Seems like just yesterday that Dash buttons were all the rage. You place them around the kitchen or wherever and when you run of a particular item you tap the button and send an order to Amazon for more detergent or tampons (or wherever your interests lie).

A simple SMS?

All of sudden, Dash buttons seem so outdated when compared to the simple act of “text ordering”. A perfect example is the beverage company DirtyLemon, which promotes a variety of health beverages. Rather than use a Dash Button, you need only send DirtyLemon a text message and they send you more product. What could be simpler?

Of course, texting to order only works with a certain type of product. It needs to be something that you buy with a level of frequency.

Amazon has tried to simplify ordering for some items with the Dash Buttons, but you need a separate button for each product, and you can only use them for a small number of brands.

Their current value leans more in favor of Amazon’s data gathering than consumer convenience.

Few and far between?

Explains FastCompany, DirtyLemon is “one of the very few companies that have developed an infrastructure to perform all customer interactions through SMS.”

Other companies that support text ordering, like Dominos Anyware, developed a platform recently that offers customers the option to order up their pizzas via text, as well as through Twitter, Amazon Echo, and other channels.

Still others, like subscription pet-product company Barkbox, allow customers to text orders, but they have to text the codes for each item.

Is it the solution?

It’s not for me to say if this represents the future of e-commerce.

It’s a stretch to think that every company will be using SMS to process transactions. But as FC posits, “for a high-frequency item sold by brand looking for a more intimate relationship with their consumers, this is such a perfect solution.”

#TextToOrder