We’ve just started a trial with Feefo: the UK’s most trusted independent customer feedback forum.  It’s early days but so far the feedback on our business SMS solutions has been extremely positive (click on the logo below to see the feedback to date)

At the moment we’re just using Feefo for those customers that sign-up for PAYG terms – we tend to have less opportunity to catch up with these customers than with those that are on a monthly contract. However, assuming that the pilot goes well we expect to rollout to all of our customers, across all markets and all SMS solutions.

As ever, if you have any thoughts or ideas on how our SMS service can be improved please get in touch at support@esendex.co.uk

David Ogilvy said “Any damn fool can put on a deal, but it takes genius, faith and perseverance to create a brand” and that’s been very much in our minds as we plan the rollout of our new brand.

Why bother? The old logo worked fine and it’s difficult to prove that we ever lost a customer because they didn’t like our branding.

The trigger was probably the realisation that the logo’s structure wasn’t optimal for online use (the chevrons took too much space) and this was a constraint as we looked to improve online navigation. We considered simply tinkering but Esendex had changed: we’d grown significantly despite the recession and a number of threads were being pulled together:

• The company’s vision had been clarified and we were developing our positioning;
• We’d committed to a strategy of continued growth and were planning to launch in the US;
• The new Echo portfolio of services were well underway.

And so we decided to not just change the logo but rebrand the business and our entire online portfolio, ready for the next 5 years.

After an extensive search we decided to work with a local agency, Alight to help us through the process.  The logo itself dropped out relatively easily, in part because we’d done our homework but also because we were clear on what we wanted to achieve.

This new branding reflects the maturity and ambition of Esendex.  It’s modern, serious but clean and professional.

That of course was just the beginning.  We’ve completely redesigned and rethought our brochure sites, our online services will need to be redesigned, there’s stationary, invoices, and of course the “online proliferation”.

The first tangible evidence will be the launch of our US website, which goes live shortly.

After that “B” or Branding Day is 1st August when we start the rollout across the rest of the organisation, with a plan to update each of our sites in the coming months and all our applications.  It’s a huge task for everyone involved, particularly the marketing team who’ve worked hard on something that they’re justifiably proud of and the development team who’ll need to rework all our online tools.

I’m looking forward to seeing the new identity come to life in the months ahead.

Last night’s BBC Watchdog featured a story on how consumers could be tricked into giving away their bank details by fraudsters sending SMS messages which appeared to come from their bank.  But we believe that the story isn’t particularly reflective of the real-world use of SMS. (more…)

We were delighted to accept the 2010 High Growth Award at last night’s High Growth East Midlands Event.

The awards are the culmination of the East Midlands Development Agency’s (emda) business support programme.

(more…)

A recent survey by the Mobile Data Association highlighted the continued growth of SMS – up 23% year on year.  The growth of Business SMS – sending and receiving of SMS messages via PCs – reflects this trend as does the consequent increase in the number of SMS providers.

So how do potential or existing Business SMS users differentiate between different suppliers?

Many start with price.  And this should be relatively transparent.  We’ve always published clear SMS pricing and have set out our pricing principals before.

Like many SMS providers we also offer a free trial of both our office products such as Web SMS and Email SMS and our SMS API so that you can get to grips with the functionality that we offer.

But how do you gauge the level of service and support that you will get with each supplier and their strength in depth, particularly when half a dozen providers are claiming to be the “UK’s leading provider” of Business SMS services.

A company’s reputation is often a good starting point: dig down a few pages on a Google search, or even a Twitter search: what are other people saying about them, are they hiring, are many others using them?

For those looking at Premium Rate SMS services, PhonePayPlus’ adjudication database can also be “illuminating” too!

Thereafter a certain amount will come down to “gut feel”:

• Does the SMS provider have the financial strength to offer you account terms?
• Is it always the same person answering the phone, indeed do they answer the phone!?
• And do their claims seem unrealistic: if a provider claims global reach or to be the biggest provider in the market, how does this stack up with whatever others say about them?

As a business we’ve defined one of core values as Integrity. We’ve always been careful not to make claims that we can’t back up. At the risk of sounding pompous we’ll continue down this path but we urge potential purchasers to dig deep when looking at different suppliers.

If you’ve got any questions about what we offer or who we are, please get in touch.  We’d welcome the opportunity to meet with you here in Nottingham.

This was a time-lapse video we captured in our Nottingham office on the day of the Christmas Party on Wednesday. No this wasn’t a case of “big brother is watching you” although yes it was good to see some early starters in the office! Shame we didn’t capture the ice skating that took place later on at the Nottingham Market Square Ice Rink  – another time perhaps……

The BBC today reported that Gordon Brown highlighted the sending of text message reminders for NHS appointments as just one simple step that can be taken to focus spending on “the frontline”. (more…)

The UK Government introduced a temporary reduction in VAT from 17.5% to 15% from the 1st December 2008. The Government is re-instating the 17.5% rate from 1st January 2010.

We are now making the necessary changes to ensure that all UK customers are paying the correct VAT rate from 1st January 2010. (more…)