Teimlo

Using text (SMS) voting to engage your audience

2010-03-09T11:34:20+00:00

What is text voting?

Text voting is a great facility that allows you to gauge public opinion on just about anything. To register a vote, an individual simply texts in a keyword to a short code number (e.g. 82088).

What can text voting do for my marketing?

Voting is not only a great way of gauging public opinion; it’s also an ideal way of engaging your audience. The text voting system has become increasingly popular in recent years when used in conjunction with popular TV talent shows.

Due to the simplicity of the voting system i.e. a short text message being sent to register a vote, the potential response rate is likely to be much higher.

How does text voting work?

In order to set up a vote, simply decide your question and your three categories. Enter the answers into the system (these answers are what a voter will text in) and it is set up. This literally takes minutes.

All that is left to do is decide how the vote will be promoted; this could be on any marketing material at any location nationwide, as anyone with a mobile can enter. Best practice dictates that a ‘thank you for voting’ message should also be sent to all entrants. All this, once set up is completely automated, so there is no need to monitor it.

Where could I use text voting?

The ideal use for text voting is in an environment where real-time feedback is necessary. For example, at Teimlo, one of our clients uses the voting system when holding their battle of the bands event at live gigs. This enables their audience to vote with ease for their favourite bands, then be able to analyse the results during the event itself.

Have you used text voting as part of your marketing efforts?

If you have used text voting as part of your marketing efforts we would love to hear from you. Was it a success? Did you find it easy to set up and use? Did you get any feedback? To let us know how you found using text voting, simply comment or contact me by clicking here.

How much does it cost?

As the organisation running the voting, you have the choice to make entry free to the end user (entry costs them a single standard rate message) or at a premium price, the lowest of which that is generally used being 25p. Any advertisement needs to clearly state the cost of voting.

Using a text competition effectively

2010-03-02T10:30:00+00:00

What is a text competition?

A text competition allows a user to text (SMS message) in their answer to a short code, simple as that. This way of running competitions is increasingly popular with daytime television shows, as a simple and effective means of running a large competition with ease.

What can a text competition do for my marketing?

A competition is a great way of enhancing the interactivity of your product, service, organisation or brand. By engaging your audience directly, you are more likely to be in the forefront of their mind next time they are looking for something related to your organisation. It can also be a great way to gauge the exposure of some of your traditional marketing, for example, running a competition solely on a door drop campaign, you may be able to see how many recipients actually decided to enter.

The beauty of a competition is that it gives individuals the opportunity to gain something substantial or of perceived value for very little effort or money. And the beauty of a text competition is the effort for both the entrant and the organiser is significantly reduced.

As with all competitions the problem occurs with collecting entries. A phone entry is time consuming and requires manpower; the same applies for a postal entry. The beauty of a mobile entry, via a text message is that it is quick and simple, both for the organiser and also the entrant; therefore there is more chance of someone taking the time to enter.

The facility to set up a mobile competition is completely automated, and the winner is randomly selected by the system following the close of the competition. This vastly reduces the need for manpower.

How does a text competition work?

In order to set up competition, simply decide your question and your three answers. Enter the answers into the system (these answers are what an entrant will text in) and it is set up. This literally takes minutes.

All that is left to do is decide how the competition will be promoted; this could be on any marketing material at any location nationwide, as anyone with a mobile can enter. You can set up an auto-response text message for any incorrect answers, and best practice dictates that a ‘thank you for entering’ message should also be sent to all entrants. All this, once set up is completely automated, so there is no need to monitor it.

The system that Teimlo uses ensures that a winner can only be selected at random once the competition has ended i.e. the ‘pick winners’ button does not appear until the competition passes the deadline entered on set up.

How can I find out more about this service?

The best way to do this is to talk to the professionals, click here and to tell us a bit more about what it is you’re interested in. We can advise you on the marketing of and the terms and conditions for your competition.

Have you used a text competition as part of your marketing efforts?

If you have used a text competition as part of your marketing efforts we would love to hear from you. Was it a success? Did you find it easy to set up and use? Did you get any feedback? To let us know how you found using a text competition, simply comment below.

How much does it cost?

