Marketing Horizon?
September 21, 2010
By Cara Brooke Schultz
Recently, I've received a few text messages for offers from various companies (I'm glad I have the unlimited text messaging plan). Although the text messages were unsolicited, it got the wheels in my brain turning. How big a role will text messaging play in the marketing/advertising industry in the next 1 to 2 years?
Our Marketing Knowledge Center has some great information on mobile marketing. After a quick search I found out the following: The mobile platform is the most personal digital medium to date. It tends to either be a "snack medium"-short-form content-or an "action medium"-i.e. a tool to check the weather or look up an address. (For more information on mobile marketing read the snapshot on our website).
My first thoughts, unless wireless phone providers decide to refrain from charging customers for text messaging, I can't imagine an unsolicited text message would be received lightly. Most cell phone plans have a limit on text messaging, both what you can receive and what you can send. Should you go over that limit (and I know from personal experience) the fees can be excessive!
Some quick research on Google produced an article that addresses text messaging for marketers. The article on marketingprofs.com explains a way around the fees associated with texting, "A good solution to that common mobile-marketing dilemma is FTEU (free to the end-user) messaging, which allows the carrier or a brand to pick up the tab on messaging so the marketing texts don't count against the customer's monthly bucket of messages." Sounds like a great solution huh? Well the article continues to talk about the difficulties that are still associated with FTEU such as negotiating carrier clearance.
Would you use text message marketing? How do you see mobile marketing evolving in the future?
You must be logged in to submit a comment.