Bulk SMS in Action in the U.S. – Part 3
If you have been following our series on bulk SMS and its potential within U.S. small businesses, you will already understand the powerful nature of this medium. In this final post, we look at how U.S. businesses are already using bulk SMS to great effect.
U.S. President Obama is, of course, the first person most people think of when bulk SMS is mentioned. Although he is not selling a product or service, his campaigns (both in the run-up to his elections and subsequent world tours) have demonstrated the highly effective and interactive nature of bulk SMS when it comes to enhancing a brand.
Leading U.S. companies that have used bulk SMS to directly generate revenue include CNN, which launched a gold medal alert service during the Beijing Olympics. Subscribers could then select to receive alerts for a specific country. Financial Institutions such as Easy-Forex®, an online currency trading platform for Forex traders, use bulk SMS messages to send market rate information to traders away from their desks. They also contact traders about limit orders and deal status updates, allowing them make informed financial trading decisions.
USA Today is a print and online newspaper that offers a wide range of mobile content delivered to recipients through bulk SMS. Consumers can choose to receive alerts on breaking news stories, travel information, money markets, sports, technology or weather alerts. Because consumers want to be able to access the information that they want or need wherever they are, using bulk SMS messages to deliver timely content is the most logical step.
Cosmo Girl, a magazine aimed at the teenage market, boosted their profits by offering their horoscope readings on a mobile platform, using bulk SMS as the delivery vehicle. There is a monthly subscription fee and horoscopes are delivered once a week. They have since expanded their service to include access to mobile blogs, beauty tips, quizzes and a ‘dude decoder’. Tapping into their existing readership of 5-million plus, bulk SMS messages were an easy and quick way to extend their services and generate additional revenue at very little cost.
If you already have an existing business, decide how bulk SMS can help you extend your brand and increase sales. Or, if you want to start a new business, the mobile world offers opportunities with low operational costs, access to global markets and a high, measurable return on investment.
With big U.S. brands, such as Nike, Dove, Adidas and American Express, using the immediate and effective nature of bulk SMS to extend their brand and interact with their fans, customers and potential customers, it is time for U.S. small businesses to take the plunge and make use of this affordable medium.
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