|
JULY 6, 2015
Why Are People Still Using SMS In 2015?
READ MORE
Why Are People Still Using SMS In 2015?
Short Message Service (SMS), more colloquially known as 'text,' is a protocol used for sending short messages over mobile networks. The first SMS was sent in 1992; By 2010, SMS was the most widely used data application, adopted by 80 percent of mobile subscribers.
Then, came the rise of the smartphone.
Smartphones paved the way for consumers to communicate through a variety of outlets - from email and instant messaging to over-the-top content messaging apps.
However, despite the growth in other communication channels, SMS is still widely in use and remains one of the primary channels of communication. Why? Here are four crucial reasons.
SMS is the most effective way to reach users, with a 90 percent read rate in minutes
When it comes to timeliness of delivery, SMS maintains the highest engagement rate in comparison to emails and OTT apps.
SMS is available as long as you have a mobile phone and service plan. This makes its global reach soar as there are no pre-existing connections required, such as accepting friend requests or requiring two parties to download the same app.
The lower barriers to communication let users receive messages quickly, making it ideal for sending short, time-sensitive content.
SMS is a one-size-fits-all solution which makes anybody (with a mobile number) reachable
The technology for sending and receiving SMS is not reliant on high speed internet, essentially making anyone in modern society reachable.
Over-the-top messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Viber and WeChat function only while connected to the Web. Different apps also have require different hardware and software compatibilities, weeding out users with feature phones or smartphones that the OTT app doesn't support.
For instance, not all OTT messaging apps are available on Firefox OS, Windows, Blackberry or legacy versions of iOS and Android.
In contrast, a user does not need to be connected to the Web or have membership to the same app to receive an SMS.
Disruptions in the A2P sector make a global telecom network more accessible
SMS can be classified into person-to-person (P2P) SMS, where two mobile subscribers exchange messages.
Application-to-person (A2P) SMS, on the other hand, allows an app to deliver messages to a mobile subscriber. Typical use cases for A2P SMS include payment confirmations, appointment reminders, account updates from banks, mobile ticketing, flight updates, etc.
The issue with traditional A2P SMS is that the process is clunky and can be expensive for companies to deploy. Traditional methods require a company to liaise with a variety of middlemen - such as SMS aggregators, gateway providers, marketers and resellers - before gaining access to the SMS inventory of the various network operators.
Today, a new breed of cloud communication platforms utilizes easily-deployable technologies to increase quality of message deliverability. They also combine a pay-per-use cost model of cloud services with simple telephony Application Program Interface (API) tools to make it easy for developers to integrate into their applications while maintaining low operational cost.
In effect, this bypasses the need for the middlemen. In accessing the global telecom network directly, companies gain faster delivery times and better reliability of service.
This makes A2P SMS accessible to more companies - especially startups - and application developers who were previously limited by lack of human and financial resources required by the traditional route.
Growth of two factor authentication and security via SMS
With the proliferation of mobile devices, more personal data are transferred over the Web than ever before. To add a layer of security, two-factor authentication has become the go-to method for companies to protect its users.
Using SMS as an authentication method has been rising in popularity, as a user almost always has a mobile device on them at any given time. The cost of sending an SMS is also very low, while its ease over voice call for 2FA makes SMS more ideal for today’s fast-paced society.
Companies using SMS as a step in two-factor authentication (if activated) include Google, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, PayPal and LinkedIn.
Today, SMS may be viewed as antiquated technology - but the reality is it that SMS plays a key role in connecting most modern technologies. From its high user engagement rate and 2FA benefits, to its disruption in the A2P sector, we won't see SMS disappear anytime soon.
Source: http://thenextweb.com/future-of-communications/2015/02/16/people-still-using-sms-2015/
|
JULY 4, 2015
5 Tips for Killer SMS Marketing
Smartphones are everywhere. Sixty-four percent of American adults own one, and that doesn't even include the staggering number of American teens carrying them in their pockets. This has ushered in the era of mobile marketing.
As a small business owner, you may be feeling more and more pressure to adopt this new marketing medium, whether that involves optimizing your site to appease Google's new algorithm or creating a campaign geared specifically towards mobile users.
With so many options, small business owners may not know where to begin their mobile marketing efforts. SMS marketing can be a great first step for those looking to expand to mobile. Not only is it affordable, but it's extremely effective when you create the right messages. Out of the world's four billion smartphones, 3.05 billion are SMS enabled, granting you widespread access to this demographic.
SMS: Lucrative but Under-Used
Small business owners can be trigger shy when it comes to utilizing SMS. Many feel that their customers or target audience may be annoyed by marketing messages or that some may find them intrusive. Other companies, however, have had smashing success with these methods, particularly when they offer special deals or promos to those who opt in.
