SMS Quick Start Guide

This introductory guide was created by Changemakers and kiwanja.net in order to satisfy the need among social change organisations for a series of short messaging service (SMS) guides ranging from introductory to technical. In 2009, Changemakers, an online community that encourages collaboration on solutions for pressing social problems, drew upon kiwanja.net’s expertise and FrontlineSMS - their free, open source text messaging application - to use SMS for two of Changemakers' African-based competitions. These applications of SMS technology stimulated the making of the guide through a guide-related discussion on the Changemakers website, including contributions, feedback, and insights from their networks.

Examples offered in the guide of SMS use for social change include the following:

• "Farmers receive details of market prices and demand for their products before heading off to market.
• Health NGOs send dietary advice and information to people with eating disorders.
• Young people living in the slums of Nairobi receive texts alerting them of urban job opportunities.
• National parks communicate details of dangerous animals, providing an early warning system to reduce human and wildlife conflict.
• Water sanitation advice and community training updates are sent to municipal counsellors. Patients receive reminders to take their medicine, saving time and money travelling to clinics.
• Security and emergency alerts are sent to staff and fieldworkers in high-risk situations."

The guide advises that the use of SMS can save travel time, increase economic opportunities, serve emergency needs, and offer non-governmental organisations (NGOs) ways to communicate with their audiences by the use of voice and print. Considerations include:

1. Cost - The sender is charged for messages sent, but, with the exception of the United States (US), it is free to receive text messages, "so if your work primarily involves having people send information to you - in an election monitoring project, for example - then costs are much less of an issue."
   
2. Audience and appropriateness - Text messages allow for a maximum of 160 characters in length. Considerations include tailoring the message for the audience and thinking carefully about sending personal information, particularly because phones may be shared. "If you decide to use abbreviations to save space, be aware that not all users may be able to understand. In addition, the use of 'text speak' (such as 'L8R' for 'later') may be inappropriate for your audience."
   
3. Location - Campaigns run from locations abroad may have to be conducted by local staff due to telephone platform variations.
   
4. Security and privacy - Rules and regulations dictating what data organisations can hold vary by country. "As you build a database of messages both sent to users and received, consider the potentially sensitive nature of the data you are collecting." This may apply, for example, to health and human rights information.
   
5. Choice of short or long code - "There are typically two technology options - referred to as codes - available when using SMS services, and each comes with its own unique advantages and disadvantages. These codes are the numbers a sender will enter on his or her phone to send a message to your organization....Short codes are available only if you deal with a specialist company or directly with a mobile service provider. Short codes can deal with large volumes of messages in a very short space of time....Long codes are generally only useful if your project is expecting a low to medium number of messages, or messages spread over a long period of time."

    

    

   On page 7 and 8 of the guide, there are lists of hardware and software needed for either short or long code messaging. On page 9, there are instructions for setting up and using the components. The final chapters include links and resources and the story of the process of assembling the guide through collaboration.