Text Request Provides Solution For Millions Of Americans Who Prefer Texting To Phone Calls

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Text Request, a newly launched text communication start-up, offers a solution to inconvenient, time-consuming phone calls by allowing consumers to text their favorite businesses and nonprofit organizations.

A recent CTIA and Nielson study shows the number of text messages sent each month increased by 840 percent between 2007 and 2012.

A Pew Research study cites that 33 percent of Americans prefer texting to all other forms of communication. Researchers expect this percentage to grow exponentially as text messaging is increasing in popularity across broader demographics. The same study shows 80 percent of cell phone owners use their device to text, with that percentage increasing directly with household income and education levels.

One recent study shows over 80 percent of all phone calls are placed on hold. Additionally, another shows Americans will spend 1.2 years on hold during their lifetime, with 34 percent of those callers hanging up.
This data indicates the consumer benefits of texting as opposed to making phone calls.

Furthering their mission to "connect organizations with their customers through personal text," Text Request allows consumers to text their favorite businesses the same way they text friends and family, permitting the public to use standard text messaging to share and receive information from businesses, schools, places of worship and more.
"We're answering the question consumers have been asking for years," said Brian Elrod, the company's co-founder. "Why can't we text businesses instead of calling or emailing? The statistics are overwhelmingly in favor of customers wanting to text. It's almost careless for businesses not to accept and utilize this technology."

Businesses spend billions in advertising, funneling potential customers to their websites. A growing majority of Americans are viewing websites solely from a mobile device. The number one way to communicate from a mobile devise is a text message.

"The change from calls to texting is a natural progression," said Elrod, "because people are always looking for the best way to share information. Texting makes this process both more efficient and more effective."
Organizations already using Text Request find that phone lines are more open, and that incoming inquiries can be handled much more efficiently. For example, customers who are curious about business hours can simply text a designated number to request the information instead of making an inconvenient, time-consuming, and inefficient phone call.

A customer service rep using Text Request can handle 10 to 20 messages in the time it would normally take to manage one 1-minute phone call. By this measure alone, Text Request makes businesses, at a minimum, 10 times more efficient than businesses that are not using texting to communicate with their customers.
There are no apps to download. Consumers simply use a standard phone number assigned to each businesses to text their questions, reviews, and needs. Organizations can even respond in real-time to messages received through the Text Request platform.

Text Request is not a mass texting or SMS marketing tool. Users will never receive unsolicited messages from Text Request, nor from the businesses they choose to communicate with. Additionally, other than standard text messaging rates from their cell phone provider, Text Request is completely free to consumers.
The company rolled out a beta launch in the summer of 2014 using a diverse set of initial customers within a variety of industries including hospitality, education, places of worship, and food service.
These beta test users and others have encouraged contact through the Text Request platform, and have reported astounding satisfaction and results.

Those interested in learning more can visit textrequest.com. Scalable pricing plans are available to meet every size business.