CBS Outdoor Launches SMS Program

Advertisers using CBS Outdoor can now add to their billboard campaigns a text-messaging element with digital coupons, sweepstakes and other direct response capabilities.

With the "txt2go" program, advertisers can offer discounts and other enticements to those who reply to SMS calls-to-action with pre-specified keywords displayed in the ads. CBS Outdoor noted the SMS program will not only attract customers but will also provide its clients with the ability to track, in real-time, the responses to their ads.

CBS Outdoor partnered with New York City-based SMS specialists Rip Road for the txt2go program, which is being sold as an add-on to outdoor campaigns. CBS Outdoor customers can add txt2go for as little as $225 for up to 500 responses, according to CBS Outdoor, which said those who add the program will be able to see its effect on their campaigns by logging into the CBS Outdoor Mobile Web site.

"It's a quick and simple way to sell it (SMS advertising) and set it up," said Rip Road CEO Eric Leven. "A major complaint in the industry is that the time to set up a program often doesn't fit with the realties of media companies and guys that create the media. We created a platform for CBS Outdoor that is ready to go."

CBS Outdoor, which specializes in billboard advertising, also offers ads on street furniture, mass transit, in malls and elsewhere.