Text messaging has become the great communication equalizer. Anyone with a mobile phone — smart device or not — has access to texting, and people use it to talk with everyone from friends and family to co-workers and professional contacts.
In recent years, one more group has been added to people’s extended texting networks: brands. At first, consumers were hesitant to open up their text message inbox to marketing messages — a 2012 survey by the U.K. Direct Marketing Association and Velti found that only 33 percent of Americans preferred to receive mobile offers by text message, and another 50 percent preferred not to receive mobile offers at all. But attitudes have shifted in the past few years, and consumers are becoming more open to receiving relevant, personalized marketing text messages. In fact, according to a 2014 Hipcricket survey, 41 percent of U.S. consumers said they’d share more information with brands via mobile if it meant they’d receive relevant offers.
“The increase in text messaging as a marketing channel is undoubtedly a result of the exponential growth in mobile users,” said Yoni Ben-Yehuda, chief marketing officer of Web design firm Blue Fountain Media. “Most users are attached to their mobile phones and always in arm’s reach of the device, making it a premium platform to target a unique audience if they’ve provided you with their phone number as a communication channel. Depending on the content and the unique needs of the user, text message marketing is often a good channel to focus on.” [Text Message Marketing: Tips, Tools & Services]

The benefits of texting

If you want to market in real time, there’s no better option than to send a text message. Some people turn off notifications for email and other social networks, but nearly everyone receives real-time alerts for their text messages.

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