SMS Marketing

     I admit that this is a cheap  way to advertise your products.As a consumer,I do noy like it,you know I am a little upset that I receive so many rubbish on my phone.So it deponds on you.

     Short Message Service A text message service that enables short messages of generally no more than 140-160 characters in length to be sent and transmitted from a cellphone.

     SMS was introduced in the GSM system and later supported by all other digital-based mobile communications systems. Unlike paging, but similar to e-mail, short messages are stored and forwarded at SMS centers, which mean you, can retrieve your messages later if you are not immediately available to receive them. If the phone is powered off or out of range, messages are stored in the network and are delivered at the next opportunity.

     Mobile marketing is highly personalised, interactive and has an immediate impact.

     “Mobile marketing is suited best to drive sales of consumer packaged goods, restaurant menu items and high-street retail commodities — sectors that have advertised very little online to date.” - Jupiter Research analyst Dylan Brooks

     Case : Mc Donald tried SMS marketing by project ‘e-street’. The project signed up 2,500 mobile phone-users in the town of Lulea, Sweden. to receive SMS messages of special offers from 150 local organizations. After the volunteers were sent an SMS for a McDonalds burger offer, 25 per cent of the targeted users took up the offer.

     Every marketing technique is bound to follow some code of conducts. Advertising has its own code of conducts. Slowly SMS marketing is also bind by law so as to stop hassles done by bulk messaging marketer to customers.

     Marketers will no longer be allowed to send unsolicited messages to mobiles under such code of conducts.

     Marketing Federation of Southern Africa (MFSA) with service providers has launched a new web site and code of conduct e.g. “Companies cannot send a commercial SMS unless the recipient has requested the SMS, or has a prior commercial relationship with the company “to curb the abuse of this direct marketing tool.

     Australian Direct Marketing Association in Sydney develops similar codes of conducts.

     Conclusion

     Every invention comes with both positive and negative features. It depends on users. It is up to marketers how best and safely they can use it. Being limited up to somewhere 160 characters; SMS depends on other cross media also. Still it is most useful in instant messaging / advertising to targeted audience.

     Get more here:http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/3-12-2004-51586.asp.