I'm after some feedback on how bars and nightclubs in Sheffield go about using text message promotions such as sending out messages about a new night, or offering customers a drinks discount if they show a text etc...

Do you use this currently? If so, who provides it?

The reason I ask, is that I have recently completed a website: www.nightclubsms.com which aims to do this exact thing.

I'd appreciate it if you could have a look around, and give any feedback. Feel free to create a message, add contacts etc (I've added 1000 credits so it wont cost you anything).

To log in:

user: member
password: member

Again, any feedback would be most welcome. I'd like to know how the price of this service (once I start marketing it) compares to similar services. I must admit, after doing a search on Google for SMS marketing for nightclubs, my current website in my signature comes up top!

It is well covered in Sheffield, a friend of mine does it.

http://www.powertext.co.uk

They started out just doing the texting thing but have branched out a bit in the last year or two.

Thanks, I can't find anything about pricing. Do you know how much they charge (will understand if you don't want to announce in a public forum if its your friend!).

I have no idea! They have been going it for years but now cover a range of services, none of which I know anything about!

so you've started a business with no idea how much to charge and no idea who the competition are and how much they charge?

nice.

so you've started a business with no idea how much to charge and no idea who the competition are and how much they charge?

nice.

You really are priceless. Another valuable contribution. Muppet.

You really are priceless. Another valuable contribution. Muppet.

haha, go on, explain why.

its no wonder so many startups fail when their owners fail to do basic research tbh.

so you've started a business with no idea how much to charge and no idea who the competition are and how much they charge?

nice.

It's called market research. Generally, its an idea to have the website up and running early (it cost nothing as I developed it myself) to allow it to get into the search engines.

During the time it isn't there, I conduct research and gain feedback. If I should lower prices then I'll do it.

I also have the option of selling the business on, which I have done before with different websites.

Less of the "clever" comments eh?

haha, go on, explain why.

its no wonder so many startups fail when their owners fail to do basic research tbh.

But why do you feel the need to comment in such a derogatory way? You come across as a typical know it all student. What exactly are you studying and are you any good at it as you seem to know pretty much everything?

But why do you feel the need to comment in such a derogatory way? You come across as a typical know it all student. What exactly are you studying and are you any good at it as you seem to know pretty much everything?

oh dear, bit of a sensitive soul aren't you?

It's called market research. Generally, its an idea to have the website up and running early (it cost nothing as I developed it myself) to allow it to get into the search engines.

During the time it isn't there, I conduct research and gain feedback. If I should lower prices then I'll do it.

I also have the option of selling the business on, which I have done before with different websites.

Less of the "clever" comments eh?

i am aware of what market research is yes, typically it is undertaken before the development of a product.

so you got a free domain, you run/hire a server for nothing and you didn't use your own time where you could have been generating money. ok then, my mistake. good luck.

oh dear, bit of a sensitive soul aren't you?

Not really. Just get wound up by jumped up little oiks like you. Should really let it pass over me but sometimes I bite. We all have our little faults. Some more than others......

Anyway, are you going to answer my question? I'm interested to know what makes you such an authority on just about everything.

i am aware of what market research is yes, typically it is undertaken before the development of a product.

so you got a free domain, you run/hire a server for nothing and you didn't use your own time where you could have been generating money. ok then, my mistake. good luck.

OK, total costs = £2.50 for the domain.

My own time was around 20 minutes spent putting a new skin on an existing website that has been sold to many clients rather successfully.

I also know that there would be many potential buyers of the website.

So, I either make a profit by running it myself, or make a profit selling it on to someone who can run it better than me.

Yeah, I wouldn't wish the situation on anyone.

Not really. Just get wound up by jumped up little oiks like you. Should really let it pass over me but sometimes I bite. We all have our little faults. Some more than others......

Anyway, are you going to answer my question? I'm interested to know what makes you such an authority on just about everything.

yeah, i have noticed you are very defensive over everything.

why does what i'm studying have any bearing on my knowledge on other matters? i've developed a number of websites over the years in my sparetime but that has nothing to do with the fact i study 3 languages at the uni of sheffield.

OK, total costs = £2.50 for the domain.

My own time was around 20 minutes spent putting a new skin on an existing website that has been sold to many clients rather successfully.

