How to Start SMS Short Code Business in Nigeria

The advent of the internet has opened doors to many opportunities globally. Not only has communication has been made easy, but people even make money from it. Imagine being able to communicate with other people miles away from you and still make money from them. That is just how easy the internet has made it to earn a living. Nigerians, as opportunistic as we are have become experts in taking optimum advantage of every new technology. The ability to send text messages is no longer limited to network coverage because the internet has removed all boundaries. One of the most profitable internet businesses in Nigeria is the short code business service.

Many Nigerians are unsure of how easy and profitable this new internet business is. How you set it up and the messages you send largely determine your profit. You need to know how it works before launching into it. Just like many other businesses, you can be a wholesaler or retailer of short codes.

The wholesaler is simply a short code service provider that leases out its short code for businesses (retailers) to use. As the retailer, you are then responsible for how much profit you make which is determined by how you tailor your messages and who they are sent to.

In order to launch your short code service;

1.      Select your service provider and request for information on their short code service.

2.      These providers then send you their document containing all their short code services.

3.      Upon review, you request for a service and extra details concerning that service will be given to you by these providers.

4.      Once you accept this and fill all necessary forms, you will be billed and then your chosen services will be configured and processed with the networks.

Once your service is set up, making money from it is easy. One way to do this is by selling a product. You can send a series of messages to prospects giving them a reason to purchase or win your product through providing correct answers to quizzes or any method of your choice. 

Another way is to charge your message recipients for using your service. You can do this by offering them a song in exchange for credit. You select a keyword of your choice and get paid every time the keyword is sent. For example, “To download “Free Madness” by TerryG, send “madness” to 34567 for N100/SMS”. In the example, madness is your keyword and 34567 is your short code. This way, for every SMS that is sent to your short code, you get a percentage, depending on the GSM network it is sent from. This means that your profit increases depending on the number of people that send messages to your short code and on the amount they are charged.

Whether wholesaler or retailer, the SMS short code business is profitable. Pick the one suitable for you and watch your business grow.