Many businesses today are not taking advantage of every marketing opportunity available to them, including mobile marketing. Recent reports indicate that nearly 6 billion people worldwide have cellular phones. An estimated 8 trillion SMS messages, typically referred to as text messages, were sent out in 2011 and many cell phone users send more than 600 text messages each month. Of the 6 billion cell phone users, approximately 60 percent use text messaging. Nearly 100 percent of all text messages are read by the recipients, most within three minutes of receipt.

SMS messaging is a cheap yet incredibly effective form of advertising that many businesses overlook. While it is not as high-tech as QR codes or advertising through smart phone apps, it opens up a direct dialog between the business and the consumer. Advertisers can include a link in the text message that will send recipients to whichever Web site they specify, where they can view special offers, print coupons or get more information about the businesses products or services.

Jeff Lee, the president of Distributive Networks, used text messaging quite successfully during Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign. About 2.9 million people registered to be among the first to find out whom Obama had selected as his running mage via text message. Lee then used these numbers to send out additional texts regarding Obama’s campaign asking for donations and volunteers.

Businesses wishing to use SMS messaging for advertising purposes need to be aware that going about it the wrong way could result in stiff fines and having your messages cut off by cell phone carriers. We’re well aware of these boundaries and ensure that everything is done correctly and ethically.