There are a variety of ways that people can keep in touch these days, with text messages being one of the simplest ways of doing this for those at home, work or on the move. Sending and receiving a text via a cell phone, mobile device or PC is an affordable method of communication, and there are a variety of text messaging service options available these days.
Mobile Phone Service Provider
Most cell phone service providers offer a text messaging service and depending on your needs this can be a stand-alone service or can come as part of a package with phone calling and other services. Verizon, for example, have a Nationwide Messaging-Only Plan which allows unlimited messaging and web browsing for a cost of around $35 per month. They also have Talk and Text Plans starting at a cost of around $60 per month for individuals, which provide unlimited text sending as part of the package. Most of the other major mobile phone service providers have similar options available, and if you are looking for a phone and plan together, these companies can be a simple way to get a messaging service.
Personal Internet Service
There are a number of web based companies that offer a text messaging service, and in many cases this can be a more affordable way to send text messages. As they are internet based they typically provide a service which can send and receive texts via a cell phone or a PC. Many offer worldwide services, enabling the affordable sending of text messages to mobile phones in other countries, which can be useful if you have family or friends abroad. Some of the companies that provide this type of service for text messaging include Ipipi, which offers a free trial period to check out there services to see if it suits your needs. Other options available include Bloove, which enables you to manage your phone contacts list on a PC, as well as send text messages, and OhDontForget, which provides the option of setting up text messages to be sent straight away. However, OHDontForget also enables the setting up messages to be sent at a specific date and time which can be useful for sending birthday, anniversary and other similar text messages, as they can be set up beforehand to make sure you remember.
Business Internet Service
Text messages can be a simple way for businesses to keep their clients and customers informed, or to mount marketing campaigns for a product or services, and there are a number of online options for this type of text messaging service. EZtexting is an example of this and they provide a simple way for businesses to send out text messages to large groups at a time for marketing purposes. Another company that provides a similar messaging service is MobilizeUs, and they provide the opportunity to set up large groups, to which mass text marketing campaigns can be targeted. Mobile marketing can be a powerful way to reach consumers these days, and using an internet based SMS messaging service can be a way for businesses to reach large numbers of potential customers in a quick and efficient way.
Anonymous Internet Service
If you are one of those people that does not carry a mobile phone, or only occasionally send messages, then an anonymous text messaging service is an option to consider. These are websites that provide the opportunity to send a text message to a mobile phone from a PC, and all that is needed to use them is a computer and internet connection. The advantage of this type of service is that you do not need to sign up to anything, it is free to send text messages and it can basically be used as required. However, it is generally not possible to get replies and it is a send only service, although some people may find it useful to suit their needs. Some of the companies that provide it includeTextEmNow and AllFreeTexting.
Text messages are one of the simplest and most affordable ways of keeping in touch with friends and family, and this means there are a few text messaging service providers to choose from. Whether for personal or business use, there are a number of options available, with some of those that can be used shown above.