For example, consider the case of Seattle Sun Tan. Within the first month of their SMS campaign, 4,750 people subscribed to receive text messages and offers. These offers brought in 196,000 new sales for the business.
The secret of succeeding with SMS is offering value to your customers. This can be a special deal, updates on issues they care about, or invitations to exclusive events. The fact that many small businesses avoid SMS marketing eliminates competition (as well as the possibility of individual consumers finding themselves overwhelmed with marketing texts).
Make the Most of SMS Marketing
There are several tips you should follow to make your SMS marketing campaign as successful as possible.
1. Create Value
There are a variety of ways small business owners can do this. From contests and giveaways to coupons, customers are more likely to opt in to your marketing campaign if they're getting something in return.
2. Always Get Permission
Don't simply sign your customers up once you have their mobile information. Make sure you get their express permission (otherwise known as the opt-in) before sending them marketing messages.
3. Be Consistent
You don't want to overwhelm your audience with texts, but you don't want to neglect them either. Create a specific deal or promo schedule and stick to it.
4. Integrate with Your Other Marketing Strategies
If you're running an online campaign, you can link to it in an SMS message. You can also share the opportunity to opt in to these exclusive deals on your small business's social media pages.
5. Measure Your Progress
Keep track of the number of subscribers as well as those who choose to opt out. This will help you determine what you're doing right and potential mistakes that can cost you subscribers.
Keeping up with mobile marketing can be difficult, but you shouldn't focus all of your energies on a mobile-friendly site or app. (You may also want to check out these helpful apps for small business owners.) If you aren't taking advantage of SMS, you’re missing out on a lucrative opportunity to generate sales and increase the exposure of your small business.
Source: http://smallbiztrends.com/2015/05/tips-killer-sms-marketing.html
|
JULY 2, 2015
SMS and beyond: The 20 year evolution to IP Messaging services
READ MORE
SMS and beyond: The 20 year evolution to IP Messaging services
"At the time it didn't seem like a big deal," explained Neil Papworth, the twenty two year old British engineer, after sending the world's first ever text message back in 1992. Almost 20 years ago to the day, Neil marked his place in history, revolutionising communication as we know it, all by sending a text message that read "Merry Christma." The elegant simplicity of this message soon went on to define the very nature of the platform which has grown to become a cornerstone of mobile communication in the 21st Century.
In the beginning, SMS was seen as a clever way for an operators' employees to send simple messages to one another and at the time, the industry knew little about the impact this technology would have on billions across the globe. Although the first text message was sent in 1992, it was only a year later in 1993 when the first commercial deployment of a short message service center (SMSC) was installed by Aldiscon, now part of Acision at Telia (now TeliaSonera), in Sweden and the first commercial SMS was sent. However, mobile messaging did not become commonplace until the early 2000's. UK mobile users now send, on average, 50 texts a week, according to the Mobile Operator Association.
The evolution of text messaging over the past 20 years has been simply staggering. With a potential reach of more than five billion people across the globe and an impressive 98 per cent of messages being opened and read, text has grown to become the leading personal messaging service in the world which is used by all demographics and age groups. The latest figures from Ofcom's annual communication report show that usage surpassed voice calling for the first time in its history, and with UK mobile users alone sending over 150 billion SMS messages in 2011, an increase of 17.3 per cent YoY.
But why text? And most importantly, why is it still popular today? This is something that can perhaps only be answered through a deeper psychological understanding of the human mind. According to internet-enabled communication expert and psychologist Graham Jones, running in the back of the people's thoughts is the need to do everything with the least possible effort: "We instinctively search for the easiest way to communicate." From its very inception, with the effortless yet perfectly apt message, "Merry Christma" (the 's' was missed off), text messaging has grown to embody communication in its simplest form. In fact, the notion of SMS simplicity actually predates the medium itself.
In 1985, researcher Friedhelm Hillebrand was thinking about adding a text messaging service to the nascent cellular telephone system. In doing so he typed various statements and brief messages onto a typewriter and discovered that all messages fit within 160 characters, which went on to define the very nature of the medium - Short Messaging Service (SMS). The length that Friedhelm deemed "perfectly sufficient" for all communication purposes also formed the basis for the wildly popular social network Twitter - demonstrating yet again that simplicity is key!
Even with the rise of Over-the-Top (OTT) and Instant Messaging (IM) services, industry experts believe SMS revenues will continue to increase globally, estimating that mobile networks will earn $726bn from SMS over the next five years (Portio Research). Interestingly however, the service has remained fundamentally unchanged since its inception and the ubiquitous nature of SMS amongst other factors have contributed to its success: reach, reliability, speed, ease of use and its open rate. Such attributes have helped to give SMS a dominant status, yet with the current mobile messaging landscape developing at an impressive rate, remaining relevant and enriching the user experience is key to co-exist in today's mobile world.
