Managing Home Maintenance Costs

Text message marketing can be an effective marketing technique aimed at online and mobile users with regular cell phones as well as smart phones. More and more people are now using smart phones. Which also allows them to use online technologies for texting. They are free as an online app between people who have the same app. Skype, Whatsapp, iMessage and many more applications are providing this service free of charge. The end user will also see displays of advertising to that same customer. Gone is the day when you used the telephone systems text message system for marketing.

Get your customers to sign up by providing them with an incentive. They may be interested in your products. They may also want to receive sales information or information about new products. You can give them a choice between receiving an email or a simple text message. This is to update them on sales that you may be offering or discounts on services. This is a great way to alert them that products they are interested in are on sale and available at stores they frequent.

Text Message Marketing – Incentives

In-cent your customers to sign up. Offer a discount of some kind on their first purchase over a specified amount. This works well to encourage sales as well as to encourage people to sign up to your distribution list.

This is a value able list of clients since they signed voluntarily and they also are looking for information from your company to gain more information about sales and new products. Your chances of making a sale is far greater with this list than any other list that you might purchase. Lists that are purchased are not qualified in any way and represent a random list of emails and phone numbers that have been gathered. Your return rate for a list that is not pre-qualified will be very low.

Do not waste money on blasting text messages to paid lists. The odds are much lower that any of these people will be interested in any of your services or products. These lists have usually just been collected from other lists and may not even be valid email id’s.

Use text messaging advertising to alert customers to sales and special offers aimed at clients who have expressed a previous interest in your services and products. This is probably the most important list of customers that you will have. Also when you do complete a sale, if you do not already have their email or cell phone number this is the time to ask for it.

In addition ask for a report on the success rate of your text message marketing plans to confirm results and fine tune the program so that your success can be repeated and improved on in the future.

For more information concerning text messaging, click here.

Text messages are one of the most effective ways for companies to market to people. They are one of the first things looked at by anyone carrying a cell phone. Smart phones are even more effective since the screen is larger and more information can be displayed.

Email campaigns are not nearly as effective since they usually get filtered out by the email spam filters. Many people never see them let alone read them. If they are not in the spam filter, you must have a highly effective message. You have to get someone’s attention to actually open the email on their screen and read it. The first sentence must be enough to catch their attention. It should make them want to read the rest of the message or they will just delete the message.

Spam filter engines can be very effective at filtering out emails and if the receiving individual does not like your email he or she can update the spam filter engine to always filter out your messages so that they do not need to ever look at them.

Mobile Text Messaging Marketing – Text Message Campaigns

The same guidelines apply to text messaging campaigns. Effective titles, effective messages that target something the reader is interested in. If the message is not effective or not of immediate interest the message will be immediately discarded. however there are no spam filters that we know of that are available to auto sort messages, so the client at least must open the message to decide if they want to read it or to discard it.

Some companies such as Izod for example have highly effective text messaging marketing campaigns. The first step is to find interested customers. They do this by advertising in their stores. They were offering $5 discount on purchases when customers signup to receive text marketing messages.

Now they have interested customers who will read messages sent by their marketing people. They will just not auto erase these messages. These potential customers are in effect willing recipients. They have to provide a $5 discount to a customer. However they know that they have an actual customer when someone signs up via text message.

Avoid Abusing the Privilege

It is also important not to abuse the privilege of sending messages to willing customers. If you abuse it and send too many messages there is a good chance that those customers will either sign out of the service or they will begin ignoring the text messages. Both are equally bad for text messaging advertising and marketing campaigns. Too many messages just irritate the customer and drive him or her away from the message itself and perhaps your business.

At all times marketing managers must deliver something the customer is interested in. At the same time not make it so common that they begin ignoring the messages. Keep your text messaging marketing campaigns highly effective. Offer value to the customer, something that they can use. Or can save money. Something that rewards them for the effort it takes to read the message as short as it is.

For more information on text messaging today, click here.

