Text Message Marketing Providers

There are many providers used by the members here on the forum. There's Yeez, Trumpia, Twilio, Avid, and my personal choice, Lime Cellular. There are lots of threads throughout the Offline Forum about all those providers and more.

1. Do you want to use long codes or short codes?

2. Do you want to give your clients their own login, or is a single login where you manage the accounts good?

3. What features do you need? ie scheduled messages, coupons, polls, appointment reminders, etc.

These are some of the questions to ask yourself before choosing a provider.

Do all or any of these cater for the UK?

I've looked at many different providers and I'm STILL not sure who I'm going with. I've researched the following fairly extensively: TextMarks, Avid, YeeZ, TXT180, Trumpia, and Lime.

Some pros/cons: TextMarks is simple to use, easily customizable white label interface, cheap ($99/mo to start), good short code. Avid costs more to get started, but they have more features. YeeZ is great for long code providers and they have a ton of features. TXT180 seems good, but you gotta put up $295 to start (but still better than many at $97/mo and up). Trumpia's white label is expensive, but they have a LOT more than others. I joined their affiliate program for free, but I only get 30%. Lime I think needs more up front. Too costly for me.

I don't mind putting up two or three hundred to get started, and a decent monthly cost (averages about $99). But there are just too many features and differences that now I'm PARALYZED BY ANALYZING. Ugghh!

I just want to make a decent profit and not get hit with too many hidden charges (i.e. extra keywords can be a killer). Someone help me, PM me, post here, and/or give your best advice.

I will be going with someone in the next 10 days!! Just not sure who yet.

p.s. I'm so frustrated trying to work numbers in a spreadsheet to see what my profit can be. I just want a good, reliable platform at a cost that's not prohibitive for the little guy like me just trying to get a small business off the ground.

I swear...the first person to convince me wholly that their platform is best I'm signing up with this week. Seriously!

We are not just texting, we are much more. We help you communicate to 100% of customers, not just people who happens to give mobile numbers. We can orchestrate multiple communication channels to maximize impact. Also, we’ve been developing our software for over 5 years now which is why we have so many amazing features. Make sure that whoever you ultimately go with is not a reseller of another company. Go with the software developer - that’s how you will get the best tech support. Our tech support is here to help 7 days a week, plus we have weekly webinars specifically geared to help out our resellers.We continue to grow, in fact we were just named in the top 3 in Website Marketing’s Top 50 Movers and Shakers of the mobile industry. We are the only company in the top 3 with a reseller solution.At the end of the day, Trumpia is going to give you the best offering so that your customers can truly fully engage their entire database due to our multi-channel capability.

Quite a few to name but AvidMobile is the one which I've tried myself and I've seen the results myself. I run my own business and after I zeroed on this sms marketing providers, I was a bit skeptical initially. But everything went fine and I'm glad to recommend it to you.

I too use Avidmobile and am very happy with them. Excellent price and fantastic training videos. They also have many many power point presentations for various business types that you can edit for your own presentations.
I just started in July and have a few clients that are very happy with their SMS campaigns.
go to Avidmobile.com

One thing you will guaranteed not find with any other service is Lime's dedication to its customers. We are constantly adding features and are always open for suggestion. Our support is also very easy to get in contact with and we are even willing to advise you with your campaigns. Another thing is, a lot of the big text marketing platforms compete against you, we do not.

I have just started to look into the myriad of choices as well and one thing that I know is that you want to partner with a company that has a robust platform. You will need to test for what works for your application.

There are many... and more coming from others in the forum...

AvidMobile(My choice)
LimeCellular
Trumpia
AnchorMobile
Yeez
Txt180
Twilio/OpenVBX
Yeptext

AvidMobile all the way......USA Based, great customer support.
Call my Rep James Hutson 877-511-6624

**ps.....I'm not an affiliate or get compensated in any way

Mike,

I appreciate the kind words, and I guess now I'll actively post on here since a few of you guys insisted I get actively involved on here.

For anyone in the UK looking for a good SMS service provider, I was looking around earlier, albeit very briefly. But from the few I found, TextMarketer (no affiliation) seem to offer the cheapest cost per text and with no set up fees. They also offer short codes for as low as £5 per month to generate opt-in lists.

Has some useful videos on there too and these show its ease of use.

