Convergent Brings SMS to PYP

We’ve written in the past about Convergent Mobile and its SMS marketing for small businesses. One of the bright spots is giving SMBs their own keyword — branded to their business and promoted through signage, menus, Yellow Pages ads or wherever else makes sense.

Texting that keyword to Convergent’s valuable “US411″ short code, gives users all kinds of options such as visiting a Convergent hosted landing page, or opting in for more information, deals and whatever else the business wants to push.

Convergent took a step forward today through a partnership with independent directory publisher Names and Numbers. The partnership will place these keywords throughout the publisher’s  print listings, tied to the short code 5STAR.

Advertisers are also given a decal to cross promote the SMS campaign through other media or storefronts. And they’re given a dashboard to manage deals and other things offered to users who opt in. From the release:

Convergent Mobile’s platform will enable merchants to select a keyword that best represents their business name. Each business will then create a unique promotional offer that is instantly sent to customers’ mobile devices the first time they text the keyword to 5STAR. These customers will then receive exclusive weekly offers from the business as a reward for being an “opt-in” member.

Each text marketing program comes with a host of features including access to opt-in lists in real time, dynamic reporting functions, and abilities to provide each customer with additional contact information about the business (through the INFO function). Customers can take advantage of mobile offers they receive by simply showing the offer right from their mobile device.

This has lots of advantages including bringing more calls to action to print ads. It also lets advertisers be more dynamic with daily or weekly deals — otherwise difficult in a medium bound (get it?) by annual or semi-annual production runs.

That appeal helps the publisher with an additional hook to selling the YP bundle. This is especially true in the current environment where customer acquisition through dynamic deals is red hot. The same applies on the user end so this is well-aligned.

Names and Numbers is based in Kansas and operates 59 directories across 11 states in the Pacific Northwest, Midwest and South. We expect more deals like this to come for Convergent.