SMS Advertising
SMS Advertising
Short Message Service or SMS for short, is the sending and receiving of short text-based messages through your mobile device. With the explosive growth and now near ubiquity of cell phones in our culture SMS has become the newest platform to support the marketing initiatives of businesses both small and large. There are several advantages to using SMS advertising, all derived from the power of the growing mobile platforms. From the point of view of the advertisers SMS advertising offers near instantaneous connection with customers, no matter where they may be, as long as they own and are operating a cell phone. It grants these benefits at a reasonable price, especially when compared to other methods such as TV or radio advertising. These benefits make SMS Advertising an essential part of a modern advertisers marketing mix.
One advantage of SMS advertising is the speed with which the messages reach your customer base. It can take only seconds for a message to reach potentially millions of customers. While the exact time for a message to traverse the network will generally depend on the service providers, you can rest assured that under normal circumstances there will not be long delays before customers see your ads. With this lighting-speed there comes a grave responsibility on the part of advertisers, and that is to make each advertisement relevant. Because it is so easy to bombard users with messages, we as advertisers must make sure to use the technology judiciously, sending only targeted, useful ads to customers. This will put them in a position to take action immediately.
Another advantage of SMS advertising is that the messages go out to customers wherever they are. Over 80% of consumers own a cell phone. This includes children as young as eight years old. In fact, they only people who are likely to go without cell phones are either elderly, in dire financial situations. People are more likely now than ever to carry their cell phone with them everywhere they go, providing marketers with unparalleled access to their customer bases. Even if a customer does not check the message immediately (because they are driving or otherwise engaged) the message will remain with them until the opportune time to check it arises.
Low costs is yet another prime benefit of SMS advertising. While each service provider and SMS maintenance and distribution software package will be slightly different, the constant variable in every case is declining costs. The price of sending or receiving SMS advertising is lessening with each month. Unlimited data transfer packages for a set monthly fee are now common. As these prices continue to decline this mode of marketing will only become more cost-effective.
SMS advertising offers marketers the ability to reach out and connect with customers easily and at a low cost. By tapping into this ubiquitous entry point into consumers lives marketers can deliver targeted, relevant ads to a wide range of people at any time, nearly instantaneously.
