The company blog

Mobile security – Exactly who is responsible for the protection of users data?

There has been an intriguing media debate recently regarding whose responsibility it is to make sure the personal information of mobile users is fully protected. While some fingers point squarely towards app marketplace operators, app developers have also been called upon to take their share of responsibility.

Since the arrival of the smartphone, the amount of information mobile users share through their handsets has increased considerably. This has led experts within this industry to call for better privacy protection in general. However, it is still not clear who should be in charge of this process.

Todd Moore, founder of app vendor TMSoft, commented recently on mobile app privacy at the State of the Mobile Net conference in Washington. Moore admitted that companies such as Apple and Google have several good privacy protection policies in place, yet believes they could do more to improve things.

“The operators of the iPhone and Android app marketplaces are in the best position to enforce privacy controls and set rules limiting the amount of information apps can collect,” he stressed.

Independent security and privacy researcher, Ashkan Soltani, added fuel to the fire by arguing that app developers bear most of the responsibility for protecting privacy. He said that app developers “must embrace a set of standard privacy practices going forward” to improve the situation.

As an example case, he mentioned the iPhone app Girls Around Me, which was voluntarily withdrawn recently by app maker SMS Services due to its dubious privacy policy. Using location on Foursquare, Girls Around Me alerted its users to nearby women, or men.

Commenting on this specific app, Sarah Hudgins – public policy director at the Interactive Advertising Bureau – said it was “a 10 creepy” on a scale of one to ten.

Security first

Guaranteeing confidentiality and privacy protection is essential amongst the frequent exchange of data in business today.

Esendex understands that the provision of a secure, robust and high performance SMS service is crucial to the business operations of our customers and our continued success. For more information please visit our security and reliability and privacy policy webpages.

The Power of Mobile Marketing

The popularity of marketing methods based on mobile devices is clearly growing within the modern day. More innovative techniques are emerging every day, but reliable platforms such as SMS and MMS are still essential to building a good relationship with the customer.

Although other interesting platforms are gaining popularity all the time, SMS marketing is still a mainstay within the mobile marketing strategy.

“Both messaging formats, SMS and MMS, are still the most successful techniques for generating responses from consumers and driving them to a mobile site or some other engagement process,” stated Joe Barber, founder of Third Screen Media (TSM), a mobile marketing company with specialised products for enterprise messaging.

Figures published in the online magazine Marketingmag.com.au revealed that more than eight trillion text messages were sent in 2011. In comparison to other client-approaching techniques, such as the email, SMS receives a 1.8 to 2.5 times greater click-through rate. MMS gained even better results, reaching as high as 3.4 times the response rate.

Practical SMS tips

Mobile expert Joe Barber gave a number of tips regarding the idea of developing an effective SMS marketing strategy. Barber suggests that it is important to be careful with the length of the SMS. Specifically, you should try to be short and concise about what you wish to say.

Long messages are boring and tedious, and are more likely to be ignored. If you are including links, make sure you shorten the URLs so you don’t misuse your characters.

“MMS still has strong consumer response rates and enables the inclusion of over 500 characters with images and logos. MMS can create a far more engaging experience,” suggests Barber.

It is also advisable not to send too many SMS messages. Abusing your clients’ inbox will lead them to view your messages as spam and will dilute the impact of what you are attempting to convey.

How to send SMS messages from a computer

Have you ever wondered how your bank sends balance reminders to you via SMS, or how an airline sends you your ticket confirmation using SMS? Well, they will be using a company like Esendex to do this.

There are a few different ways to do this, each of which have their advantages and disadvantages, and the right way for you will depend on how often, how many and how you plan on sending SMS from your computer or systems.

The simplest way to send SMS from a computer is to sign up for a web based platform, there is nothing to download, you simply need to log in through the website, write your message, enter the mobile phone numbers and click send, there is a bulk upload feature if you are wanting to upload thousands of contacts. There is also many other features.

For more info on how to send SMS from a web based platform click here.

If you already have a system within your business that you need to send SMS messages from, such as an appointment reminder system or an alerting system, then you may want to integrate that with an SMS API. This will allow your system to communicate with our SMS gateway, which can be set to trigger sends depending on certain outcomes.

For more info on how to send SMS through an SMS API click here.

Another way to send SMS from a computer is through email. You can configure almost any email account with a Esendex’s email to SMS platform. This will then allow you to write an email on your computer, but instead of sending the email to a normal email address, you send it to a modified email address; the recipient’s mobile phone number followed by the providers email domain name. For Esendex this would be @echoemail.net. So the send to address would look something like this 041234567#@echoemail.net

For more info on how to send SMS from an email platform click here.

The best way to find out how to send SMS from a computer is to try it for yourself. It will only take you a few minutes to sign up for a free trial with Esendex. You don’t need a debit or credit card, so there is absolutely no reason not to give it a try.

