Growing Revenues through Text Messaging | THE OVER-CAFFEINATED ENTREPRENEUR

The Over-Caffeinated Entrepreneur with David J. Dunworth

Those new to mobile media and mobile marketing may not know that the road to greatness in this medium is text messaging using Short Codes (SMS). Short codes are typically a 5 or 6 digit set of numbers (such as 90210) that represent a particular mobile address, much like the URL on the web. A short code is the "dot com" of mobile communications. The other component of a mobile marketing campaign is what is known as a keyword. Keywords may be text yourname to shortcode. They also may be another word you can think of that might make your target consumer knowledgeable of you or your business. Here are a few reasons text messaging makes sense.

+ More than 6 Billion text messages are sent and received every month.

+ Eighty-five percent are opened within 3 minutes, and a whopping 94% of them are opened and read within the first hour of receiving them.

+ The consumer always has the option to opt-in or opt-out of your message delivery.

+ Marketing in this way is Permission-Based. The Consumer is in Control!

The acquisition of a short code and keyword(s) is through a company known as an application provider or reseller. Some call them aggregates, that is not the case. The app (or service) providers purchase or lease their short codes and keywords from the aggregates, who in turn, secure them from other firms in the chain.

Here are some examples that may better explain the use of a text messaging campaign to grow revenues.

Let's assume we want to grow revenues for a CPA firm, or Dr.'s Office, Lawyer, Hair Salon, Dentist or any other type of service provider that bills time for services.

Professionals that schedule appointments for their clients (or potentials) count on the appointment being filled, with a person in the seat at the right time. Companies and professionals lose a tremendous amount of money when the client misses an appointment, and the "No Show" time is forever lost. That billing time cannot be recouped, unless an emergency fill-in list is maintained. What I mean is, most firms don't have clients waiting for a last minute appointment on any given day, at any given time. Sure, it happens occasionally, but the frequency just isn't there. A Dentist may have an emergency client every now and then, but no company has a list of clients or potentials just sitting by the phone waiting on a last minute spot.

What if, when making an initial appointment or a follow up session, you had the ability to pre-arrange a text message a week, day hour before the appointment. As a recurring reminder to make and keep the appointment, you can set them (in advance) and forget them. Do you think the capture rate of appointments might go up? Of course they will, dramatically!

The previous example isn't even a marketing campaign, text messaging is merely used as as a management tool to increase productivity and capture rate. Let's now take a look at the hospitality business.

Remember (if you are at least 45) when most restaurants had a Maitre ' d? Every day he (they were almost always men) would arrive at the restaurant around 3 or 4 in the afternoon, and review the evening's reservations, commonly known as "the book." He would be looking to see who is planning to dine, but he would also be looking to see what regulars are missing on the reservation log. He would then take the time to call each of the regulars to entice them to come in tonight to dine. He might offer 2 for 1 entrees, free wine or dessert, or some other form of inducement to fill the restaurant.

Those days are gone. Minimum wage hosts and hostesses now seat patrons, without bothering to get to know you, or care about you. What you typically hear is "hi, two?" They are there to put butts in seats; nothing more. That is until now.

What if a restaurant had a database (for which the customers would opt-in) that could be sent out as a text blast offering half off entrees if they respond by return text within an hour, and be seated by no more than two hours from first contact? How about a message that says, "we only have 9 tables available (not previously reserved) tonight. First 9 to reply get half off their entrees. Or, if the message says, "don't forget your wife (name inserted) birthday this weekend. Make your reservations today and we'll provide the free celebration cake." Or, if any other type of promotion or message were sent out, do you think revenues go up? Do you think that the restaurant might be full, on nights that are usually slow?

The National Restaurant Association states that U.S. restaurants are below 40% capacity after 6 p.m. This type of Real-Time Marketing can make a huge difference in those numbers.

Here's yet another example; an entire community.

Presume for a moment that a small community, whether it be a church, social group, a school or the entire town's government used text messaging. Not only could emergency messages be texted, announcements could be sent to increase the importance of their attendance at the annual town fair, pot luck dinner, PTA meeting, or church elders meeting. This may be marketing on some occasions, or merely information on others, or part of a town's emergency broadcasting system.

There are more reasons to use text messaging than just to stay in touch; there is money waiting to be harvested. A mobile marketing campaign can be established in short order, and costs are less than you might think. There are typically no contracts, other than number of messages in packages to agree to, and are month to month use of the short code(s) and keyword(s).

Next month I will fully explain how to create a mobile marketing plan, complete with Scar Tissue (real life) examples. Stay tuned!

Attention Entrepreneurs and Emerging Enterprises: You can learn Scar Tissue knowledge by reading: http://www.theovercaffeinatedentrepreneur.wordpress.com/

For more information, please visit David's TNNWC Bio.

---

Powered By TNNWC Group™

For complete tactical and strategic business planning, marketing, media, lead-generation, technological and capital resources, scalable solutions and tools to support every entrepreneurial start-up, young enterprise, small- to medium-sized business and emerging high-growth company, talk to The National Networker Companies™/ TNNWC Group, LLC.