I also know that there would be many potential buyers of the website.

So, I either make a profit by running it myself, or make a profit selling it on to someone who can run it better than me.

Yeah, I wouldn't wish the situation on anyone.

good luck, i'm sure potential buyers will be queuing up to buy a website that cost £2.50, with no customers, well established/successful competition and is simply a skin on an existing website. where do i invest?

yeah, i have noticed you are very defensive over everything.

why does what i'm studying have any bearing on my knowledge on other matters? i've developed a number of websites over the years in my sparetime but that has nothing to do with the fact i study 3 languages at the uni of sheffield.

So you have experience of pretty much nothing then? A few websites and some foreign languages. I now really can take your comments with a pinch of salt.

So you have experience of pretty much nothing then? A few websites and some foreign languages. I now really can take your comments with a pinch of salt.

right, so if you don't study something at degree level, you can't have an opinion on it? :lol:

brilliant.

good luck, i'm sure potential buyers will be queuing up to buy a website that cost £2.50, with no customers, well established/successful competition and is simply a skin on an existing website. where do i invest?

Clearly, as I have many happy customers already with similar business models that are making good profit for themselves I'll not worry myself with Sheffield's Sir Alan Sugar here!

Clearly, as I have many happy customers already with similar business models that are making good profit for themselves I'll not worry myself with Sheffield's Sir Alan Sugar here!

any examples? i'm intregued by this new miracle business model.

right, so if you don't study something at degree level, you can't have an opinion on it? :lol:

brilliant.

Oh, so they're opinions? They need to sound less directive then as opinions are personal and you make them sound like fact.

any examples? i'm intregued by this new miracle business model.

Plenty, although none that I'd like to share with the master of business who cannot spell intrigued.

Plenty, although none that I'd like to share with the master of business who cannot spell intrigued.

Translation: i haven't, and the only thing i can come back with now after making a fool of myself is picking up on a spelling mistake.

:lol:

Translation: i haven't, and the only thing i can come back with now after making a fool of myself is picking up on a spelling mistake.

:lol:

Ah yes, rumbled...

It's actually called respecting clients. Why would they want people they don't know from a public forum to know that they are making profit out of a simple business model? Have you heard of copycats?

You'll find plenty of examples on the smswebsites.co.uk URL, but no businesses are named for precisely this reason.

Ah yes, rumbled...

It's actually called respecting clients. Why would they want people they don't know from a public forum to know that they are making profit out of a simple business model? Have you heard of copycats?

You'll find plenty of examples on the smswebsites.co.uk URL, but no businesses are named for precisely this reason.

so clients don't want their websites to be in the public domain because they are scared viewers might realise they are using a simple business model? what do they do, hide the website away and keep it to themselves? it can't be a very strong business model if people can just copy it and use it themselves if they fancy it. how are they ever going to get anywhere if they are at such risk?

the concept of twitter is fairly simple and is at risk from "copycats", yet they have still been brave and let people share, and even use their website!

Jesus - The man only asked for some advice and help and all people can do is argue about crap.

Paul, sorry I know nothing and cant give you any advice, the one bit of advice I can give is that you dont ask for help from these idiots who clearly have too much time on their hands and think its amusing to argue on other peoples posts.

Tut

Jesus - The man only asked for some advice and help and all people can do is argue about crap.

Paul, sorry I know nothing and cant give you any advice, the one bit of advice I can give is that you dont ask for help from these idiots who clearly have too much time on their hands and think its amusing to argue on other peoples posts.

Tut

apologies for taking up your valuble time with a discussion. a heinous crime.

50% of small businesses fail within the first 5 years. insufficient market research is just one of the many reasons for this. as we have gone onto establish in the thread, the OP hasn't made significant investment which is great - but it doesn't mean that this method is suitable for all.

Its not a crime, the information you have given is helpful, but why be so negative - All he asked for was a bit of help.

I hope when you come up with an idea and ask for some productive advice, people dont stamp all over your idea's as you and others have done with his.

apologies for taking up your valuble time with a discussion. a heinous crime.

