Given the mobile penetration rates in Asia, SMS can be a powerful tool for marketers. But getting it right is far from easy, and brands risk causing serious offence if they break the rules. Effective SMS campaigns are based on permission, and are usually built into broader marketing activity

The power of SMS to motivate and mobilise people is well known in Asia. Huge rallies in China and Korea have been co-ordinated entirely by text message, and in the Philippines, SMS played a significant role in the toppling of Joseph Estrada’s government.

For brands, this is clearly an exciting phenomenon to tap into. Mobile phone penetration rates are high – more than 100% in the most advanced markets. The numbers in the biggest markets are astounding – in India, for instance, there were 300m mobile subscribers at the last count, and 540m in China.

Unlike other media, which are consumed sporadically, mobile works via tools that owners never let out of their sight, and getting a brand message right into the palm of someone’s hand is neither difficult nor expensive.