Every day more than 3.5 billion are sent. Some 1 trillion were exchanged throughout last year. Yes, the humble 160 character text message remains a considerably popular means of communication.
Disagree? We send more texts than we make calls: A Nielsen Mobile report last year found that U.S. mobile phone users sent an average of 357 texts per month in the second quarter of 2008 versus an average of 204 calls. So, remember: These are texting devices, not phones.
"Consumers are increasingly relying on texting as a form of communications," CTIA stated recently. "It is quick, easy and affordable. Carriers offer consumers a multitude of text messaging options and we encourage individuals to work with their provider to ensure they're on the best plan."
CTIA also noted that only about 10 percent of wireless users in the U.S. pay-per-text message, most text users either have a bundled text message plan (a bucket of 200 for the month, for example) or have an unlimited plan for text messages.
The 10 percent of wireless users in the U.S. who pay per text, don't need to be a worry for those healthcare service providers looking to leverage text messaging for appointment reminders, medication reminders or other healthcare-related missives. Those wireless users with a limited number of text messages in their messaging allowance should be of no concern either.
Premium text messaging company, mBlox, has just offered a new service called Free to End User, which makes it easier for service providers to ensure their customers won't get billed for that text message they send them. So who pays now? Just the sender.
For example, if the staff at a doctor's office wanted to offer a text message-based appointment reminder service to their patients, they might choose to use Free to End User to pay for the cost of the text messages, instead of having their patients absorb the cost. After all, if the reminders work, it might be worth covering the nominal fee to get more patients to sign up for the service.
Of course, with every step forward comes another challenge: How do you let them know that this text -- just this one -- is free?
