Text messaging, also called SMS - Short messaging service – are small messages of 160 characters that can be sent to a mobile / cell phone

Messages can be sent by different methods:

• Mobile /cell phone to mobile / cell phone
• Through a special e-mail address
• Through a Web site, which is connected to an SMSC - Short Message Service Center -
• Through a special software to enable communication with SMSC

The new technology offers long or concatenated SMS - in our case we allow up to 640 characters - that are assembled in the mobile / cellular receptor. It also allows the passage of EMS - messages that have special formatting - and MMS - multimedia messaging

When a user sends an SMS to another user, what actually happens is that the message is directed to an SMSC - Short Message Service Center -. The first step that takes place in the SMSC is to store the message. Immediately following it is the dispatch to the network, which delivers it if the recipient is available at the moment. This operation is known as store-forward and takes about five seconds.

If the receiver can't be reached, for example is out of coverage, the message is placed in line to try sending again. The SMSC has a predetermined time during which the message is saved, and it varies from 16 to 72 hours depending on the destination.

Greater efforts are made so that the message reaches its destination, but this does not guarantee 100% that can be delivered, arrive late or not arrive, so the user can opt for delivery reports, which offer the possibility to know the status of the message and delivery confirmation. In practice 98% of the messages reach their addressees.

Since there are more people who own mobile phones and make use of them daily than full time Internet users, magazine readers or people who have TV, the mobile phone market is the largest single target. Globally, there are around eleven times more mobile handsets than there are Internet access points. This means that more people can be reached via SMS than with e-mail or fax communications.

SMS is at the same time mobile, in the sense that recipients can be reached wherever they are. Unlike other mediums, the information you send is retained on the receiver’s mobile phone, making it easy and convenient for them to retrieve the message.

Reaching groups of people on the go used to be difficult if not impossible; now days text messaging is a powerful tool and the only communication medium capable of reaching groups of people instantaneously regardless of where they are. SMS - text message - has gone from being a simple means of communication to being considered “a far-reaching tool able to cover all demographic groups”.

SMS texting is an easy, cost-effective and the cheapest method to communicate with any mobile audience. SMS messaging reduces both money and time of communication. The fact that SMS also can be sent out in bulk to large groups of recipients in a manual or automated manner further means that fewer resources are required to accomplish the communication.

Text messages also are a great way to keep in touch without interrupting or disturbing the person you're sending them to. Using SMS will help cut back on calls, disturbance and stress during the working day.

With more than two billion users of mobile phones around the world, the concept of communication and marketing through text messages has gained momentum. On realizing the importance, businesses are opting more and more to communicate via SMS with their potential and existing clients to inform issues, notify important changes, tell about upcoming events or to use them in advertising campaigns, offer superior service, have a one-to-one interaction and give added-value to their products.
Short Messaging System – SMS - gives the ability to send short text messages to any mobile handset. Due to the wide use of mobile phones world wide by almost all people, SMS messaging an ideal way to deliver imminently a message of specific information to targeted recipients. The main benefits of using mobile text messaging – SMS - are:

Widely accepted
Text messaging has been growing an exponential speed and it is now accepted by the people the same way they view their email, faxes, and even traditional mail.

Immediate communication
SMS services allow the delivery of text messages to a group of people practically within seconds. Messages are pushed to the handset by the delivering network’s SMSC. It is an extremely reliable means of sending time-sensitive messages to recipients.

Reduces significantly CRM - Customers Relationships Management - cost
CRM is an expensive exercise for any company, with calls costing large organizations more in some cases than the client is worth. SMS can be effectively used to dramatically reduce CRM cost, in some cases by as much as 92%, if used in the correct manner and fully automated.

High reach capability
Using the correct provider will allow for global reach, with the same features, delivery and low cost

Save time and money
SMS allows communicating with large groups of people instantaneously, is more immediate than e-mail and more cost effective than a telephone call. Further more messages are retained on phone, can be read later

Ideal marketing tool
Text marketing is an exciting and promising business tool. Used correctly it is one of the best ways to reach people at a low cost with a high level of response.

SMS – Text messaging is the ideal communication medium and is used in all industries, from schools to banks worldwide