50% of small businesses fail within the first 5 years. insufficient market research is just one of the many reasons for this. as we have gone onto establish in the thread, the OP hasn't made significant investment which is great - but it doesn't mean that this method is suitable for all.

But you're not discussing the question posed by the OP

But you're not discussing the question posed by the OP

and again, apologies for developing the question which was already well answered into a discussion!!

and again, apologies for developing the question which was already well answered into a discussion!!

So all these sarcastic comments are a discussion, eh? I only read thru because I was going to post my opinion that any company that sent me unsolicited SMS would not get any further business off me, but it all seemed so pointless once the thread had turned into a sniping competition

so clients don't want their websites to be in the public domain because they are scared viewers might realise they are using a simple business model? what do they do, hide the website away and keep it to themselves? it can't be a very strong business model if people can just copy it and use it themselves if they fancy it. how are they ever going to get anywhere if they are at such risk?

the concept of twitter is fairly simple and is at risk from "copycats", yet they have still been brave and let people share, and even use their website!

Not every website wants to be seen by the world.

I am a software developer, I write software for clients. The clients generally are in another field other than IT. Most of the work is backend (customised for each client).

As I have not asked them if its OK to provide a link from the main website, I'm not going to send random people to private websites just to argue against a point made by some know it all.

It's called respecting client confidentiality.

So all these sarcastic comments are a discussion, eh? I only read thru because I was going to post my opinion that any company that sent me unsolicited SMS would not get any further business off me, but it all seemed so pointless once the thread had turned into a sniping competition

Finally a sensible point.

The messages won't be unsolicited, or at least the site wont promote that. Responsibility for that would be at the nightclub/bar's hands. What happens normally is that clubbers or customers of a bar are stopped and asked if they mind sharing information in return for offers. The customer ONLY gets sent information once they are on the database.

So all these sarcastic comments are a discussion, eh? I only read thru because I was going to post my opinion that any company that sent me unsolicited SMS would not get any further business off me, but it all seemed so pointless once the thread had turned into a sniping competition

hardly. i certainly thought i was participating in a discussion regarding this new business. are all of my points completely invalid then? as we have discovered and i have already pointed out, the OP has invested a relatively small amount into this venture - others may have invested a lot more, and insufficient research is a killer. the only person killing the thread on here was the exile character getting upset at people commenting on things when they don't have a degree in the relevent topic area.

you another sensitive poster then! "i can't post because the nasty person is making sarcastic comments!"

Not every website wants to be seen by the world.

I am a software developer, I write software for clients. The clients generally are in another field other than IT. Most of the work is backend (customised for each client).

As I have not asked them if its OK to provide a link from the main website, I'm not going to send random people to private websites just to argue against a point made by some know it all.

It's called respecting client confidentiality.

i understand this to an extent but the veil of secrecy does confuse me a bit. i can't understand why your clients wouldn't want people to see their websites? particularly if they are customised for each client, what am i going to do with it?

i can only imagine the fury of your clients when you passed on the address of their website to someone :loopy:

Finally a sensible point.

The messages won't be unsolicited, or at least the site wont promote that. Responsibility for that would be at the nightclub/bar's hands. What happens normally is that clubbers or customers of a bar are stopped and asked if they mind sharing information in return for offers. The customer ONLY gets sent information once they are on the database.

to get back to the original point seeing as people are bleating on about deviating the topic slightly away from the OP's question - this is a very effective form of marketing but i can't see it being viable as a standalone business as it wouldn't cost a huge amount or be particularly for clubs to do it themselves off their own back.

i understand this to an extent but the veil of secrecy does confuse me a bit. i can't understand why your clients wouldn't want people to see their websites? particularly if they are customised for each client, what am i going to do with it?

i can only imagine the fury of your clients when you passed on the address of their website to someone :loopy:

There is no "veil of secrecy".

The point is that I do not assume that its OK to post a link (which, as Sheffield Forum ranks very highly in Google may put an unwanted entry in the search engines) to a client website to simply prove a point to someone trying to look clever on a forum!

If someone was interested in purchasing one of the website options and wanted to see something similar, I'd have no hesitation in seeking permission from the client in sending a link on. I do not own my clients websites now, they do. Therefore, its not for me to go dishing out links on random websites.

There is no "veil of secrecy".

