Brands and consumers alike are flocking to mobile applications in droves, making it the latest buzz word in the mobile marketing ecosystem at the moment. While having a mobile app strategy will no doubt further the reach of any brand, it’s important to remember that SMS still provides the missing link in making sure your app strategy is as well-rounded as possible.
Working in tandem with a mobile app strategy, SMS allows developers to take their product off individual platforms and sites, and bring their product to any consumer with a cell phone. SMS is a ubiquitous technology, allowing developers to diversify their product to reach an expanded audience and mitigate any risk associated with one particular site or platform.
\”SMS can be used to distribute similar mobile content found in mobile apps to a wider audience, while giving that audience a choice in how a publisher’s content is consumed on the go,\” said Jared Reitzin, CEO of mobileStorm. \”SMS can be used to provide timely information that can be ‘pushed\’ to the user as opposed to relying on the user to open the app and ‘pull\’ the content themselves.
SMS provides the inherent simplicity necessary to reach the widest possible audience of any mobile channel. The technology is available on nearly 100 percent of the 288 million mobile phones in the United States and 5 billion mobile phones around the world, making it the obvious choice to be the \”middleman\” so-to-speak of mobile outreach and commerce. Mobile apps, on the other hand, are still only accessible on a limited number of “smart” devices by comparison.
Though apps can be used for more engaging mobile content, SMS should be used in tandem to reach the widest possible audience. In addition, SMS provides the unique opportunity to build a mobile database to market to again in the future, as opposed to mobile application downloads where no valuable user-information can be obtained.
\”A limited number of messages can produce significant ROI, and combined with a nearly 100 percent open rate for opted-in messaging, it provides a means to build brand awareness, two-way communication and interactivity that are unmatched by any other mobile channel,\” continued Reitzin. \”A mobile strategy simply can’t be deemed ‘well rounded\’ without including SMS.