Integrate SMS in your web application using TextMarks

Posted by Matt Thommes on December 27, 2007 | Post type: Gain

Interacting with web applications is no longer confined to desktop web browsers. These days, web content can come from many different sources, including your camera or cell phone.

As mobile devices become more powerful and internet-ready, they act as mini wireless computers. However, accessing the internet over cellular networks can still be a slow and bumpy experience.

There is a more reliable gateway to use on mobile phones, one that's been around for years, and that speaks seamlessly across mobile carriers, devices, and platforms: SMS ("text messaging" for the non-technical person).

But how can SMS be used to interact with web content?

Services such as TextMarks, Msgme, and Kwiry are some of the first mainstream services that offer the SMS gateway as an alternative way to promote or access content, as well as manage your web applications. You could call it "mobile content management."

Does your web app offer SMS integration? If it doesn't now, it should soon. There is a huge market for mobile compatibility with web services. Companies are just now scratching the surface.

Interacting with SMS

All three services mentioned above allow interaction via SMS. There are three aspects to consider:

  1. Sending SMS messages to the service.
  2. Receiving SMS messages from the service.
  3. Sending and receiving SMS messages from your own web application.

This article will examine TextMarks since the API seems easiest to use.

Your TextMarks keyword

In order to use TextMarks, you'll need to supply a unique keyword. Your keyword provides access to your application. For example, we'll use the keyword INSPIRE. When a user sends a text message to TextMarks (41411), they'll invoke the use of your custom keyword.

INSPIRE my message

When TextMarks receives an SMS with the keyword "INSPIRE," it knows to trigger your custom application. Perhaps your application is a poll, a trivia question, or even your own blog content.

Take a look at the TextMarks application directory for different uses of the service. The ideas are endless!

Use the TextMarks web interface

If you'd like to quickly get up and running with an SMS application, you can use TextMarks web interface and control panel. The service is entirely free, but TextMarks will occasionally send promotional SMS messages.

Once you sign up for a unique keyword, you are provided a set of resources to help you manage how your users interact with your application. You'll have visibility to your usage stats, and how your TextMark appears and behaves.

Use your own web application

Using the TextMarks built-in web interface is nice, but the real power comes from using your own web application. With the TextMarks API, you can programmatically send and receive text messages, right from your own code! This puts the power of SMS right in your own hands.

Imagine a web application that requires timely user input. You could make things much easier for users by allowing SMS interaction. If users are on the road, away from a reliable internet connection, they can still send and receive content from the web application.

The TextMarks API makes it easy to parse incoming text messages (for example, with PHP) and perform whatever action needs to be done (such as inserting into a personal database, or retrieving results from a database, and sending it back to the user).

About the author(s)

Matt Thommes is an independent publishing enthusiast, mobile blogger, content creator, informative writer, web developer from a suburb of Chicago. Never one to conform, Matt intends to promote the effect the web has on our lives, in an effort to intensify, instruct, and clarify all that is happening around us.

Comments

Note: Comments may be viewed by authors, but if you have a more specific question you'd like to ask them, please email matt.thommes@paininthetech.com.

# jw at 11/17/2008 2:46 pm cst

Just subscribed to textmarks, got keyword, but only want to post incoming messages to a blank page. any suggestions on how to get this done? i read and tried almost everything and you guys have posted the most sensible instructions i've seen execpt it was for responding. i only want to capture all of the info (sender's number, time, and entire message) on a simple blank html page in a list one after the other.

any clues? as this is truly been a pain in my tech! thanx

Quick Link to this comment: http://TTIP.me/c4784

# udefn support at 3/4/2009 6:44 pm cst

We would like to introduce udefn.com

udefn is a SMS service which lets you define keywords or shortcuts to your favorite bots. It turns your phone into a remote control. Just text your command. Customize your profile to read the latest news, see RSS updates, or even trigger your backup. Browse the bot gallery or become a publisher and write your own bot (you earn $$$ every time your bot responds to a query).

Quick Link to this comment: http://TTIP.me/c4961