As the organisation running the competition, you have the choice to make entry free to the end user (entry costs them a single standard rate message) or at a premium price, the lowest of which that is generally used being 25p. Competitions require strict rules and they need to be freely available to potential entrants and referenced to as part of advertising the competition. Any advertisement needs to clearly state the cost of entering.

Using Text Broadcasting to Improve Event Attendance

2010-02-24T14:24:36+00:00

Sometimes we all struggle with the motivation to attend something. We all know what it’s like, you sign up for something months in advance, thinking ‘that sounds good’, but when it comes to a week or so before the event, your motivation to attend seems to have disappeared. Sometimes all you need is a gentle nudge to persuade you to attend.

For an event organiser or exhibitor this can be equally frustrating. You have spent all that time organising the event, yet the attendance is far from what you had expected. All you need is to give an extra reminder to encourage attendance.

You could send them an email, but if your event is at a weekend, what are the chances that people will read the email, or indeed take notice of it during the working week?

A great way to apply that gentle nudge is through text (SMS) broadcasting. If your event is on a Saturday afternoon, send out a broadcast Friday evening. The beauty of text messaging is that you can be sure it gets to an individual directly, and in most circumstances, they are likely to at least read it before they delete it!

But this reminder is not limited to just the night before, or the normal hours associated with email marketing. If it’s a local event for instance, you could send a reminder on the morning of the event, or whilst the event is taking place, making sure your event is in the forefront of people’s minds that day.

‘If you’re in Usk today, don’t forget to pop down to Usk show.’

A text broadcast can also be a great way of sending a more personal thank you to each individual who attended. Following the event, you could send out a thank you text for attending, with a link included to direct a user to whatever web/wap page you wish.

So next time your arranging anything from a meeting to a full exhibition, consider text broadcasting as a cost-effective, personal and direct way to improve attendance. We can We can advise on the use of broadcast messaging and the legal requirements to give people the option to unsubscribe when you do send a message to them.

For more information on text broadcasting, visit www.teimlo.com or click here for our TEXT BUREAU service.

Cool Stuff #50: SUPER

2010-02-16T13:15:00+00:00

Cool Stuff is Teimlo's blog series is to help you out by telling you about useful websites and applications that can help you and your business.

SUPER is a free piece of software that allows you to convert a video file from one format to another with ease. It also enables you to alter aspect ratios, video scale size, bitrate and more.

This piece of software has become extremely useful when setting up our YouTube channel. It allows the conversion of almost any media file into another, but at Teimlo, we used it for the conversion of .avi files into .mov files.

On the outset it looks like a very technical piece of software to master, with several options available in both output and input mode. But the reality is all you need to do is select the output format you wish the file to have, then drag and drop the file into the conversion box, click encode and it does the rest for you.

The software even has output presets for iPods, PS3, PSP, Nokia, Sony Ericsson and many more, which is great for anyone looking to convert videos to load onto these devices.

This tool has been used to great effect by Teimlo and we would strongly recommend it to anyone looking to convert videos or audio from one format to another.

The best part of this software is that it’s free to download and use. For more information on how to use the software, the video below walks you through the entire process, from downloading the software to using it.

To download this software visit http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html

Teimlo derives no financial benefit from featuring SUPER in this series. If SUPER is useful to you please comment and/or share this entry.

Cool Stuff #49: Social Oomph

2010-02-12T11:20:51+00:00

Cool Stuff is Teimlo's blog series is to help you out by telling you about useful websites and applications that can help you and your business.

If you are currently growing your Twitter following, you may find that you have surges of followers, on a Friday for instance, and there are far too many to keep in touch with all at once.

Teimlo use Social Oomph is to set up an automatic welcome message to all new followers. If you are familiar with Twitter then you will be familiar with receiving Direct Messages as soon as you follow someone. This is simple to set up using Social Oomph, and allows you to broadcast a simple welcome message to anyone who decides to follow you.

This can be useful if you are trying to promote a particular web page, Facebook fan page or blog at the current time. All you have to do is write your message on Social Oomph, include a link if you wish, then click save and the message will be sent to all new followers.

