Small Biz: Local app company cashes in on texts

photo Zach Goldstein explains how VorText, his recently released Android application, works at his home in Ooltewah on Thursday. VorText attaches a 60-character ad to the end of text messages, paying users 2 cents per text.

Name: Rocket Link Mobile

Location: Based in Chattanooga

Contact information: Contact founder Zach Goldstein at 443-244-1993. For more information, visit RocketLinkMobile.com or email info@rocketlinkmobile.com. Application available on the Android Play Store

Products/services: VorText, a text messaging application that pays users per text in return for attaching a 60-character ad

Age: Rocket Link Mobile formed in June 2011. Its first application, VorText, launched last week.

Getting started: Goldstein said he is regularly coming up with ideas for businesses, but his idea for VorText gave him pause. "It was one of those ideas that kept coming back into my mind," he said. "I felt like there was a huge potential there for advertisers to reach people though a very personal, convenient method." Goldstein found a partner to work on the programming and soon Rocket Link Mobile was born.

Target market: Young adults. High-school-age students through recent college graduates have two important things in common: They are heavy texters and often in need of some extra cash. Goldstein figures that makes them the perfect audience for VorText. "If you're a student and you're texting thousands of texts a month, you're making $20, $30," he said. "This is going to be really attractive to them."

Biggest hurdle: Getting funding. So far, the company has taken very little cash, with Goldstein and his partner putting in all the work. Now that VorText is live, they hope to attract outside investors who will allow them to work on application development full time.

Future goals: Grow VorText's user base. Right now, the application is Android-only, and the only advertisers are Chattanooga based. As the company grows, Goldstein plans to develop an application for iPhone users, then try to attract national advertisers to allow VorText to grow beyond Tennessee.

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