Any good providers for Canada? I was thinking of going with Yeez, especially now that they offer short codes too.

hi rowdy, just a heads up: on your site you mention an sms campaign about giving away a free desert. It should be dessert. (single s = the sandy place)

We have tried several short code services as well as Chad's long code program through Twilio. The long code service had too many undelivered messages as well as support issues. As for short code services, we are using a reseller of the Avid Mobile platform and it's been an excellent service with no issues... ...just my 2 cents!

Good luck,

Mitch

Hey guys,

The pricing is on the website. You can find the link on my signature.

I'm with Avid and I couldn't be happier. James is very helpful and will get you going in no time. I researched a BUNCH of providers and everything I read and learned all lead me to Avid. Very highly recommended.

I've been studying SMS platforms for over 3 years and by studying, I mean testing and running campaigns for myself and for clients. I've used long codes and short codes. I have affiliations (White Label or Private Label) with 5 vendors.

I agree with what I think Mo Goulet was implying, that depending on the niche and business desires, different vendors or platforms may provide a faster, better solution than others.

One of my vendors has an absolutely awesome restaurant loyalty program, but their pricing per message isn't so good. My solution: when the program is suitable for a prospect, I pitch the system and offer the pricing based on my consultancy and the value to the restaurant... NOT based on cost per message, which isn't what we need to focus on. We need to focus on the Return on that investment, which is based on traffic into the restaurant and customer value.

In another case, a car dealership wants to offer a Text2Win $25 Starbucks coupon campaign after the Lot Visitor has seen the cars' Mobile landing page. So my vendor in this case has to offer: a) ability to upload csv files with image URLs, nightly - updating mobile pages (deleting SOLD and adding new). b) a Txt2Win set up that allows the acct manager to choose how often there is a winner (ex. 1 in 4) and if I can offer a consolation prize to losers (especially good in restaurant campaigns). c) ... well there can be additional details...

Point is: If you have experience as a marketer - then you know it's about finding out what they have been doing, based on their goals, and offering a laser targeted campaign to boost their results. I have several vendors because I've seen certain market needs that are real, but only addressed by certain vendors...

So my goal initially is to get enough clients in that system to pay my expenses... (right?) Usually 1-2 clients on a platform will pay for the White Label, but I prefer to land 5 or so per platform as soon as I can. That's better for case studies, too!

If you have little experience as a marketer and perhaps you are thinking about SMS and Mobile sites as a sure thing easy money niche to start in... well it can be, but you might want to get clear on the principals and psychology of sales first. It's about solving their perceived needs.

All this being said, I do have a few stock campaigns that work very well, based on experience and a few parameters like:
- is it easy for the business to manage this/easy for my team to manage this for them?
- is it easy for the business owner to see the value of promoting the offers/can I offer suggestions and creatives that will help them promote?
- and a few more

If you need to choose just one to start, look at tech support 1st.
Do they respond quickly?
Do tech support responses make sense to you?
(I'm not talking about campaign & marketing training here, as most platforms fall short in their marketing training)

Certainly, look at features and campaigns that are sort of one-click setup - most important is ease of use for implementers AND consumers.

LongCodes and ShortCodes: I like them both. There are plenty of small businesses near you that could benefit from Premium keywords (like PIZZA) and who will never have the need to blast more than 1000 messages/hour.

The Shortcode vendors that are being discussed here all have solutions to the most common niche needs in Text 2 Win, Polls, Text 4 Info, Ask, etc. campaigns, as do the long code vendors. I use YeeZ and like it.

Most vendors have associated Mobile page or Mobi site builders, as well.
Check these out and see if what's available to you fits your Mobile marketing philosophy... are you more into landing pages per campaign (is this important to you?) or is building Mobile sites what you want to offer?

IMO, Please realize that SMS and Mobile pages can seriously ADD to existing campaigns, making them better. Forget that's it's the newest technology and focus on the effectiveness. Charge an appropriate fee for your expertise and don't make the cost per message any of your clients concern... offer a fair value for your time and expertise.

just my 2 cents (maybe 25 cents)

Gil

P.S. PM me your contact info if you'd like to chat personally

The OP asked for recommendations from people who have used sms companies. Obviously anyone who has their own sms service is going to be biased to their own service so those recommendations help no one. This is a discussion forum NOT a forum for self promotion. I'm noticing a lot of self promotion in threads to do with sms marketing.