In order to continue to carve a clear role in messaging 20 years on, it is imperative that operators fully leverage the huge opportunity they have to enhance mobile messaging and deliver a service not only for text but for instant updates, notifications, social chat, file transfer, presence and connecting social networks. As experienced service providers, with a solid customer base, reputation of trust and quality, as well as insight into user behaviour, operators are in a unique position to leverage existing assets while integrating new messaging services into their offering that resonate with the user.
As consumers adopt new messaging applications, we are witnessing a clear appetite for services that enhance and enrich the messaging user experience, which is supported by our own messaging research. Questioning 1,250 smartphone users about their messaging requirements (from the UK and US), respondents were asked about the attractiveness of a new operator-based service that provided SMS/MMS/IM/group chat and file/video sharing that reaches all mobile users across all devices and networks. Over half (52 per cent) stated they would use such a service, with just five per cent stating they would not use it at all. Even in the younger age bracket of 18 to 34 years, where OTT apps are most prevalent - 60 per cent of smartphone owners stated they were highly interested in such a service from their mobile operator.
When asked what this messaging service should look like, top requirements were related to service characteristics. Price, already identified as the main driver to OTT service uptake, was also the number one requirement for adoption of new rich messaging services, including lower price compared to the existing service (63 per cent) and service included in package (57 per cent). Additionally, Quality of Service was key, corresponding to strengths of SMS including reliability (50 per cent), instant delivery (45 per cent) and ability to reach everyone (42 per cent).There was also a clear need for enhanced messaging features including: support for multiple devices (35 per cent); content sharing (32 per cent); live typing indication (24 per cent); conversational view (24 per cent); group chat (18 per cent) and status sharing (14 per cent).
Irrespective of platform, the research shows that mobile users require a service with the universal reach and uncompromised Quality of Service expected from their operator, but also with enriched features. Alongside this, there is a huge untapped opportunity for operators and brands alike to leverage SMS as an engagement platform. SMS has the greatest reach of all connectivity channels and is one of the most trusted mediums of communication. It enables enterprises to reach out to and engage with mobile users, customers and employees, with reliable delivery and a 99.9 per cent guarantee of being read almost immediately. For consumers, receiving a text gives them the control to whether they decide to opt-out or action it, making the experience feel personal. The challenge brands face is to ensure they provide a highly targeted and relevant service to generate a positive response. Even two decades on from its inception, enterprise messaging, is a relatively immature and unexploited route. However, if intelligently used SMS as an engagement tool - one of the only engagement channels left unexhausted - it could be the biggest winner of them all.
Nobody can deny the incredible success SMS has enjoyed since its birth in December 1992. The medium quickly grew to become the trigger for the messaging world we know today and it must now evolve in order to remain relevant tomorrow. Text messaging not only continues to flourish it stands as a communication platform accepted by all, with a unique simplicity. While market uptake of OTT messaging has been augmented by perception that such services are free, these rely on a data connection and without SMS to fall back on when connection is down, they risk a perception of service degradation. If operators can successfully combine the reach, reliability and simplicity found in SMS with a rich user experience offered by new OTT applications – this presents a powerful opportunity to shake up the messaging space and ensure ownership of it by embracing standards such as the GSMA's Rich Communication Suite (RCS) initiative.
So, we must say, "Happy 20th Birthday SMS" as we now look to what can be done to evolve and enrich this successful communications channel. You never know, we maybe celebrating the 40th anniversary of SMS and messaging with a bang in 2032.
Jorgen Nilsson, CEO at Acision
Source: http://telecoms.com/52241/sms-and-beyond-the-20-year-evolution-to-ip-messaging-services/
|
JUNE 30, 2015
The 'Father of SMS', Matti Makkonen, Dies at 63
READ MORE
The 'Father of SMS', Matti Makkonen, Dies at 63
It's a sad day in the cellphone world. Matti Makkonen, widely considered the "father of SMS", has died from illness at the age of 63. The Finnish creator pitched the concept of text messaging over cellular networks in 1984 and helped get the ball rolling on the technology in its earliest days. He was quick to downplay his involvement and saw SMS as a "joint effort" between many people (Friedham Hillebrand developed the 160-character format in 1985, for example), but much of the initial credit belongs to him.
Suffice it to say that Makkonen's work has spread far and wide. SMS is starting to decline as instant messaging apps take over, but it's still ubiquitous -- how many people do you know who would much rather get a text message than a phone call? Twitter's roots are in SMS (hence that 140-character limit), and the tech is still considered vital for communication in areas where mobile internet access is too expensive, heavily censored or both. We'll miss you, Matti.
