We invariably overestimate the short-term impact of new technologies while underestimating their long-term effects.  -John Naughton

[dropcap]M[/dropcap]any people think that SMS is old news. And while consumer usage is still growing rapidly, commercial usage in the United States is just getting started. While many people now have smartphones, there is a lot of segmentation between different operating systems and form factors. None of that matters with text messaging though, because 100% of phones can receive SMS. There is nothing to install, nothing to update, no budget needed to have an app created, no bs. SMS is quick, clean, ubiquitous, and it’s here to stay.

SMS is growing by leaps and bounds as more and more people use cell phones that make notifications more prominent. Many grandparents even send texts now, and many adults use it to keep in touch with their children on a daily basis. Text messaging has now supplanted voice in many situations, just as email replaced the phone call in business. It is now culturally taboo not to know how to text and the number of people who do not text is diminishing.

The increase in ease of use combined with the declining costs of SMS has lead to a boom in the number of messages sent per month. Teenagers send more than 100 a day totaling over 3000 per month. Text messages are one of the easiest ways to communicate with someone regardless of time, place, or circumstance.  This next statistic may be disturbing or impressive depending on your perspective, but more than 10% of people under 25 have checked a text message during sex!

NatMobi is leading the charge in commercialization of SMS for all sorts of businesses and organizations, allowing them to extend their reach and presence directly to their customers. No more wondering if your target audience will see your Facebook update or Tweet. Or switch the station while your radio ad blares. Or if they’ll throw out your targeted mailing offer.  Or if they’ll fast forward through your commercial.  Or if your email will make it through their spam filter.  With text messaging from NatMobi, you don’t have to worry, 95% of text messages are read within 10 minutes.  We can’t stress that statistic enough, because not only is that the highest read rate there is, but it is nearly instantaneous as well.

Contact a marketing professional at NatMobi today and find out what you’re missing by not using text messaging as part of your maketing portfolio.