TextCo Media offers the best Text messaging services IMO. Fast setup, affordable, unlimited. A product that is geared for people that want to sale and marketing SMS advertising.

WOW taking notes. I am in need to find a cheaper provider I got a nice list from this thread.

I agree with Webbink...Textco is a great provider...IMO. Do your due diligence and find the one that is right for you! Best of luck to everyone in that decision making process. There is a ton of info out there!

Anyone had good experiences with any Australian resellers? I have just begun to research what is available, but if anyone has a heads up that would be great.

I built a text message list once but wasonly able to get about a dozen people to opt in. It didn't really turn out for me but I can see the value in it.

This is a great thread! Still, there are two things I wonder about:

1) I've been advised that it's best to look for a white label sms provider that's been around for years, to increase the likelihood that they'll be able to pay for the short codes they offer. So, who does that include?

2) I've also been told that it's good to be with a company that offers Facebook connect and QR code generators. So...who does THAT include?

Nuttin' but love for all you great Warriors!

Thanks!

Is there anyone out there who is copywriter specialize in writing mobile text? I mean, i have a product of a certain popular niche and i want to write some good ads to invite my clients to take part in the program. The text as usual should be less than 160 characters.

I've looked at several providers, and over the last 4 months or so I actually signed up for full or demo accounts with a few different providers.

TextMarks - decent pricing, free white label solution. But they were basically a straight-up text messaging system, nothing fancy like contests, autoresponders, etc. Good shortcode - 41411.

YeeZ - pretty robust system with a lot of good features. The only reason I didn't stay with them is that they were long code and I wanted short code. If I decided that long code was the way I wanted to go, I would sign up with them again easily.

iZigg - I have access to the full backend system and it is pretty standard, boring, and frankly a little hard to use. If you're not an affiliate and pay almost $3K for an "agency" you still have to pay them $200/year for any keywords over 5, so that's a real bummer if you get even just a handful of clients since those keywords will run out quickly. Plus any company based on MLM usually overprices to pay out the matrix. Not recommended. Shortcode 90210. They pump that up as the greatest in the world, but much less memorable than many others.

Avid - I signed up with them and they have a great interface/system, lots of features, good pricing, a ton of support materials. Just run some numbers and you'll see that they are way more value for the cost than almost any other provider. At least from my research. Shortcode 72727 super easy to remember.

Does anyone know anything abt Boost Contact ?? They are an SMS in La USA.
Any info would be appreciated

I hate txt message advertising...gets in my way

Well Pacman its only getting in your way if you are CHOOSING to opt in....just stating facts is all....Do not opt in and there is nothing getting in your way
Get used to it, it has only just begun. The tidal wave of SMS marketing is on its way!

This is such a great idea using text messaging as a marketing strategy!!!.

Does anyone have experience with YepText - actually used it?

I don't know if this is true but I suspect many of these companies buy bulk from other providers like Clickatell and then repackage and sell to small biz

Has anyone checked out EZ Texting before? Check them out and let me know what you think. I purchased their white label program, developed a website and currently use them. The only problem is I don't have enough hours in a day to manage my SMS business and my local SEO business (and I'm not interested in hiring employees at the moment).

I can't PM back until 50 posts, so send me an email at jesse@windsormarketing.ca for more details.

Avid Mobile is top notch - fabulous support!!.....forget iZigg (it's mlm) crap!

Certainly the writer has mentioned some important topics for which I was looking for so many days. Hopefully it would be helpful for the people who are involved to mobile marketing. The topic of sms provider is really a craze of current time. We are looking forward getting some more tips including information.

2 good bulk SMS providers are Clickatell.com and 160.com.au

i like textmarks because you get unlimited messages or unlimited subscribers, its really flexible that way. plus a 2 week free trial

A lot of providers out there, all with their good and bad.

I would recommend getting on the phones with various reps to see which company you're the most comfortable with.

Ask about support, upgrades, etc.

tatango.com is GREAT also YepText.com

I do my own text message marketing. It's very easy to do.
These are the steps:

1) Get an Iphone (I don't know about Android, but it should work too)
2) Download an app called "Group Text" or "ExcelSms"
3) Split your csv Lead Sheets into groups of 100-300 depending if it is an iphone 3Gs or 4
4) Upload your phone numbers
5) Get your sms going

It's that easy and it takes very little time to set up and gives far better results than email. Everybody opens their sms.
Very important is that you give them the option of opting out.

