A new study shows exactly why SMS is the most powerful platform for marketing.

"Millennials come of age: ConsumerSpeak Series," is a new report published by analyst firm Experian outlining various facts about the Millennial generation, but a deeper look at the report reveals a statistic that confirms SMS' universal appeal.

Across four different generations, over 90 percent of all smartphone users text message. SMS was the number one use in all but one generation, just edging out voice communication.

The firm, which polled just under 24,000 adults, asked consumers what activities they perform on their smartphones weekly. Millennials, ages 18 to 34, were the only generation who talked more than they texted, with 92 percent saying their weekly activity included talking and 91 percent saying they texted weekly. Both Generation X, 35 to 49, and Baby Boomers, 50 to 69, scored equally in both categories, at 92 percent.

What was most surprising was the Silent Generation, ages 70 and older, 94 percent of whom say they text weekly as opposed to 91 percent saying they talk weekly. 

Those two categories were the only ones that scored consistently above 90 percent. Email and social media, which came it at the fourth and fifth highest use spots, respectively, behind mobile browsing, only scored between 80 percent and 83 percent for email and between 58 percent and 74 percent for social media.

Based on these results, its obvious that people across all generations love to text, especially those in the Silent Generation. With only 16 percent of them owning a smartphone, using SMS is essential to a text message marketing campaign's success, as it is universal across all types of cell phones.

For companies looking to implement a cohesive text marketing strategy, Swift SMS Gateway offers the tools you need.