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Popularized in the U.S. by shows like American Idol, mobile texting to a "short code" is a common way of providing a market an easy number to remember and a level of interactivity across platforms that was previously impossible.
In European markets where broadband Internet is still expensive (often still billed hourly) mobile text-to-lead calls-to-actions are very popular. The U.S. has been a little slower to catch on. However, as PDAs, SmartPhones and iPhones become more prevalent, the "small screen" marketing medium that is today's cell phones are becoming an opportunity to businesses willing to combine innovative tactics with this emerging technology.
In a recent study conducted by the Dallas County Community College District, respondents made it clear that active marketing via their cell phones was off-limits. The key word here is "active." For businesses to effectively market themselves through a medium as personal as a cell phone, they must first offer a relevant incentive and allow prospects to opt-in, just as they do with email.
To understand, not just the strategy but the tactic and the technology, review the following prepared by our innovation researcher.
Short Code Technology Summary
Using a normal telephone, touchtone numbers (following the E.164 standard) form a code but there is no way for these combination of numbers to contain an "end of line" (EOL). In other words, conventional land-line phones have no mechanism to say "this is the end of the number. Now connect me." Thus, land lines cannot use "short codes" or a 5-digit number assigned to your Text2Lead campaign. Of course, land lines are not able to send SMS messages (like text message) either.
On modern digital mobile phones, numbers are sent all at once, so the network knows the end of the dialed number, and thus one can use short numbers without clashing with longer numbers. Additionally, more and more service providers are offering ever affordable unlimited texting plans.
As of May 31, 2006, the standard lengths for interoperable short codes are five and six digits. Carriers use short codes with fewer digits for carrier specific programs - e.g., "Text 611 to see how many minutes you have remaining on your plan." Common short codes in the U.S. are administered by NeuStar, under a deal with Common Short Code Administration - CTIA.
Short codes can be leased at the rate of $1000 a month for a selected code or $500 for a randomly selected code. These codes are also dedicated numbers which are not shared with other companies. They have to have approval by all carriers and a lot of paper work is involved taking up to 8 weeks or longer for all the applications to go through. A cheaper easier alternative to dedicated short codes for a mobile text to lead campaign is "shared" short codes.
"Shared" Short Codes
Shared short codes use a single number which many companies share. i.e. 47654 that is accompanied by a unique keyword i.e. JDM. So the campaign call to action could be, "Text 'JDM' to 47654 and be entered to win a Caribbean island."
Many companies have different pricing options for using these numbers. One of the ones we've found easiest to use and with the lowest up front marketing investment is Mobivity.
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