sms blast The system automatically and instantly looks up the carrier for each mobile phone number on your list, and forwards the message to the carrier (i.e. Spring, AT&T, Verizon, etc.) for delivery. The primary reason why you want to use an online text provider is that the carriers have already agreed to accept and carry their messages. Otherwise, you would have to go through a tedious process lasting many months to get permission yourself from the carriers to relay your messages.
The actual "gateway" is simply a secured website where you can manage your texting program. The technology is complicated and involves text aggregators and the mobile phone carriers themselves, but the idea behind it very basic - it's just a convenient way to send and receive text messages from the web, or as some people refer to it, "in the cloud."
You can send text blasts via an online SMS blast service that eliminates the need for any special hardware or software. The set up is easy and fast, and since you can use the services of an online SMS (short message service) provider, you can begin your program almost immediately. Moreover, the gateway enables you to do more than just send text messages. You can also receive text messages and perform functions such as voting, polling, and using keywords so people can text you for more information, coupons, or to be included in your future text blasts.
With a list of mobile phone numbers in hand, your text blasting campaigns can be used for any number of purposes. You have 160 character spaces to use to get your message out, less the number of characters that are reserved for your opt-out message.
The carriers, and the government, maintain very stringent standards to insure that text messages going through their systems are legitimate and that your subscribers have opted-in to receive messages and that subscribers also have the ability to opt-out and stop getting the text blasts at anytime.
SMS text gateway services will be at the center of tomorrow's communication frontier. 85% of the adults in the United States now have a text capable mobile phone, and within a few months, most of those phones will be smartphones. Interestingly, people are now using their mobile phones more for texting than for talking. Many users, under 30, don't even check their email or answer the phone anymore to talk. They sole communications channel is texting.
With the exponential rise in mobile texting, and with new applications being dreamed of everyday, organizations are well advised to get on the texting bandwagon and begin collecting mobile phone numbers for their databases. It may be the only practical way they will be able to reach their future customers, patrons, students or fans.
