The use of text messages to attract new business is starting to take off. This has happened because the technology used to send and receive SMS communication has evolved to include clear photos, videos and links to websites. Now, other features could be coming.
According to a recent article from Mashable, there is a new application and third party peripheral that will allow recipients to smell what is in the pictures that you send along in a text message. The technology was unveiled by Harvard University professor David Edwards at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
Called oSnap, the Instagram-like application allows users to take photos and then select a series of scent notes like cocoa beans or red wine. It is then sent to the recipients, who uses the oPhone to receive the message and smell the scents that are tagged in the picture. There are only two of these receivers in existence, one at the American Museum of Natural History and the other at the Le Laboratoire in Paris and users can send messages from their iPhone to the machine and smell the different scent combinations that can be created.
"[The oPhone] produces just enough aroma that it's your message, not your neighbor's message," Edwards said. "It's enough for a signal but it's not anything more than that."
Edwards and his students, have launched an Indiegogo campaign to try and raise money to start mass producing the devices with a price tag of $199.
While smelling a text message may seem silly, it shows how the technology has evolved and what the future possibilities are. With the help of an SMS service provider, any company can keep an eye on these changes and find the best way to message consumers.
