Submitted by Mike Grenville on Mon, 26 Jun 2006 15:35

Directory assistance service The Number and the company behind the 118 118 brand, is including targetted ads in the text messages it sends out with the search results.

TXT//AD has been launched in the UK by MIVA, an independent Performance Marketing network. The new product enables companies to buy space within 118 118 text messages. Each TXT//AD comprises up to 95 characters of copy and can include phone numbers, URLs, special offers, promotions or advertising straplines.

Advertising space is sold by 'Ad Groups' to target active purchasers who may be directly interested in their products or services. There are over 120 Ad Groups in total of which nine are in the utilities sector including gas companies, water companies and broadband providers. On average over 50,000 messages are delivered by 118 118 each month against these utilities related Ad Groups.

With TXT//AD companies can buy either their 'Own Ad Group', or 'Complementary Ad Groups'. A gas company, for example, could buy space in every text message sent in response to enquiries for companies in the 'electricity' Ad Group. Seb Bishop, President and CMO, MIVA, said that "Through the Ad Group system, utilities companies can reach potential customers at a time when they are highly receptive to their marketing message and we believe this makes TXT//AD an incredibly powerful and tightly targeted new ad model."

Adds William Ostrom, Communications Director, The Number: "Mobile callers to 118 118 ring us because they have an immediate and direct need to reach a business or service. Now we've developed and tested a proposition that we believe greatly increases the value of every message, without making any additional charge to the end user."

A research study by Saville Rossiter Base amongst a sample of 500 mobile phone users found for example that 93% of users said they would like to receive an additional number in future. While nearly 60% of respondents who were sent the message recalled it and 75% of respondents said that they could see clear benefits in the service, 8.4% of consumers actually used the additional number.