Sending a message by text messaging is very efficient and costs the least of most types of communication when you consider that pretty much everyone cannot stand not looking at the message they have just received. Sending mass text messaging is even more efficient for companies to their customers. They have a dedicated audience who has signed up to receive these messages. The reason is usually because they are expecting a deal of some sort. It might be a discount on items purchased. It may be a sale on a particular product. Or it may be a one time sale store and company wide. Whatever the reason this is an excellent way to send this information to your customers and clients or even your friends or relatives.

It is much easier to use than email messaging. Since it gets in the hands of your customers immediately whether they are carrying a smart phone or just a regular cell phone. They can view the message and take action on it immediately. The cost to send the message can be very inexpensive as well and as low as three cents a message in some cases. Most companies that offer mass text messaging using software have some really great packages. They can be it very easy to get started sending messages to your customers.

Mass Text Messaging Software – A couple of things to be aware of.

Most software companies should offer this service with the guarantee that they will not resell your list of numbers. This is information you went to great trouble to collect. As well you may even have promised your customers that their phone numbers would not be passed along to other companies.

They do not want to receive nagging messages from companies they have never heard of. At the same time you as the customer of mass text messaging software do not want to be bothered by offers of free phone numbers either. These are just active phone numbers and not qualified customers that would be interested in your products.

Start up fees should also be zero or at least kept to a minimum. In addition it should also not require a contract either. Why sign a contract for something that you are testing and really do not know the market success that you will receive?

An Example of Mass Text Messaging marketing

Izod clothing store advertises that they will provide a $5 discount to customers who sign up for their text messaging sales alerts. Customers get $5 off their in store purchase on the spot when they sign up in the store. All they have to do is send a text message to an IZOD number. They receive a text message back in return with an authorization code.

From that point forward Izod sends monthly messages to the customer advising them of sales etc. These are taking place in their store that the customer may be interested in. In addition they usually offer a further discount to the customer. For example to entice them to go to the store on specific days.

This is a pretty good example of mass text messaging software being used to collect qualified customers. In addition to send messages to those qualified customers on a regular basis with valuable information for the customer.

For more information on text messaging today, click here.

We were wondering how real estate agents would use real estate text message marketing in their business endeavors, so we did a little research and came across one application of this service that is marketed by a company in the business. Most real estate agents will use text messaging with their technical savvy clients. They use it to communicate with them, even negotiate prices for homes. This application brings another marketing tool for the agent and another means of gaining clients.

Basically the way that they have implemented real estate text message marketing is they provide a text ID to the agent. Which he includes on all of his advertising including for sale signs that go on the property. All handouts that might be provided as well to their customers. If potential clients send a text message to this ID they can then be sent information via SMS to their phones. They can also receive web site information about homes they may be interested in on their smart phones. They will receive basic property information that may be of interest to them.

Real estate agents can also set up text message blasts as part of their real estate text message marketing plans. The are advising clients of new listings and of sales that have taken place. It is an easy way to keep all of your clients up to date and help them remember you.

Real Estate Text Message Marketing or Snail Mail

One agent we know sends out a letter every month with a short blurb about what is going on in the market. Which costs her a stamp and letters every time. She could really benefit by sending this same information by emails. Also by SMS using real estate text message marketing techniques. If some clients still want to receive the snail mail approach she can keep those clients satisfied using that medium. But also satisfy her regular clients with smart phones and computers by sending out messages using electronic media.

If you are not catering to customers with mobile phones and increasingly smart phones, then your real estate text message marketing program is missing a great opportunity. Perhaps a lot of business opportunities. We have found that the younger generation are technically savvy with their phones. They prefer the impersonal means of communication since it is much more efficient.

They do not have to have a voice conversation. Which is going to take a minimum of several minutes not including voice mails etc that are left with the client and take up air time. Text messaging has become a far more efficient method of communication with clients.

