Welcome the Global Village: Savvy Developer Creates Bulk SMS Wordpress Plugin

Savvy developer creates bulk SMS Wordpress plugin that unites businesses with website visitors.

There has always been a divide between the online and offline world. While Smartphones are capable of acting as an ‘on the go’ web and email client, they remain almost exclusively available to those who can afford one. But thanks to one developer, website owners that use the Wordpress platform can now use bulk SMS to supply visitors to their websites with current information on any mobile device.

Simple Ideas & Big Solutions

It started out as an idea, and transformed into a easy-to-install Wordpress bulk SMS plugin that requires almost no technical proficiency to use. More importantly, it provides a mechanism that allows website visitors to subscribe to a mobile service without ever having to visit a brick & mortar (real world) store.

Putting it into context, one can easily imagine a scenario where a person in one corner of the world is able to conduct business in a different part of the world. While this may seem trivial in countries where internet uptake is virtually ubiquitous, one has to keep in mind that this type of functionality benefit those individuals who do not readily have access to the internet. Or, from a different perspective: there are more mobile phones than computers and televisions combined. Bulk SMS text messaging provides unbiased communication to any device capable of sending and receiving text messages, wherever there is coverage.

Features of the International SMS Subscription Manager Plugin

Possibly one of the best features of this plugin is its simplicity: website visitors who enter their number on the website will automatically be included in the contact list. This means the website owner or webmaster simply has to type the message and send it. Contact lists can also be imported from CSV or exported to the same format. But, at the same time this does limit the functionality of address book use – split testing will be somewhat cumbersome and individual messaging is also not an option.

One further caveat is compliance with local and international messaging laws. Although laws vary from country by country, most require double opt-in (which is also good practice). This means that once a visitor has signed up online by entering his or her phone number on the website, they should receive a text message requesting a reply to complete the registration process. Seeing as the plugin operates on an “all or nothing basis” it is recommended to use a separate tool for this purpose, such as Clickatell’s Communicator 2.

Finally, in terms of features, we come to the sender ID, or “From:” number. Website owners who do not have the technical ability or the time to create their own two-way messaging applications simply need to enter their own number in the “SMS From” field. This will allow users who register to reply directly to the mobile handset of the website owner, making 1-on-1 communication possible. Note, however, that not all carriers support this function.

Installing the International SMS Subscription Manager

Installing the bulk SMS plugin can be done in a couple of easy steps requiring no intimate knowledge of the Wordpress platform:

1. Download the plugin.
2. Install it by clicking the “Add New” link under “Plugins” from the Wordpress dashboard.
3. Once the plugin has been installed and activated, locate “SMS Manager” in the the left-hand menu in Wordpress’ dashboard, expand the group (by clicking on the downward-pointing arrow) and click on “Options”
4. Simply enter all the requested details and click on “Update”.

It’s as simple as that.

Possible Installation Problems

As with any computer system, the success of the installation depends on the system’s (hosting the Wordpress platform) configuration. As a test Wordpress was installed on a normal desktop machine, using XAMPP to fulfil the server-side requirements. At the time of Wordpress installation, no modifications were made to the XAMPP platform. Installing the bulk SMS plugin produced an anomaly where the fields that required the data were populated with code. To overcome this, two small changes were made to the PHP.ini file:

1. The short_open_tag directive should be set to “On”.
2. The extension=php_curl.dll under “Windows Extensions” should be enabled by removing the leading semicolon ( ; ).

Once the above has been completed and the web server has been restarted, the bulk SMS plugin worked perfectly.

Note: Should you be experiencing any problems, it is recommended that you consult your System Administrator before making any changes to your system.

One Last Requirement

The International SMS Subscription Manager bulk SMS plugin requires a an HTTP/S API account. Once the account has been registered, all the necessary details will be provided to work with the International SMS Subscription Manager plugin.

For more information on wholesale text messaging or to register for a free HTTP/S account, visit the bulk SMS page today.

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Tags: bulk sms, Developers, International SMS Subscription Manager, Marketing, Messaging in Action, Wordpress plugin