These gloves are made for texting

Much research has been published about SMS being the favoured mode of communication for the younger population, but an advertisement in Bloomingdale’s ‘Nifty Gifty holiday gift catalogue’ is the most visual demonstration of the importance that texting plays in consumers lives yet.

Juicy Couture have created a range of winter gloves specifically designed for sending SMS. The specialist gloves have the tips of the thumbs and fore fingers cut off to allow the wearer to text with ease.

This development is testament to the increasing popularity of text messages, with their use over taking that of traditional voice calls, research from Nielson Mobile shows that the average consumer sends 600 messages per month whilst using less than 200 voice minutes. For people between the ages of 18 and 24, the average number of text messages used has more than doubled in the last two years.

The fact that designers are taking the time to create gloves that consumers do not have to remove first to be able to send an SMS is a sure sign that this trend is not likely to die down any time soon. With applications such as Facebook beginning to integrate with SMS it is likely the popularity will in fact grow.

It seems that savvy marketers are already aware of the huge potential SMS holds and experts predict that in 2011 more marketers will enter this space, driving competition and innovation. From 2009-2014 it is estimated that SMS ad revenues in the U.S. alone will grow from $226 million to $562 million, a 20 percent compound annual growth rate, according to Borrell Associates.

Text messages are fast, efficient, work on all devices and customers know how to use them. They also lend themselves perfectly to targeted, segmented campaigns but they’re also a great way of facilitating two-way conversations to learn what customers expect from a brand.

Tools like surveys, voting and other interactive capabilities are also a way of making SMS campaigns relevant and interesting for your audience.

Rapide have been helping their clients engage with their audiences via text messages for over ten years.

For more information or advice on how to employ the power of SMS in your business talk to one of our experienced consultants on 02476011911 or fill out the form below and someone will call you back.