Evan Schuman's StorefrontBacktalk

The $9 billion Subway chain of more than 26,000 sandwhich restaurants is going to be ringing customers up with its six grams of fat or less messages in August, as one of its franchisees experiments with mobile marketing.

The franchise has struck a deal with mobile payment vendor MobileLime ?to market to preferred customers in real-time by offering alerts and discount coupons to cell phones,? according to a MobileLime source.

The trial involves 16 locations in Buffalo and will be using something called the Mobile Alerts Club.

The source said the program will allow customers to opt-in with preferred store locations “allowing them to receive periodic coupons, last minute specials and event alerts directly on their cell phones. The franchises are also building a customer database that contains valid customer cell phone numbers and E-mails. This gives the franchises the ability to better understand customers and directly influence buying behaviors.”