The utility aspect of SMS is starting to become realized in a big way, especially in terms of mobile donations, SMS voting and other non-marketing focused concepts.
Case in point, the use of SMS in a new multi-faceted campaign surrounding the charitable organization “All Stars Helping Kids.” Through a partnership with the Jefferson Awards for Public Service, the charity aims to recognize top athletes who have uplifted their community in one form or another.
Over the last few months, teams and leagues from across the sports world have nominated thirty-six professional athletes who have an outstanding track record of community outreach. Through an SMS voting campaign powered by mobileStorm, fans have the opportunity to vote for their favorite player by texting their athlete’s Jefferson Awards number to 99158.
In the end, five finalists will be chosen in each of two categories — including Outstanding Athlete in Service and Outstanding Athlete as a Newcomer in Service — with one athlete in each category being awarded a national Jefferson Award for Public Service. In January, 10 finalists will then be named to the “Dream Team for Public Service” and for the next three months, fans will have the opportunity to donate to each athlete’s preferred charitable organization through a text‐to‐donate campaign powered again through mobileStorm’s SMS platform.
Each finalist will then be honored at the “All Stars Helping Kids’ Sports, Business & Philanthropy Luncheon” in March and each will receive a check for the sum of their fans’ donations via text message. Finally, in the summer of 2011, two winners will receive the prestigious Jefferson Award for Public Service at the Jefferson Awards National Ceremony in Washington, D.C. and one recipient will be named “Outstanding Athlete in Service,” while the second will take home the award for “Outstanding Athlete as a Newcomer in Service.”
The campaign is a shining example of how SMS bridges the gap between charitable organizations and the consumers who help keep them in action. SMS provides an easy-to-use, ubiquitous mechanism for people — and in this case, fans — to interact with any organization. For more information on the cause and to see the names of the 36 finalists, check out this press release. To learn more about mobileStorm’s robust SMS platform that’s powering it all, take a look at our products page or schedule a demo to see it action.