Live limitless,
Demian

P.S I fly free when I jump into the unknown

I have a couple of beefs with Lime about their vehicle listing area. First of all, there is no way to set a default notification, you have to set it for every one of the vehicles even if you are putting in 200 and every lead notification goes to the same place.
Secondly, they have a really decent ad that can be printed to window stickers. However they started a good thing but it must have gotten difficult and they just quit. It doesn't fill up but about 70% of a letter size page but worse than that is that it's not even centered. There are no scaling or fit to page options. The print dialog opens in an extremely small window you have to enlarge before printing. Not very well thought out.
But the biggest mistake is that you have to 1)click generate 2) click print icon that opens the too small print dialog 3) resize the print window 4) select printer and finally 5) click print. They could have hit a homer with a quick print button next to the generate ad button. I know this sounds petty but when you are setting up a 100 to 200 car account, it really consumes a lot of time.
Come on guys, make it a little more user friendly.
Otherwise, I love it!

SUMOTEXT is the leading platform for companies and agencies wanting to kick-start and sustain conversations with mobile audiences via SMS, MMS, and StarStar numbers.

One huge recommendation I have is get a demo account before you sign up with anyone. Make sure the interface works with what you need it to work best with.

Yeah my buddy uses Trumpia and has many good things to say about them. Not sure about this whole idea....I get these to my phone and they bug me.

Lots of great advice, as I've been working in to mobile with some clients, and want some good SMS to offer. Sounds like Avid is the way to go...

Text message marketing?????!!!!!!!
I think you should use MMS,
you must use MMS ,
It is very effective than text message.

There is a new Mobile Marketing website, with many great features. They are just starting their whisper launch, so it is invite only and very private right now, but it's an inexpensive way to send text message advertising, and create mobile landing pages.
They even give you your own short 5 digit phone number!

They let you tour them for free, so give it a look. Seems to be a very good provider.
Uneeqle Link Here, Check it out

It depends on which country you are in. But still you will get lots of api seller on various forums which provides international api for sending sms. You can search for it.

TextMarks, Avid, YeeZ, TXT180 these are good source I think

A good SMS provider is a company that not just simply blast out text messages and nothing more. I think there needs to be a leverage of your skill and the program's usability with regards to professional SMS marketing so that it will be easier for your to connect and sustain your engagement to your clients.

I have been using yeptext for over 2 years and haven't really had any problems ..
I like them and you can raise and lower your plan as needed ...

pm me, I've got the highest world class service that I can give you instant access to for unlimited text messages at 1 cent per text. Small monthly fee, everything from real estate listings, to car dealer listings, to appointment reminders, to mobile coupons via text, it's all there, training included. contact me at maloufha(--a--t)gmail you know the rest! I don't think you'll find a cheaper price

I have used sendhub.com and they seem to work well!

I am sure we can work something out if you are interested in reselling. What is your current location ?

Jobs | Mobile Market Solutions

TextMarks is probably the easiest one to use and the most versatile to fit what you need to do. But, it does cost around $100 per month to get started. So, it will not be cheap.

Sounds like a intriguing idea. Can you share in more detail your marketing angle on this?

I have noticed ProTexting offers good sms marketing, with a lot of features for SMS, MMS and social media interactions. They have different packages and also an affiliate program with recurring commissions.

Well it sounds pretty simple, he wants to offer SMS to businesses but also wants to use his own SMS service to push his affiliates for more leads and referrals.

try sendhub.com they are really cool with nice features

I need contact email of those avidmobile guys, i couldnt find it on their site, please someone should inbox me their email address

I want to share too

I'm using CS Networks about one year and a half. Quite good and reliable service and 24/7 online support. For some companies which aren't in the same time zone, support is crucial thing.

For best bulk sms service in India #Mocolive is the best option to deal.
For price and activation issue sign up the form below:-
www.mocolive.com

I have decided for my business I am going to use text mark's service they offer a free 14 day trial no credit card required and I had great support.

its really nice site.low and comfortable price. nice presentation.

Khaled, which service are you referring to?

Jamecarter, how is your current SMS service coming along?