If you would like any further information, please don’t hesitate to call one of our SMS experts on 1300 764 946.

SMS and the Zero Moment of Truth

Long are the days when we would see a poster in the street and be sold on a concept, idea or product. We no longer see a TV ad and say to ourselves, “I do actually need one of those”. Marketing has got harder; you have to be present in more than just one or two communication channels to hit your target demographic, and it has to be constant.

We all like to think of ourselves as digital surfers and we know our way around the web, it is an integral part of our lives, and the devise that is changing this area of our lives is the mobile phone. We use it every day to find out valuable information on products, services, fact and figures, at any and every stage of the decision making process.

This has put the consumer in charge again, companies have to be more personal, approachable and friendly again, they need to be there before we think about it, they need to be there at the zero moment of truth.

How can companies influence this moment? Well they can do a few things; be ready to answer questions and make sure their brands are constantly in front of the consumer; there’s nothing worse than being forgotten in a price comparison, as you stand no chance at all of being chosen! Large brands can afford to use print media and TV advertising to help them stay at the front of consumers minds, but how can a smaller brand with a limited marketing budget achieve this?

Simple, take advantage of the humble SMS; use it to advertise new products, promote old products and offer special deals, deals the consumer can’t find on the internet or anywhere else. Send out an SMS at the right time and you’ll not only guarantee to put your brand at the front of the consumers mind, but you’re likely to get a few sales along the way.

The great thing about this form of advertising is that it’s cheap, just a few pence per SMS and over 98% of people will read it. Maybe only a small percentage of these will take up the offer, but your brand will remain in their mind as SMS has over a 90% recall rate. In a truly digital age, it’s important to take advantage of new technology, but don’t get completely swept up with the latest fads, trust in the old from time to time, you might just get more than you expected.

Google coined the idea of a “Zero Moment of Truth” that basically states that customers are using numerous online channels, at the time of purchase, to make an informed decision on what they are buying. http://www.zeromomentoftruth.com/

Australian NBN ban on Chinese company creates international tension

The relationship between China and Australia has suffered a significant blow as the Chinese Ministry of Commerce has made public their dissatisfaction over the recent ban of the Chinese company Huawei in Australia.

The Australian government has banned China’s largest building networks company, Huawei, following the recommendations of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO). The ASIO warned the government that working with Huawei could potentially compromise national security.

Canberra has subsequently decided to ban the telecommunications company Huawei from taking part in the National Broadband Network (NBN) project.

Following these recent events, Ministry spokesman Shen Danyang revealed a few days ago that the Chinese government was “deeply concerned” by the decision.

“Australia should not exclude a company from participating in a fair competition on so-called national security grounds in absence of evidence,” he said.

The Chinese ministry of Commerce also defined the Australian move as “unjust” and stressed that it might serve to damage diplomatic relations between the two countries significantly.

Mr Danyang also pointed out that 90% of Huawei’s staff in Australia were ‘local’ and cited the company’s past record as a supplier to other projects which were similar to this latest one.

Chinese investment in Australia

Speaking to The Age, an intelligence analyst close to the Chinese Security Services commented on these events:
“There is already a deeply ingrained perception in China that Australia does not welcome the Chinese investment, especially in light of the past rejections of Chinese mining investment projects, although some of the companies had to share the blame as well,” he said.

In his opinion, the Australian government should have communicated its decision to Huawei and Beijing more effectively to dispel the perception of discrimination.

“The relationship between China and Australia can only move forward through more frank exchange of ideas,” added the source.

On top of this, the ban on Huawei has re-ignited the debate regarding Western fears of cyber attacks on the IT infrastructure of key companies from China.

The ACCC take a bite out of Apple

As many of you may have heard the ACCC is instigating legal action against Apple for what it believes to be false and misleading claims that the new iPad 3 has 4G capabilities within Australia. For anyone who has purchased one of these beasties and tried to connect to Telstra’s new 4G network, which is limited at the moment anyway a la when 3G was rolled out
a few years ago, it doesn’t appear to be the case.

On the back of Apples 4G claims the ACCC have taken legal action against Apple alleging that the promotion of the “iPad with WiFi + 4G” is misleading as you’d expect 4G is 4G, but alas it’s not and it doesn’t, at least in Apple’s world.

Last week Apple provided an undertaking to the Federal Court that they would, as soon as reasonably practical, but no later than April 5th, display the statement “This product supports very fast cellular networks. It is not compatible with current Australian 4G LTE networks and WiMAX networks.” which we’re happy to advise is now on their website, at least on their store. They have gone one step further to advise, where they have an email address, to send anyone that has already purchased an iPad 3 of the same.

And with good reason, many consumers have flagged they would prefer a partial refund as compensation of the lack of 4G, especially in light of the new 4G network with Telstra (where HTC already have mobile devices working on the new high speed network) and Vodafone Hutchinson and Optus are set to launch their 4G networks sooner rather than later. This is a view also taken by the ACCC who have also cited their belief that anyone who has purchased an iPad 3 with the understanding that they can connect to 4G too.

