Gnosis Media Group, an Internet marketing firm, announced the launch of a text message driven SMS fundraising service for nonprofits.

The text-to-pledge service allows donors to pledge a donation via text messaging to a nonprofit using their mobile devices.

The solution is helpful to nonprofits that want to get into the text message fundraising arena in a cost-effective manner. Conventional SMS donation services are expensive and involve lengthy set-up time frames, long and confusing contracts, lack of technical support and a number of other reasons.

Gnosis Media Group’s solution is designed to offer an affordable mobile texting service that makes getting started easy for them. “With one short one-page contract and two small payments, we can have you fully operational in under 20 minutes," the company claims.

At first donors pledge a donation via text messaging though their mobile device. The firm then sends the detailed information of the donors to the nonprofit’s authorized representative. Gnosis can also embed a link to a mobile checkout page or PayPal (News - Alert) page allowing those who pledge a donation to complete the transaction right from their mobile device, or build a mobile formatted donation page using Google (News - Alert) Checkout.

"If you've done your research, you know that most of the text message donation services out there are way beyond the budgets of the vast majority of nonprofits and charities," said Barbara Bryant, chief of operations for Gnosis Media Group, in a statement.

Bryant asks, "Who has hundreds of dollars to spend for a setup fee? Who can afford astronomically priced monthly fees for a short code that you don't even know will generate any donations? Nonprofits need an SMS donation service that will work for your organization without demolishing their bank accounts. We provide that solution," she added.

A recent TMCnet article analyzes the evolution of text messaging. The first in this evolution is the shift from basic text messaging to Short Code. Through advertising and marketing campaigns, Short Codes were basically used to reach a mass audience.  

However, higher costs and restrictions associated with short codes are forcing some companies to consider Long Code. Unlike the leased Short Code, Long Code is owned like a phone number and has the capabilities to reach cell phone carriers the Short Code cannot, the article says.