Real estate agents have even advised clients that their offer has been accepted or that they need to start thinking about countering an offer by text messaging.  We have seen people receive a text message advising them that they just had their home sold by text message. This is by far the best approach. You can always receive the details by email later on and if you must have a conversation, that too can be arranged at a later date or time.

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Have you noticed recently that many people of all ages are constantly on their phones, reading email, browsing Facebook or responding to text messages and possibly one of a hundred other things that they are doing on their smart phones! We are so engrossed in what is going on in our phones. People are actually talking less to each other face to face. You may agree or disagree with this fact. Also whether it is a good thing or not the reality for many businesses is that they need to find a way to penetrate a person’s short attention span.

Text Marketing

Text messaging seems to be the one communications medium that is still getting through to people. Phones buzz, ring or vibrate every time a text message arrives. Users cannot help but respond. This is what text marketing has known for a while. Many companies are trying to take advantage  as they try to reach the consumer and gain their attention.

Judicious use of text messages as a text marketing tool can really make a difference. Especially if you are trying to alert customers of sales activity, make them aware that their order has just shipped etc. Sending too many text messages and consumers will just become irritated with them. They will ignore the text message which makes your advertising next to useless. They may may even trigger exactly the wrong response.

Don’t Alienate the Customer

The last thing you want to is make your customer mad at you for sending too many text messages. Text marketing can be used to communicate with many people on a push basis to advertise. Also to communicate sales events. Or to communicate with a select group who have given you their cell phone number because they want to hear from you.

Text marketing is a unique method of communications that still has punch. It is able to get through to customers to grab their attention for several seconds. That is all that is needed to alert a customer to something that may interest them. If they are not interested, you have only taken a second or two of their time. For most people there is no harm done. When there are deals to be had, text marketing is a powerful way to get the message out to your customers.

We also talk about text messaging systems that send out weather alerts as well to consumers living in a specific area. Another use is to send text messages to all of your students on campus or all of your employees in a building for example about a warning, an evacuation drill and other items that you want all of your students and employees to know about. this use of text messaging can be an effective emergency notification system as well as a marketing tool for the university or company.

For more text messaging posts and topics, click here.

Text messaging for business has really taken off in the last few years as more and more people have cell phones and smart phones. It is not uncommon to see people texting at all kinds of hours and places. This is one of the reasons that companies offer text messaging service and also use text messaging to enhance the services they offer to their customers. Consumers are texting while they walk along the street and unfortunately in their cars as well. We do not support texting and driving or even looking at your phone while driving. This activity just causes to many accidents when you become distracted and are not watching where you are going with your car.

Text Messaging for Business – Alerts

Text messaging can be used to send alerts to both employees as well as clients.  A text message can alert you that you have a voice mail waiting. They can include weather alerts or sales of stocks, or let people know about confirmation that someone has agreed to your meeting invitation. There are so many text messaging for business applications available that it would be difficult to even begin to list them all.

Traditional text messaging for business has competition. With the introduction of the smart phone and text messaging applications on these smart phones, consumers and business people now have alternative applications that they can use to send sms messages to other smart phones with the same app installed in their phones.

Text Messaging for Business – Competition

These same apps can usually send text messaging messages to cell phones as well. There are literally hundreds of apps that are available or being developed to meet this need for both advertising as well as sending content. Some apps are totally free because they use the internet to send and receive the text messages. These apps have advertising on the app that users see which helps to pay for the development and operational expenses.

We were recently in an Izod store looking at some of the many shirts and pants that they have on sale at ridiculously low prices. I am a member of their IZOD loyalty group. We went to the store on that particular day to take advantage of an additional 30% savings coupon that they had sent to me in the mail.

This is a huge savings and we really purchased more than we might have had we not had this coupon which is their objective right. Well we notice a sign in the store that basically said they would give us an additional $5 off our purchase if we sent a text message to their text message service. We did and we immediately received a text message with an additional $5 in savings on our purchases that day!

We now will receive additional alerts by text from time to time. This is a great example of how text messaging can increase customer loyalty.

