I happened today across a Web site called Tagga.com which provides free text messaging services.  Tagga (82442 on the phone keypad) allows you to create text messaging campaigns so that when people text in a keyword, they will be texted back with additional information.  Additional Tagga services allow you to put a Tagga button on your Web site or blog that then gives visitors the ability to easily send information from your site to their mobile phone.  The video below explains Tagga’s text messaging services in more detail:

Click here to view the embedded video.

There are many cool potential uses of Tagga, but one I want to try out soon is the ability to sell something, even your home or car.  This is how it works, just log on to the site Tagga.com, create an account, then go through the steps to set up a text campaign.  The campaign will include a brief text message and a link to a mobile site with more information.  Put the campaign code on your for sale sign, then people who see your sign can text the campaign keyword to Tagga and receive back on their cell phone more detailed information. To test it out, and to let you see how it works, I set up my own text messaging campaign on Tagga.com to sell a fake house. Text the word ‘myhouse’ to 82442 to see how it works.

Church Uses for Text Messaging Services

As we have been contemplating the next generation of Church Web sites, there has been a lot of discussion around mobile phones and text messaging services. Text messaging is continuing to grow in the US and around the world, in fact, there are many people in remote places of the world that do not have access to a computer, but they do have cell phone service.  Text messaging services that the Church has thought about are:

• Texting something like ‘map’ to the Church to get directions to the nearest Church building.
• Text a ward name to the Church and receive back its meeting times.
• Providing a Web site for bishops who can’t (or don’t) text to exchange text messages with the youth or other members of their ward.
• Text keywords like ‘priesthood’ to the Church and receive back a definition of the term.
• Allowing a bishop to text a member’s name to the Church and receive back their contact information (address, phone, email, etc.) and who their home teachers are.

What additional ideas do you have for Church uses of text messaging? Leave a comment to let us know. How about the features listed above, are they ones you would use? Fill out the survey below to let us know. (If you don’t see they survey in your RSS reader or email, then go to the blog Web site and you will see it).

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