Most people perform nearly all of their daily activities with their cell phones within reach. Marketers are finding that while their customers might miss an e-mail message, they don't miss a text. SMS text messaging has emerged as an effective and measurable engagement tactic that marketers can use to power a variety of programs targeting sales, loyalty, and brand awareness. The nearly universal reach of text messaging makes it a tremendous platform for reaching and engaging on-the-go consumers.

According to data from the CTIA center, 86% of U.S. adults own a cell phone. What's more, these phones are getting smarter all the time. In the United States alone, there are 265 million mobile phone users and over 240 million text-enabled handsets. As of March 2010, consumers were exchanging more than 5 billion text messages per day. Text messages are starting to play an even more important role than voice calls. According to Nielsen Mobile, the average consumer sends 584 text messages while using less than 200 voice minutes every month. Additionally, 95% of existing mobile contracts have SMS built into the agreement. Perhaps most significantly, more than 90% of text messages are opened and read compared to less than 40% of all e-mail solicitations.

Mobile marketing is moving into the mainstream. According to eMarketer, mobile ad spending will rise from $416 million in 2009 to $593 million in 2010 as brands and agencies integrate mobile into their marketing mixes. We are starting to see marketing campaigns where firms are combining print with SMS text campaigns to deliver enhanced value.