This is not the only facility available with Social Oomph, with the free version you are able to track keywords, automate your Twitter account to follow those who follow you, vet new followers, purge your Direct Message inbox and add as many accounts as you wish for free.

There is also a professional version available for a cost which has many more added features for other forms of social media.

We say this is a useful free tool, especially if you are looking to grow your social media following.

To start using this tool, visit www.socialoomph.com

Teimlo derives no financial benefit from featuring Social Oomph in this series. If Social Oomph is useful to you please comment and/or share this entry.

Expert Voices #17: What does the future hold for mobile marketing? (Part 2)

2010-02-08T11:38:16+00:00

Expert Voices is the Teimlo blog entry series dedicated to sourcing expert knowledge for our readers and customers. Please read, enjoy, share comment.

Lat week we published part 1 of this article kindly contributed by our guest blogger Sebastian Landsberg.

Part 2 looks at how the technological environment will impact on mobile marketing.

But how will the changing technological environment impact marketing? Is there still room for mobile marketing as a separate communications discipline? How will online communications fare with the new situation?

Firstly, mobile marketing will continue to be a valuable discipline in the communications mix. A number of the unique benefits of mobile marketing will remain exceptionally important despite consumers’ constant connection to full blown internet access. Think about mobile sites for example: New mobile devices are not limited by screen size, problematic navigation, and data transfer rates. Thus, mobile sites are not required due to a lack of appropriate technology. However, if a consumer is in transit and requires information as quick as possible, an easier navigation typical for mobile sites will help to get that information when needed. The built-in payment system will lead to a growth in mobile commerce. Users will spend more on mobile service, such as news ticker feeds and music subscription, and offline goods by using their phone as a payment device. Another example is mobile gaming.

Secondly, online marketing will greatly benefit from the new technology, allowing it to utilize some of the hitherto unique benefits of mobile marketing. Instantaneous access to the consumer via email, improved personalisation of search results, advertising, and special offers taking into account users location, demographics, device type, and carrier as well as known search preferences, will improve users’ online experience, conversion rates of online marketing, and finally increase spend on online marketing above proportion.

And finally, there will be a tighter integration of mobile and online marketing. Using the mobile devices’ availability at the point of creative inspiration, online marketing professional will be able to harness the creative potential and impulse of consumers in their campaigns combining elements from online and mobile marketing disciplines. For example, a campaign would start with the reception of a Bluetooth message that prompts an action taken using a mobile device. The result is then uploaded to a website, which can be accessed by other consumers participating in that campaign.

Overall, it is certain that mobile and online marketing will benefit from the diffusion of mobile devices capable of accessing online content, new services, and the further development of mobile networks. Both marketing disciplines will remain distinct, but more integrated, and will become a priority in the marketing mix of corporations within the next couple of years.

Teimlo would like to thank Sebastian Landsberg for contributing this article. If you would like to contribute an article offering some expert advice please contact Huw.

Using SMS to Screen for mobile marketing

2010-02-05T09:37:05+00:00

What is SMS to screen?

SMS to screen is a facility that lets a user text in details to a 5 digit shortcode, which can then be viewed by a client at their discretion online. This facility is most commonly found being used in conjunction with radio station DJ’s who prompt listeners to text in their views or their traffic information to a short 5 digit code.

What can SMS to screen do for a business?

This tool is ideal for market research, collecting qualitative data on your audience’s thoughts about a particular product or feature in real time is a priceless asset. This can be a valuable direct response tool for any business when launching an advertising campaign; it provides clear, and direct feedback about the advertisement, product or service. It can also be a quick and cost effective way of capturing people’s details or thoughts while they are on the move. With the ability to collect a potentially useful database of prospective customer numbers that will be stored in a self managing database this is also a great way of obtaining prospects that are directly interested in your product, service or advert.

How can I find out more about this service?

The best way to do this is to talk to the professionals, click here and to tell us a bit more about what it is your interested in, or try our service yourself and text the word TEXT plus your name and email address to 82088 (UK only, one standard rate sms) and one of our friendly team will contact you as soon as possible.

Do you have any examples of how your business has used SMS to screen to meet your needs? If so we would love to hear about it, feel free to leave a comment or contact us.