The point is that I do not assume that its OK to post a link (which, as Sheffield Forum ranks very highly in Google may put an unwanted entry in the search engines) to a client website to simply prove a point to someone trying to look clever on a forum!

If someone was interested in purchasing one of the website options and wanted to see something similar, I'd have no hesitation in seeking permission from the client in sending a link on. I do not own my clients websites now, they do. Therefore, its not for me to go dishing out links on random websites.

i'm not trying to look clever. i'm merely interested. your first point is a valid one however.

to get back to the original point seeing as people are bleating on about deviating the topic slightly away from the OP's question - this is a very effective form of marketing but i can't see it being viable as a standalone business as it wouldn't cost a huge amount or be particularly for clubs to do it themselves off their own back.

You really don't know anything do you? There are 100's of well established and successful companies built around sms marketing e.g.

http://www.powertext.co.uk (based in Sheffield and have been going for years)
http://www.dynmark.com
http://www.mxtelecom.com
http://www.bulksms.co.uk/

etc etc etc.

To send out sms's to a large database of subscribers is not just a case of typing the numbers into a mobile phone and pressing send. A large organisation may have 100,000 or more mobile numbers in their database. These would need to managed and maintained effectively, and to do this you need a solid and effecient technical infrastructure which can handle sending that volume of data quickly and reliably as well as automatically managing unsubscribe (and subscribe) requests etc.

You really don't know anything do you? There are 100's of well established and successful companies built around sms marketing e.g.

http://www.powertext.co.uk (based in Sheffield and have been going for years)
http://www.dynmark.com
http://www.mxtelecom.com
http://www.bulksms.co.uk/

etc etc etc.

To send out sms's to a large database of subscribers is not just a case of typing the numbers into a mobile phone and pressing send. A large organisation may have 100,000 or more mobile numbers in their database. These would need to managed and maintained effectively, and to do this you need a solid and effecient technical infrastructure which can handle sending that volume of data quickly and reliably as well as automatically managing unsubscribe (and subscribe) requests etc.

magificent. and if you bothered to read the OP, the target market for this business is the owners of bars and clubs. hence your statistic with regards to 100000 people is completely irrelevent. this is far more small scale.

if I owned a small bar, i'd do it myself rather than pay for a solution catering for much more than i needed.

Finally a sensible point.

The messages won't be unsolicited, or at least the site wont promote that. Responsibility for that would be at the nightclub/bar's hands. What happens normally is that clubbers or customers of a bar are stopped and asked if they mind sharing information in return for offers. The customer ONLY gets sent information once they are on the database.
Cool. I know of the scenario re clubs trying to get people on mailing lists, and SMS lists are just a progression of that idea. It just seemed timely, as I'm about to cancel a credit card, because they have started spamming me with SMS.

hardly. i certainly thought i was participating in a discussion regarding this new business. are all of my points completely invalid then? as we have discovered and i have already pointed out, the OP has invested a relatively small amount into this venture - others may have invested a lot more, and insufficient research is a killer. the only person killing the thread on here was the exile character getting upset at people commenting on things when they don't have a degree in the relevent topic area.

you another sensitive poster then! "i can't post because the nasty person is making sarcastic comments!"

No, not invalid, just not the direction the OP was hoping for. It's more "what's the point in posting when it'll just get buried in bickering and point scoring?"

apologies for any offence and confusion caused...

next time i'll be positive and encourage someone who is making bizzare business decisions and laugh when they fail.

:S

magificent. and if you bothered to read the OP, the target market for this business is the owners of bars and clubs. hence your statistic with regards to 100000 people is completely irrelevent. this is far more small scale.


Having previously worked in the nightclub industry for 7 years it is common for a medium sized venue to have an SMS database with 5000+ numbers. My own SMS database contained approximately 2000 numbers and I used one of the above services for my SMS marketing needs. Please explain how I could easily and cheaply have sent text messages to this many people on a weekly basis without using one of these services.

Having previously worked in the nightclub industry for 7 years it is common for a medium sized venue to have an SMS database with 5000+ numbers. My own SMS database contained approximately 2000 numbers and I used one of the above services for my SMS marketing needs. Please explain how I could easily and cheaply have sent text messages to this many people on a weekly basis without using one of these services.

