Think SMS Is Just For Young People? Think Again…
Texting, which was once only prevalent among young adults and teenagers, has gone mainstream. Mobile messaging company Tekelec recently released a survey that found that SMS now reaches across all generations. In fact, among the consumers surveyed, thirty-two percent of consumers across all age groups said SMS was their preferred means of daily international communication, compared to the 33 percent who favor email. And nearly 1/3 of the respondents said that they expect their SMS usage to increase in the next year.
What does this mean for the marketing world?
Well, the most obvious impact is that it validates SMS or MMS campaigns as a viable marketing strategy. By leveraging the personal aspect of messaging and the ability to get messages to consumers in a very timely manner, SMS or MMS campaigns can be very successful. BMW’s 750% ROI on a MMS campaign for snow tires is a good example. But that power is a double edged sword. Just as a well executed campaign can result in tremendous success, a poorly conceived campaign can be damaging. Ronald Cornelisse from Tekelec sums it up nicely,
“The immediacy of SMS cannot be underestimated. Brands have a tremendous opportunity to tie text campaigns with tangible, near-term actions, and they can expect results across all age groups. The risk, however, is that a poorly executed campaign could create a quick backlash.”
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Comments
Oh please $deity no! The reason SMS is a preferred communication medium is that it has so far been immune to the bastardization that comes from marketing campaigns.
Steve,
That is a very fair comment, and I believe that there is a considerable amount of truth in it.
Marketing agencies and advertisers need to be cognizant of the fact that because SMS and MMS are such personal forms of communication, abusing it as a marketing medium will be incredibly damaging to the brand.
When I mention SMS marketing Campaigns, most people have visions of email-like spam flooding their cell phones. This is not only illegal (see http://www.sundog.net/sunblog/posts/when-good-sms-messages-go-bad-satterfield-v-simon-schuster-revisited/) but also ineffective. A good SMS campaign involves consumer initiated conversations over SMS, not the other way around.
Rest assured that SMS/MMS won’t go the way of email, or at least not for long. That kind of marketing bastardization as you aptly put it simply won’t fly in the mobile world.
Uhm..this is old news.
Rodiguo -
It actually isn’t “old news.” While SMS usage has been common among consumers in their teens, 20’s and early 30’s, it is only recently that usage among that nation’s largest age groups (35-44 and 45-54) have grown to the point that mobile marketing campaigns aimed at those demographics would be viable. Prior to this survey being released, the numbers were reported as much lower among older generations. For instance, according to both the Mobile Marketing Association and Pew Internet & American Life Project Surveys (released in 2008), previously only 18% of people ages 40-44 used text messaging, compared to 73% of people 15-37.
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