Expert Voices #16: What does the future hold for mobile marketing? (Part 1)

2010-02-02T14:24:59+00:00

Expert Voices is the Teimlo blog entry series dedicated to sourcing expert knowledge for our readers and customers. Please read, enjoy, share comment.

The following article has been kindly contributed by our guest blogger Sebastian Landsberg. Sebastian is a communications consultant at an international public relations agency. He specializes in clients from the technology industry. He holds a Master of Science in Politics and Communications from the London School of Economics.

What does the future hold for mobile marketing? by Sebastian Landsberg

Mobile phones have seen a market adoption and penetration unlike any other technology. Currently, three billion people globally use mobile phones – a number Gartner estimated to rise to 6.5 billion in 2014. The market penetration in 30 countries has exceeded the 100 percent mobile device to population ratio and, in Africa, four in ten people now own a mobile phone.

The increasing diffusion of mobile phones has been accompanied by the rise of mobile marketing, a form of communicating messages to the consumer using mobile phone-based technology, such as SMS, MMS, mobile sites and appropriate advertising banners, Bluetooth, infrared, and others. Mobile marketing has distinctive characteristics, which make it superior to other forms of marketing, such as print, television or online to those other forms mentioned before: Mobile phones are always near the consumer (a 2007 study by Morgan Stanley has shown that 91 percent of mobile phone users keep their phone within one meter of themselves throughout the day) making instantaneous reception of messages possible, mobile phones are always on, they are available at the point of creative inspiration, they include a built-in payment system, and they allow for the recording of every action taken with the device, thus proving an enormous potential for tracking consumer behaviour and segmentation (depending on the data available from the network provider), thus increasing the potential for CRM.

A number of developments now change the environment in which mobile marketing professionals operate. In recent years, new mobile devices have been released to the market. Netbooks, e-readers, and, most importantly, smartphones are increasingly adopted by consumers. Soon, smartphones will be more widely used than regular mobile phones, which will change the way we consume and distribute information.

Firstly, using smartphones, consumers will be constantly connected to the internet.

Secondly, higher computing power, high resolution displays, and touchscreens enable users to browse the internet similar to a desktop PC. And thirdly, technological improvements of existing networks, such as HDSPA, and the rollout of the next generation mobile network LTE allows for speeds currently only available via landlines. These developments will greatly improve the mobile internet experience.

Finally, new service offered by third party providers, for example app stores, communication tools, such as microblogging platform Twitter, or location based-services, such as Foursquare as well as cheaper data plans will support the adoption of mobile devices enabling consumers to always be online. Taken together, these developments will make mobile devices the primary means to access online content within five years. (This is not to say that landline internet connections and desktop PCs will have no purpose in the future. Certain applications remain, which will require high computing power, better graphics capabilities and other features.)

We will be publishing part 2 of this article very soon so ensure to check back as the author looks in detail at how the changing technological environment will impact marketing.

If you wish to contribute an article to Expert Voices please contact Huw or subscribe to the blog to keep up to date with Teimlo's blog series.

Teimlo launches its first eBook

2010-01-28T14:10:55+00:00

Teimlo has today launched its first eBook entitled 'Free Software that Will Help Your Business'.

This eBook is a compilation of the Cool Stuff series featured on this blog, aimed at identifying useful pieces of software or online services that will aid a business or individual entrepreneur with everyday activities such as image resizing, social media update scheduling, team organisation, file sharing and many more.

The eBook is available for download by clicking the link below or by visiting the Marketing Resources area of www.teimlo.com.

All the tools featured in the eBook have been tested by the team at Teimlo and have proven useful to us.

Download the eBook here.

If you have downloaded or read the eBook and have any comments, please leave them below, we would be grateful of your feedback for future publications.

Comparison of iPhone vs Google Nexus One

2010-01-27T11:59:11+00:00

Have a look at this great comparison video of the iPhone against the Google Nexus One.

An interesting video that takes you through the features of both devices and how they compare to each other. Definitely worth a look if you are considering purchasing either one of the phones.

If you have either one of these models, we would love to hear your comments on them. Please leave a comment below.