Antecedents Of South African High School Pupils Acceptance Of Universities SMS Advertising

Abstract

Based on its versatility as a personal and direct medium of communication, short message service (SMS) provides a potentially useful avenue to higher educational institutions for marketing their programs to prospective students. However, the success of mobile marketing depends largely on its acceptance by the target population. This study explores antecedents to pre-final year high school pupils’ acceptance of South African universities’ SMS advertising. Results show that social influence is a better predictor of the target market’s intentions to adopt SMS advertising than attitudes are. Behavioral intentions are a function of attitudes, social influences, innovation levels, and perceived study utility. No significant relationship exists between perceived risk and SMS advertising acceptance.  South African universities could consider using SMS advertising in conjunction with traditional media, but should ensure that SMS content is based on the needs of their target market.