I think Sharp87 would probably buy a pay as you go phone (select all --> send) :)

Just out if interest, how much did the service cost?

Having previously worked in the nightclub industry for 7 years it is common for a medium sized venue to have an SMS database with 5000+ numbers. My own SMS database contained approximately 2000 numbers and I used one of the above services for my SMS marketing needs. Please explain how I could easily and cheaply have sent text messages to this many people on a weekly basis without using one of these services.

fair point. off the top of my head i wouldnt know how, you are right.

I think Sharp87 would probably buy a pay as you go phone (select all --> send) :)

Just out if interest, how much did the service cost?

I used a few different services over the years. Most were dependent on the number of credits purchased but I was generally paying about 5p / message.

I used a few different services over the years. Most were dependent on the number of credits purchased but I was generally paying about 5p / message.

OK thanks, that sounds about reasonable. Was there a set up fee or anything other to pay than the credits?

with the event of mobile phone tariffs offering unlimited texts, would this not be possible using software to manage phonebooks...?

genuine question.

Phone tariffs have fair usage policies. This is usually around 3,000 messages per month.

If you are sending 5,000 messages per week the network will soon cut you off.

Phone tariffs have fair usage policies. This is usually around 3,000 messages per month.

If you are sending 5,000 messages per week the network will soon cut you off.

i thought that would be the case tbh.

with the event of mobile phone tariffs offering unlimited texts, would this not be possible using software to manage phonebooks...?

genuine question.

You're doing very well, now. Continue in this tone and people may even begin to like you.:hihi:

This is quite a crowded marketplace already, there are lots of companies which have started up over the last ~7 years specifically to do this, and lots more who have moved into it as an add on to other services.

Have a look on the exibitors list at Bar Show: http://www.barshow.co.uk for some of the companies who do this (Powertext aren't on there, but they have been there before).

To get into the business will take more than undercutting the other companies - most run on very small margins due to the competition, and make their money by selling additional services / support rather than just sending messages.

Having previously worked in the nightclub industry for 7 years it is common for a medium sized venue to have an SMS database with 5000+ numbers. My own SMS database contained approximately 2000 numbers and I used one of the above services for my SMS marketing needs.

Just out of interest, did you have any way of gauging the success? I’ve used this method before, to no noticeable effect. But, that could be down to any number of reasons...

Just out of interest, did you have any way of gauging the success? I’ve used this method before, to no noticeable effect. But, that could be down to any number of reasons...

leadmill send (or they used to) m-tickets to your phone to get a discount upon entry, and even a free beer on occasions. surely easy enough to record how many people have entered using this method?

Not sure if my post's welcomed but as a receiver of such texts it'd be lovely to have a stop option on them, I'm fed up of getting Leadmill texts about crappy nights, when I'm not even sure how I got put on database in the first place! I don't even know if I'm being charged for receiving such rubbish either :(

Text STOP to the number that the message comes from. If the messages don't stop then they're breaking the rules and can get a significant fine.

leadmill send (or they used to) m-tickets to your phone to get a discount upon entry, and even a free beer on occasions. surely easy enough to record how many people have entered using this method?

I'm not talking about discounted entry from texts (just a case of ticking off a list when people come through the door), I'm more interested in whether he had any noticeable success from the general marketing sent by sms.

I'm not talking about discounted entry from texts (just a case of ticking off a list when people come through the door), I'm more interested in whether he had any noticeable success from the general marketing sent by sms.

for a club or a bar?

I'm not talking about discounted entry from texts (just a case of ticking off a list when people come through the door), I'm more interested in whether he had any noticeable success from the general marketing sent by sms.

The only real way of judging the success of the sms was by sending out a discount entry offer with it. We normally got a 3-5% return rate.

The only real way of judging the success of the sms was by sending out a discount entry offer with it. We normally got a 3-5% return rate.

that low? thats shocking, i would have thought it would have been a lot higher. i remember times at leadmill where there was a larger queue for people with mobile tickets than there were in the regular paying queue. it was common knowledge at the time.

maybe that was slightly different as it was "text for discounted entry"? i have always thought these schemes are far more successful than "cold texting". plug, crystal and others do this.