Airlines are Using SMS to Communicate with Passengers

Airlines have been using a number of SMS technologies, such as email to SMS, to keep travellers up to date on the latest travel information. Travel agencies have decided to join the SMS game…

The SMS Solution to Informed Travel

Volcanic eruptions in the past few weeks have caused travel chaos around the world. The ash cloud spewed forth from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano has caused worldwide air travel to come to a grinding halt, with estimates indicating that more than 1.2 million individuals were affected every day. While some travellers were left frustrated at the lack of information, others were kept up to date on developments and travel solutions via SMS by airlines.

ConTgo’s Mobile Travel Assistant (MTA) is one application that alleviated stress levels for many during this chaotic time by sending out information regarding flight cancellations, accommodation and even meals. “Travel companies who provide the Mobile Travel Assistant to their travellers have been able to reduce some of the pressure caused by the sheer number of phone, internet and email enquiries they have received as a result of tens of thousands of flight cancellations,” says ConTgo CEO, Johnny Thorsen, as reported on seekingmedia.

How can you do the same with your own email to SMS solution?

Keeping Customers Happy with Email to SMS

As a result of the global ubiquity of the mobile phone, with a penetration rate of close to 4 billion and a subscription rate of more than 4.6 billion, it makes sense to use SMS as a communications vehicle, especially where time-sensitive or urgent information is concerned. After all, the mobile is always carried, always on and doesn’t require an internet connection or a static power supply. Unfortunately the preconception exists that SMS as a business tool is difficult to implement, and only a solution viable to large corporations that have their own development teams – a sentiment that cannot be further from the truth, especially with email to SMS.

The simple truth is that, if you can send an email, then you can send an email to SMS message to either one or all your customers, thereby keeping them up to date with information relevant to their travel plans, their business or even their personal wellbeing. All that’s needed is to keep the email in plain text format and ensure that the correct parameters are specified. Here’s an example:

If you make use of Outlook, compose a new mail message by clicking on File > New > Mail Message. Ensure that the message is in plain text by clicking on Options > Plain Text (Outlook 2007). Once that’s done, the body of the email should contain the following:

user:xxxxx
password:xxxxx
api_id:xxxxx
to: 448311234567
reply:youremail@yourdomain.com
text: SMS makes travel reliable and more convenient.

The ‘user’, ‘password’ and ‘api_id’ fields will be supplied when you register for an account by your SMS provider. Multiple numbers can be entered by separating them with commas ‘,’.

Once all the fields have been completed, your email to SMS message is ready to be sent.

Two-way Messaging

While email to SMS makes bulk SMS messaging easier, care should be taken to note that it is not a two-way messaging solution. To offset this feature, companies usually combine this solution with one that does have two-way capabilities, such as the Communicator II application that makes use of the HTTP/S application programming interface (API), the SMPP API (used for large volume, rapid messaging but does require some development resources) and the FTP API (easily employed, but may require some technical expertise).

The above email to SMS solution is just one example of how airlines and travel companies use SMS to stay in touch with their customers through a preferred medium. As time ticks by, communication via SMS will become the status quo rather than a luxury, which means that companies who don’t make use of an effective communications solution stand to lose out.

Interested in getting your business SMS-enabled? Read more about email to SMS…

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Tags: email to SMS, SMS solution, SMTP API, travel SMS