Never say never.  When texting first became available, I could see little to no value in instituting  the option onto my cell phone plan.  However, here is what I have learned (and why you should reconsider instituting texting on your phone):

1. It is the only way anyone under 20 will talk to you (Case Study: I sent loads of emails and made tons of phone calls to my nieces and nephew, which went unanswered.  Now, I can get to them at anytime with texting- and they respond!)
2. You can get information to someone who is in a situation where they can’t talk.  This becomes extremely useful when you are in a business meeting and you want to get a message to your boss or colleague, such as “You forgot to tell them about our new project xxx”; texting is a great way to communicate with your loved ones who may not be able to speak at work and you just want to tell them something quickly.
3. Let’s you be able to communicate when you need to- unobtrusively.  Whether you are on a train, plane or automobile (please don’t text while driving!) and not disturb others unnecessarily.
4. It will take the burden off of your email box. For folks like me, who get hundreds of emails a day,  small messages in the form of texts are welcomed. Your technology department at work will love you, as this relieves the burden of email storage on your company’s server.
5. Texts get there faster than email.  The amount of bandwidth (juice) it takes to get a text through your cellular network is less than email.  Additionally, some folks don’t check their email regularly – it is great way to get that person on-demand.  (Note: that said…make sure they are cool with this).
6. Great way to be instantly alerted to an issue.  Most organizations are now instituting text alerts, such as banks, transportation carriers, etc.  So if there are commuting delays, if you are overdrawn the bank, or any other “need to know immediately” information you would like to have on-demand – texting is the way to go! I also think of this in terms of security (especially since I work a lot in New York City).  If I need to get to my family immediately as to my whereabouts and well-being, texting is the quickest way to do it.

Does your firm need a corporate strategy for texting/SMS?  See my Consulting Services