For more about text messaging, click here.

There are literally thousands of text messaging business opportunities available and many companies have got on the bandwagon. Services such as sending weather alerts, flight status updates, sports scores or even stock alerts have all been offered by many third party companies. We are using the term third party here to differentiate between the carrier who carries the message and the company who originates the message. These companies are all struggling to compete with free sms or text messaging over the internet. everything seems to be free online, however at some point these services must generate a positive cash flow business model and this is what the old style text messaging companies still have.

Text Messaging Business – Subscription

When a consumer subscribes to a text messaging business advertisement, they often do not realize the cost of these subscriptions. In some cases the cost of the subscriptions can be as high as $40 a month. The carrier will receive upwards of 60% of the fee and the business originating the message will receive the remainder.

Text messaging for businesses is a very lucrative opportunity, however we fear that the real money is going to the phone company and that the company using text messaging to get to their customers is not gaining that much.

The carrier delivers the message and does all of the billing and collection for the service. After taking their share they transfer the remainder to the 3^rd party company. Many consumers are appalled at the cost of this level of premium text messaging and question their bills at the end of each month.

Long Term Business Strategy

This is really not a good long term business strategy for small business to send premium messages in this manner. Customers simply have too many other free alternatives. If you are not paying attention to your bills and reviewing them in detail, you may end up with a high bill each month, much higher than you need to be paying.

Who is to blame for these high costs? The carrier is certainly getting the lion’s share of the revenue. They also do the lion’s share of the work to deliver the message and to collect the revenue. Does this make them any more responsible or not.

The competition bureau certainly thinks so has taken several of the carriers to court over the issue. Most people who experience this problem can get their money back if the follow through with their carrier and complain. Also ask for a stop order to be placed so that you do not receive any more of these messages.

You can control these messages and your costs as well simply by blocking these text messages. Call your carrier and get these messages stopped today if you do not want them. You can control your costs and do not need to put up with this type of spam.

For more about text messaging, click here.

Text message marketing companies are offering more services and better features to business customers looking for another inexpensive way to communicate with customers and get their messages out to these customers. Far too many customers do not react to email campaigns. The emails are deleted without reading them or they end up in junk folders never to be seen. They are auto deleted within a week or less. The return is rather small for the few that do actually read the message. Consumers and customers are too afraid of being tricked into something by opening an email message. This is due to all of the spam emails sent to them daily.

Text Message Marketing Companies – Target Your Message

Now text message marketing companies have set up services that are easy to use, easy to compose messages. With a click of the mouse the messages are sent to ten or thousands of smart phones. Target your text message locally or based on subscribers. Either way can be set up and used by business customers trying to market to their customers.

Not everyone checks their email all of the time. But they do carry their cell phones with them. They do tend to check text messages before any other kind of message including email and voice messages. In fact most would rather have a text message rather than a voice message. Since it takes so long to call in and listen to a voice message that someone has left you.

Send a text message and tell me what you want is the way that most people seem to like it. Text messages are much less expensive compared to voice communications for both the sender and the receiver. Many people only have limited voice and data plans. They do not want to use their plans for these kinds of messages. Unlimited text messages on the other hand are easy to read and get a persons attention.

Inexpensive

Text messages are now priced very inexpensively for business with most messaging sent over the internet. This capability is really changing the approach that companies use to market via text messaging. With smart phones becoming more prolific and supporting these text messaging app’s, advertising is now available right on the app on the persons phone.

The owner of the phone who installs the free app on the phone gets the app for free. As long as he or she agrees to accept these advertising messages from time to time as well as advertisements on the app itself.

Most people ignore this advertising on their smart phone. However from time to time there is really something there  that interests the user and they click on the advertisement. Even a small percentage of users clicking on this advertisement can mean big numbers for the advertiser. With millions of smart phones out there are millions of potential customers who may click on these advertisements.

For more information about text messaging, click here.

