Text Message List Building's Biggest Myth

by Kim Dushinski - Mobile Marketing Profits

The biggest misconception around mobile marketing lies in
the idea that a business builds a database of mobile phone
numbers and then dives into a mobile marketing campaign
using these numbers.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that in
order to build a database of opt-in mobile numbers you
have to do a mobile marketing campaign. Here's why.

Text messaging is a mandatory opt-in marketing channel.
It is never smart or ethical to send text messages that are
not explicitly requested. And in many places around the
world it is illegal to do so. This explicit permission is not
granted simply by being a customer or giving a business a
cell phone number for other purposes.

Opting in has very specific criteria. You have to get
someone to text in to opt in, sign up online with using a fill
in the blank form or reply "Yes" when you have gotten
verbal permission to add them to your mobile list. None of
these can be done without having a mobile marketing
campaign going.

The good news is that everybody starts at zero. Fortune
500 companies and small businesses alike all start with no
one in their mobile marketing database.

Even better news is that it only takes a smart marketing
strategy and powerful marketing implementation to get
people opting in like crazy. Give people a good reason to
sign up and make sure they know all about it and your
campaign is underway. Your text message database is
being built.

Waiting to start mobile marketing until you have a mobile
database is impossible. You cannot build a mobile
marketing database without doing mobile marketing.