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/06/30/father-of-sms-dies
|
MAY 5, 2010
Announcement - New Guideline for sending SMS towards Malaysia Celcom via Celcom Direct
READ MORE
Announcement - New Guideline for sending SMS towards Malaysia Celcom via Celcom Direct
Dear Valued Customers,
Please be informed that we have been informed towards a new Guideline by Malaysia Celcom with the following details:
New Guideline for sending SMS to Malaysia Celcom via Celcom Direct
Date: Wednesday, 5th May 2010
Start time: 10.00 am (GMT +8)
Service Impact: Failure to comply will result the Bulk SMS being automatically rejected by Celcom (thus chargeable, but not being delivered to the handset). With this new guideline, 7 of standard 160 characters per ONE SMS credit will need to be allocated with RM0.00 (in front of the message)
Example of a new message: RM0.00 With effective from May 5, 2010, all Bulk SMS to Celcom, M'sia via Direct Bulk @ 66555 must append "RM0.00" in front of the message to ensure delivery. (158 characters)
This guideline is not yet mandatory for other operators in Malaysia, but will be a good practice. In addition, it is easier to use the same message for all operators when sending a Bulk broadcast; since it is not straight-forward to differentiate mobile numbers based on prefixes.
Please be informed and our sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused.
|
JANUARY 12, 2010
Malaysia to use SMS to cut hospital queues
READ MORE
Malaysia to use SMS to cut hospital queues
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Malaysian Health Ministry is making efforts to introduce an SMS-based system at hospitals in the country in a bid to reduce queues of patients.
The New Straits Times said on Tuesday that the ministry had started a pilot project for that, in which the queue management and appointment reminder would send out an SMS when there are five patients before their turn.
The system would also provide updated statistics for hospital services in the country, through which the ministry could monitor the number of patients, the illnesses being treated and the duration at the various departments within the hospital and clinics, the daily quoted Malaysian Health Minister Liow Tiong Laias saying.
Liow held a briefing at Johor Baharu on Monday when he unveiled a pilot project to use the reminder system there.
He said his ministry was still fine tuning the system in cooperation with a local telecom company, and once the kinks were ironed out, it would start implementing the system at medical facilities with high patient crowds.
The Malaysian Health Ministry set a 30-minute waiting limit at local hospitals in 2009, but Liow said at present only 70 percent of local hospitals can follow that practice.
He hoped that technology can further reduce patients' waiting time.
|
NOVEMBER 4, 2009
Study Suggests Text Messages Can Increase Savings
READ MORE
Study Suggests Text Messages Can Increase Savings
Quite an attention grabbing headline from the WSJ, claiming text messages are good for savings.
A new study by a group of economists looking at why people save money found that simply sending out cellphone reminders increased savings balances by 6%.
"The study challenges the idea that people simply don't have enough self-control to save. Instead, the problem may be they just aren't paying attention, said Dartmouth University economics professor Jonathan Zinman, one of the study's four authors. "Savings isn't at the top of their mind," said Zinman. "Basically all we did was remind them."
... In three cases conducted in the Philippines, Peru and Bolivia, the economists teamed up with local banks to send reminders to people randomly selected from those who had recently opened a savings account.
The banks sent several different types of messages, including letters in Peru and text messages in Bolivia and the Philippines. Some used negative language to stress the consequences of not saving money.
"If you don't frequently deposit into the Gihandom Savings account, your dream will not come true," warned one message in the Philippines.
While positive or negative language did not have a significant effect on the savings rate, mentioning a customer's specific goal did. When reminders mentioned incentives offered by the bank for consistent deposits, bank savings increased by almost 16%."
|
MAY 19, 2009
Conference on Communications and Multimedia Market 2009 @ SKMM
READ MORE
Conference on Communications and Multimedia Market 2009 @ SKMM
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Market Conference 2009 was held on 19th May 2008 at SKMM’s Headquarters in Cyberjaya. This year’s Conference assembled all stakeholders of the industry to address the key theme - “New Era of Cross Industry Collaboration” with various topics being presented by experts. The conference is riding on the three main sub themes - “Sustaining the New Communications Ecosystems”, “Transforming and Monetizing Products and Services” and “The Great Convergence of Content, Telecommunications and Business, Unleashing the New Communications Ecosystem”. Presentations were made by industry participants, observers and analysts.
|
|
|
|
|
|
To turn really interesting ideas and fledgling technologies into a company that can continue to innovate for years, it requires a lot of disciplines. |
|
Steve Jobs |
|
|
|
|