Text messaging marketing is just another form of advertising that consumers just cannot get away from. Companies and advertising organizations send out millions of text messages every day to unsuspecting cell phone users. This is an attempt to garner some business from them. These messages are sent by the millions and are often ignored by consumers receiving them. They just do not hit the mark for many people and irritate a lot of others. At the very least you have to go in and delete them to reduce memory consumption on your phone.

If you have a text messaging plan on your phone then at least you do not have to pay for the incoming message. Although it is still annoying. You have to read each one and then delete it. Still every once and awhile there are some good deals available. You can save money by taking advantage of them.

Text messaging is actually old technology now. Messaging is becoming available over the internet and sent to your smart phone for free. With a free app on your phone you can send and receive messages to your friends etc without any cost what so ever. We expect that text messaging traffic is going to decline over the coming years as more and more people purchase smart phones.

Text Messaging Marketing – APPs

As these apps become popular there will be text messaging marketing on these new apps as well especially if they make it into a majority of user’s phones. Text messaging is an old technology owned and operated on the mobile phones that are sold by the various carriers. Smart phones are growing by leaps and bounds, so it will not be long before we begin to see a decline.

Most people today will always get a text plan with their phones since sending text messages is actually cheaper than talking over the phone and who wants to talk anyway these days. Most teens just send text messages. A few people we know only have a text plan and a data plan on their phones. They block all phone calls over their phones from the traditional cellular networks to limit voice charges. They can do all of their calling using the data network with Voip on their smart phone and also send text messages. This appears to be the way of the future.

Yet many of our older friends only have cell phones, mobile phones or smart phones only for emergencies and some just take a pay per use plan. They are definitely not into sending or receiving text messages. Still more and more people are gradually getting used to using smart phones and sending text messages. It is an inexpensive and unobtrusive way to communicate.

For more information about text messaging, click here.

Text messaging advertising is another way that companies can advertise to consumers. Some cell phone users are starting to receive a lot of text messaging advertising. Frankly many people find it is quite annoying. These messages take time to read and delete. They are potentially using up some of your incoming message quota for text messages every month. If you have an unlimited plan, they you probably do not care quite so much. They even come in during the middle of the night which used to wake us up. Now we leave the phone downstairs were we cannot hear it in the middle of the night. Many mobile owners will turn their phones to private mode at night if they do not want to be disturbed.

Text Messaging Advertising And Your Phone Number

The writer made the mistake of giving out their cell phone number once to a company who then sold the number to an advertiser. Selling numbers to advertisers apparently occurs all of the time. This advertiser began sending text messages to my phone at really odd hours. I now leave my phone down stairs at night so that it does not wake me up. I will still hear it if it rings and if it is an urgent call.

Fortunately I also have an unlimited incoming text message plan so do not need to worry about how many text messaging advertising messages I actually receive. If I had a limited plan, I would have to do something about this problem. These messages eat into your monthly quota and can cause a problem for many people.

Short Code Text Messages

There are also text messages which are called “short code  text messages”. and each time you receive one your account is charged $2.00. This is an outrageous amount to charge for an alert message that you did not want and did not order. There may be some alert messages that might be worth this kind of money. I do not know what they would be. I certainly do not want them. In my mind this is really a scam and they should be disallowed! The phone company makes a lot of money from them and does nothing to stop them unless you call them to have these type of messages blocked.

In the mean time, call your mobile provider and have them block these kinds of test messages from being received by your phone. This is the only way to block text messaging advertising of this type. You have to have specific numbers to block which you can do with short code text messaging.

Not sure if I can ask my carrier to block text messaging advertising in general from being received by my phone. If this could be put in place, it would be really appreciated by many consumers, but the carriers would lose a lot of revenue if they did block them so I really do not think that they will take the step to block general text messaging advertising.

Does anyone know if this is possible. If you do have some idea regarding blocking these kids of text messaging, leave us a comment and instructions on how to go about this.

For more about text messages, click here.