SMS marketing code of conduct in the pipeline

Johannesburg, 13 May 2002

A working group is being formed to look into the introduction of a code of conduct for SMS marketing in SA.

Rowan Brewer, e-business director of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), says the proliferation of SMS marketing in SA means that a code of conduct needs to be put into place proactively, before annoying spam puts legitimate SMS marketers out of business.

"There is currently nothing in place to say when and how you can send an SMS. People are getting more and more SMSs that have nothing to do with them. They have no idea where they come from, and have no unsubscribe option," says Brewer. "We believe SMS marketing should be an opt-in service."

The working group, to be driven by the DMA, will also include industry players such as network and service providers and marketers, and will look at best practice procedures for SMS marketing.

Brewer says a draft document will be ready around July, with formal codes of conduct ready before the end of this year. The DMA has already spent some time researching codes of conduct for SMS marketing overseas, and will now call for input from all players.

Brewer says the SMS volume growth in SA is huge, but that it is difficult to pinpoint how many of these are personal and how many are bulk SMSs at this stage. However, he points out that the growth potential is massive; up to five times as many potential SMS receivers in the country as there are Internet users.

The eventual code of conduct will be binding for the over 400 DMA members, and is likely to serve as a guideline for the industry as a whole.

Comments can be e-mailed to rowan@tutuka.com.