We are a collaborative entrepreneurial, creative organization offering you hands-on, personalized assistance in every aspect of achieving your monetization, profitability and financial sustainability objectives, domestically and globally.

We don’t just coach you or offer you pre-packaged, push-button solutions – we listen to you, analyze your exact needs, and work within your budget to: 1) create your tool kit and 2) work as your partner to implement your plan by supporting you in the most efficient and productive use of every tool.

Visit our website, which is located at http://www.TNNWC.com .

To receive our newsletters, publications, information bulletins and alerts, simply join us as a Member. Membership is free and the benefits are unequalled anywhere.

Just go to our home page, and click on the “JOIN US” button.

---

Capital, Traffic Building, International Customers and unique SERVICES.
The National Networker Publications™ produced by TNNWC Group, LLC

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Growing Revenues through Text Messaging | THE OVER-CAFFEINATED ENTREPRENEUR

THE OVER-CAFFEINATED ENTREPRENEUR: Choosing the Right Partner

The Over-Caffeinated Entrepreneur with David J. Dunworth

Choosing the Right Partner

When choosing the right partner, it's as important in business as it is in life. Your significant other, spouse, life partner or whatever you might call that person, must be compatible, trustworthy, loyal, honest and above all, equally interested in the relationship as you are. They must contribute to the relationship on an equal footing if there is to be a lasting relationship at all. The same aspects of a personal relationship are just as important in a business relationship.

---Have you ever had the wrong business partner?

---When did you know it would not work out?

---What can be done about it once you figure things out?

My Scar Tissue Example: I once got into business with a friend that I had known since high school; we were very tight back then. As teens, we went everywhere together, did nearly everything as a pair, we even dated sisters at one point. We were inseparable.

After 30 years of life in our separate directions, we were reunited as a result of a high school reunion, and things felt like only a week had gone by. We made the decision to come up with a way to make money together, to be life long friends and business partners. Both of us were full of ideas, just like the good old days. The business ideas, dreams and invention concepts flowed like water, so fast that I could not keep up with the scribe work. I wanted to record the ideas without concern whether they were valid or noteworthy, that would come later. I needed to catalog them, so they didn't fall off the table and disappear into oblivion.

We met every day, and reviewed the previous day's list of ideas, trying to find that special one that could be grown into a viable entity. It wasn't too long into the first month that I began to suspect that this new arrangement was not bearing much fruit. However, both of us had significant experience in business, although different industries. Both of us had strong desire, courage and the need to come up with a winning concept. We kept returning to the meeting place with fortitude and a goal. Eventually, the right idea would arrive, the right concept would make us grin, doing so before I withered from the frustration I was feeling.

I continued to listen to my friend espouse all that he had accomplished and all of his ideas, but began to wonder if he was ever going to settle on one idea, focus on a single target. It felt like I was the one doing all of the traveling to the meeting place, taking all of the notes, transferring them to a computerized set of notes, and just about everything else involved. Upon settling on an idea with good potential, I put a deposit down on an office, and moved in the furniture. I had enough office supplies, furniture, fixtures and equipment, and the office took shape almost immediately. I went to work on the business plan, web site, operations and training manuals, and placed the ad for new hires. My friend, my new business partner, having identified the winning concept, took an absentee partner position, thought because I had administration and management skills, I could carry the ball. I put up with his attitude, but not for too long.

To make a long story even longer, this went on for the next several weeks, but unfortunately, my partner's brother passed away. Time passed, and I continued to finalize all of the administrative aspects of the business, including the bootstrap funding of it. I thought I had given my partner enough time to move past his mourning, but I was wrong. When I became verbal about my partner's lack of personal involvement in the business, he took offense, blaming me for not being sensitive to the loss of his only brother. He became enraged, and we split up. I continued to operate the business, and do so to this day. My childhood friend has not been heard from since.

I gained a business, lost a friend and feel bad about it. I dished out the right type of advice to my clients, but when it came to my own situation, acted the fool, ignoring all of my advice for the sake of "the good old days."

Scar Tissue Advice: Just as you hire slow, and fire fast when dealing with support staff, it is absolutely paramount to follow the same advice when choosing a partner. Take your time, make no promises, and clearly define each other's expectations; then hold each other accountable.

Good fortune can be yours if you know what is expected of each party prior to beginning a new venture, even at the idea stage.

For additional scar tissue (real life learning) examples for entrepreneurs and emerging enterprises, see my blog at http://www.theovercaffeinatedentrepreneur.wordpress.com/

For more information, please visit David's TNNWC Bio.

---

Capital, Traffic Building, International Customers and unique SERVICES.
The National Networker Publications™ produced by TNNWC Group, LLC
Resources for Business Planning, Development, Capital and Growth

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

THE OVER-CAFFEINATED ENTREPRENEUR: Choosing the Right Partner