The hearing has been set down to be heard on May 2^nd, and I’m sure Applites, early adopters, late adopters and everyone in between will keenly await the outcome.

What is an SMS Sender ID?

An SMS Sender ID is a quick way to let people receiving an SMS know exactly who the SMS is from. It is basically what appears in the “sent from” address on a mobile phone; although it’s not like a normal “sent from” address, as you can’t reply to a message where a Sender ID has been used.

They work well because there is no need for the user to store any numbers in their phone. You choose who the message will appear to be from; it can be up to 11 characters long and chosen from any alpha-numeric character.

Using an SMS Sender ID is a great way to get instant brand recognition when interacting with customers or staff. Most companies choose to use their brand name as the Sender ID, for example “PIZZASHOP”. However anything can be used. In some cases you may want to use the name of the current promotion, for example “TWO4ONE”.

SMS Sender ID’s are best used for sending out messages that contain things like vouchers, promotional messages, news updates and anything else that doesn’t require a response. If you do plan on sending out SMS messages that require replies, then you’ll want to use a Virtual Mobile Number.

Most brands can’t afford to be plastered all over TV and the high streets, but sending out the odd branded SMS will not cost the world, and it will keep your brand at the front of the minds of your customers, so when they are looking to buy something you offer, they will remember to buy it from you.

With Esendex you get the option of using a Sender ID absolutely free. You can change the Sender ID as much as you want and you can choose whether or not to use one. Total flexibility.

The first “Show & Tell” at Esendex

Last Friday, in an attempt to bring our ever growing staff together and to help each of us understand how each and every one of us affects the success of Esendex, we held our first Show & Tell in our Nottingham offices. The principle is simple; to talk briefly, informally and concisely about a current project we are working on.

This week we had Yasser from Finance talking about fraudulent purchases, and the efforts we go to, to crack down on this and reduce it as much as possible without compromising genuine customers’ experiences.

Paul Spencer from Sales, talked about out latest big customer win; how each team played a part in making sure the customer would be satisfied with our service.

Jason from development went into some detail on how we are utilising the cloud to cut costs, increase system capacity and improve our service.

Paul Smith and Jeremy Bourhis talked about the positive feedback we receive from our customers, and how we went about establishing this service.

And finally, Lee from Operations explained how he and others were able to improve the speed of bulk sends, making them go out even quicker than before.

Everyone felt these talks were of worth and we have decided to continue to run them on a monthly basis.

UJ7B89ZYJEVE

New rules to stop SMS marketing scammers

In June, a new code will come into effect that will serve to protect mobile users from mobile premiums SMS scammers.

In an attempt to avoid SMS marketing scams, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) have announced that a new code will come into force from the 1^st of June this year.

The new version of the Mobile Premium Services Industry Code, which reveals a number of measures to prevent SMS scams, has been developed by the Communications Alliance.

This new rule will be mandatory and will replace the current code that was established on the 1^st of June 2009. Originally, the code was created following the high level of customer complaints about mobile premium services. The implementation of the code in 2009 helped to reduce the mobile users’ complaints by 90%.

ACMA said that the current modification of the rule will introduce a requirement for mobile carriers to monitor and report to the ACMA on content providers’ compliance with the code. In addition, it will also make the prices, terms and conditions of these services clearer to mobile users.

Key changes to the current Australian code

•  Firstly, mobile providers of reverse charge services will need give users details of call costs, terms and conditions before charging.
•  Likewise, service providers will be asked to let users know all the information about the cost of a service close to the number used to request a service in an advertisement.
•  Additionally, the new code will require subscription service providers to use the terms ‘subscription’ or ‘subscribe’ in sign-up messages, as well as to inform customers of the ongoing nature of these services and related charges.

The aim of ACMA with these modifications is to improve the current code and make it more effective. Mobile providers failing to obey these requirements will be persecuted and face Federal Court penalties of up to AUD $250,000.

Since the use of SMS is gaining importance as a communication platform within the world of business, it is hoped that this new code will benefit both, customers and companies legally developing SMS marketing.

First triumph at tennis tournament!

We’re not the sort of people that will just rest over a long weekend. We’re the competitive sort, and what better way to compete than to enter a local 3 day tennis tournament. Well our account manager, Rohit Thadhani, did just that. It was also his first tournament.

He entered both the singles and doubles competitions, and although he made a valiant effort to get to the quarter finals in the singles, he was knocked out by the club champion, no shame in that. It was in the doubles where he and a friend really flourished, going all the way to the finals and taking home the trophy!

We’re all very proud of Rohit’s achievement and are looking forward to hearing more about his tennis prowess in the future. We’ll keep you posted.