Some marketers want to try SMS marketing, but can’t figure out the best place to start. Others worry that in these economic times, they’ll be hard-pressed to get consumers to spend money on extra goods or services.

Not to worry: mobileStorm is presenting a free webinar that addresses both these issues.

Titled “Making Money With Mobile Coupons,” the webinar is scheduled to happen at 11 a.m. November 11(Pacific time). mobileStorm CEO and founder Jared Reitzin will explain why mobile coupons are integral for today’s marketing campaigns. He will also share basic instructions on the ideal way to launch a mobile coupon campaign.

“I am very excited about our upcoming webinar on mobile coupons, because this might be the perfect application for your mobile strategy,” our fearless leader says. “We are seeing a fundamental shift right now; companies are moving their spending away from advertising and into the promotions category, such as discounts, contests, rebates, sponsorships, and coupons. Coupons are a big silo within promotions, and mobile really is the perfect and logical next step. Customers are not only willing to take you up on your offer, but also will give you their personal data and contact info.”

He really is excited about it, folks. And as you know, an enthusiastic teacher is the most effective kind! So this webinar is sure to show marketers something useful, and get them mobile marketing and offering SMS coupons in no time.

To register to attend “Making Money With Mobile Coupons,” go to https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/846137529.

Iran is a country where opposites pull each other as far as possible without (yet) reaching the breaking point. On one hand, extremely conservative clerics officially rule society. On the other, young adults–particularly university-educated female ones–long to be part of the modern world, even if it goes against religion-based mores.

Thus, the symbiotic relationship between text messaging and fashion was born.

This month’s issue of Marie Claire has a short piece on fashion shows in Iran. While it’s OK in Iran to have events touting fashions that adhere to religious dress codes, it is not OK to stage productions featuring outfits that are too tight, show too much flesh, and include male as well as female spectators. Indeed, a woman can be arrested for wearing cropped pants, the magazine says.

So designers have taken to creating guerrilla fashion shows. These are planned months in advance, take place in obscure locations like parking garages or private basements–and are not announced until just a few hours beforehand, via text message.

What a perfect example of using SMS to send urgent information. Not only do these surprise texts give people the information they want as soon as possible, wherever the person happens to be; they are also imbued with a special cache, making recipients feel like they are in an exclusive club that doesn’t play by the rules.

That sense of daring could be applied to other types of events, even if there is no threat of punishment looming overhead. Secret concerts by favorite musicians. First-look movie or stage premieres. Special sales to which only text message-subscribers are privy.

Los Angeles’ fall collections debuted last week. Though I love fashion and consider myself an amateur stylist, I didn’t really care. Maybe I’m jaded by the plethora of designer items that are mass-made and for sale at every mall. If I’d gotten a secret text message about the shows, I might have been almost as titillated as the fashionistas in Iran.

Eydie Cubarrubia, Marketing Communications Manager, mobileStorm

“I’d rather you text me”

Advertising Age this week ran a story talking about the major growth spurt that mobile search is set to experience. Nothing disagreeable about that premise, especially among mobile marketing experts.

However, the story takes a very odd frame in that it only touches on the newest and oldest technologies on cell phones: True Internet capability and voice, respectively. The piece starts out discussing the growth of smart phones, which will increase the number of mobile users who can access the Web and all its search options. Then, I can practically hear the phonograph needle jump as the story veers into how you can still dial up “information,” as we used to call it in the old days. You know, directory assistance numbers, which can now can offer answers for categories, not just for specific business names.

The article skips over one important aspect of mobile search: SMS. Nowhere does it talk about Google’s 466453 short code (it spells “Google” on a traditional keypad so it’s easy to remember), one of the first SMS search services to come out. Text a business name and city/zip code–or even a business category and the same location information–and Google will give you a relevant phone number and address. Notable competitors to Google, which has name recognition on its side, include ChaCha and 4Info.

While smart phones are becoming more affordable and are taking more of the handset market, text-capable phones are more dominant, as they encompass devices both with or without Internet access. Indeed, SMS is rather old in terms of “technology years,” so a larger number of people use/are familiar with it than consumers who use/are familiar with the mobile Web.

Hopefully, AdAge readers will be directed to this post from my link to the article–and thus will get the full story on mobile search.

Eydie Cubarrubia, Marketing Communications Manager, mobileStorm

“I’d rather you text me”

Conservationists in Kenya are using SMS to save the lives of both pachyderms and humans, and its success could help usher in other services using SMS and location technology.

According to an Associated Press report, a group called Save The Elephants has placed collars with cell phone SIM cards on the necks of two elephants. Using GPS, the collars track the creatures’ locations. If they move to close to, say, a village that has been ravaged by elephants in the past, the collar sends an SMS message to rangers, who then know they must intercept the beasts.

The project is in its infancy, and questions as to the collars’ durability and cost are just some of the challenges it faces. However, villagers and animal advocates are both pleased in the case of one bull named Kimani–and this early success could help pave the way for other applications. It’s just one more example of combining SMS and location technology that marketers might find interesting.

Kimani’s story reminded me about special children’s cell phones in Japan, which also use tracking and text-messaging–but to monitor the whereabouts of a child, not an elephant. One Sanyo model features a “Security Buzzer,” which can be activated by a child during an emergency, or activated remotely by a worried parent. As soon as the buzzer is activated, the phone automatically takes a photo, calls a family member, and sends a parent the photo as well as a URL for tracking the child. The little one’s movements can then be monitored, minute-by-minute, via phone or computer.

The most spoiled Japanese kid doesn’t pose the kind of threat that rogue elephants do (unless you’re a naiive English teacher, haha). But Japanese cell phone technology has long been a “crystal ball” that tells the rest of the world where it will be in roughly 3-5 years, so the Sanyo phone will be extremely interesting to monitor.

Furthermore, what’s happening in Kenya and Japan show two very different ways of how the mashup of SMS and location-based services can be used in emergencies. I can see how, in North America, parents as well as people who live close to threatening wildlife will be most interested, initially. Once these usages are proven to be successful during critical, time-sensitive events, marketers will want to make use of the technology too.

Again, the idea of a coffee shop sending a targeted SMS to opted-in customers who are nearby comes to mind. Clever adaptation of both the elephant and the kid-phone systems mean it could happen soon.

Eydie Cubarrubia, Marketing Communications Manager, mobileStorm

“I’d rather you text me”