CHICAGO -- "We need to put mobile front and center of what we do." Thus said a top at leading ad agency Leo Burnett Worldwide to an audience of direct and interactive marketers at IMX08.

Mark Renshaw, executive vice president and digital practice lead at Burnett, spoke up for integrating mobile into marketing campaigns keeping in mind the potential of mobile for utility, entertainment and social networking purposes.

"Mobile is an access point for everything that people are already using," the Australian expat yesterday told a room packed with executives sitting in on IMX08's first mobile marketing panel session.

IMX08 is the Midwest's leading integrated marketing conference organized and hosted by the Chicago Association of Direct Marketing.

Mr. Renshaw first got started in mobile in the late 1990s, working on mobile efforts in Asia-Pacific. Back then, he encountered mobile blogging and mobile television -- both of which have to fully take root in the United States a full decade later.

But the Apple iPhone and AT&T's involvement with that Web-enabled mobile device has changed the face of mobile.

Still, Chicago-based Mr. Renshaw is wary of fads. He said 2006 was the year of the Second Life virtual site and 2007 was all about Facebook.

"I'm hoping mobile is not 2008," he told the audience.

Also, he cautioned against overdoing mobile in ways that might irritate consumers.

"Just because I'm near something doesn't mean I need it," Mr. Renshaw said.

He advocated using the concept of loyalty in mobile marketing. For instance, research has shown that the higher the consumer spends, the more likely he or she is to give an email address and a mobile phone number.

Marketers should put some money aside for programs integrating mobile, Mr. Renshaw said.

"Put it in the mix," he said. "It doesn't cost a lot of money â?¦ If you're doing it, brand it, give it a purpose."

His takeaways were simple: no dead-end thinking, look at what's there and live in those worlds -- "try to live where the people are living" -- and have a plan.

"Don't run a mobile test," Mr. Renshaw said. "Take something you're doing and add mobile."

Been there, doing that
Fellow panelist Jack Philbin, cofounder and president of Chicago-based Vibes, is perhaps one of the most seasoned practitioners of mobile marketing and text programs for clients and wireless carriers.

He anticipated a quicker adoption of mobile marketing programs. Already data accounts for one-fifth of all carrier revenue and will soon amount to 25 percent.

"One of the drivers of this has been carrier cooperation," Mr. Philbin said.

Text messaging, which is Mr. Philbin's area of core expertise, gives an inkling of where the market is moving. An estimated 55 billion messages a month are exchanged in the U.S.

"Messaging is the leading indicator of all other mobile data," Mr. Philbin said. "Carriers are trying to teach everyone how to use the phone for text."

However, while it is tempting, mobile does not easily compare with the Internet, he said. For one, the Internet is based on an open architecture.

On mobile, "you have to launch on 10 carriers before you have your ducks in a row," Mr. Philbin said.

Mobile should not be defined simply as another touch-point, but also as an engagement tool. And marketers should not confuse mobile marketing for mobile advertising, which is a subset of the former.

Mobile advertising, Mr. Philbin pointed out, is more focused on traditional Web advertising on the phone. Mobile marketing includes text message programs, couponing and initiatives broader than simply display, text or rich media advertising.

"I don't think that's as powerful on the user device or mobile screen," Mr. Philbin said, alluding to the limitations of a small screen.

But there is no doubt of the power of SMS text messages and short codes in attracting consumer participation. Work for two Vibes clients are proof of that.

For example, a mobile effort for the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie engaged the audience. Mr. Philbin and his crew were particularly flummoxed when they noticed a spurt in text messages from consumers on a particular day.

Blame a cup-holder for that. Yes, a promotion partner had decided to place flyers in cup-holders. Movie-goers read the message and started texting soon after.

Another mobile coupon promotion for the Dallas Cowboys led to the sale of 362 plasma-screen television sets. Only 330 coupons were supposed to have been redeemed, which points to the overwhelming response to this mobile outreach.

He alluded to another effort -- not a client's -- that indicates the power of mobile. The "Deal or No Deal" TV show rakes in $500,000 per episode from encouraging viewers to text in. It costs 99 cents to send a text.

While there are several success stories, there are also failures that don't get reported, the executive said.

Mr. Philbin advised the audience not to follow the example of agencies who simply want to check the mobile box. He also told them to practice quality control. And he warned them against fly-by-night companies offering mobile quick-fixes.

"The graveyard is already big," he said.

Not Miller light
The third panelist, Stephanie Miller, vice president of strategic solutions at email specialist Return Path, New York, highlighted the savoir faire quality of mobile marketing.

She gave the example of fast-food chain Quiznos - not a Return Path client. Consumers can sign up and receive mobile coupons.

"They can ping you at lunch exactly when you're in-market or in your car," Ms. Miller said.

Creating experiences that matter for consumers is what drives her stance toward mobile marketing.

Email is a case in point. Marketers running mobile email marketing efforts need to make sure their emails are optimized, since emails render differently on varying platforms and mobile devices.

Consumers typically turn to their mobile phones for financial news, sports scores and stock quotes, Ms. Miller said. But the influence of mobile reaches further.

In fact, business-to-business publishers should take mobile seriously, optimizing their messages for that channel. Ms. Miller quoted research that claims 35 percent to 45 percent of business professionals occasionally read their email on mobile devices.

Coming from the direct and interactive world, Ms. Miller's approach is understandably multichannel. Mobile marketing doesn't stand on its own, she said.

"We're in the business of marketing," Ms. Miller said. "One of the most powerful things about mobile is that it offers a choice for a lot of consumers."

Direct and interactive marketers eyeing mobile should get a baseline for the organization, Ms. Miller said. They need to figure out what it is that customers want from a mobile perspective.

"What experience is going to be engaging enough that I want it on my phone?" Ms. Miller said.

Many thanks to Joan Lufrano, consultant at marketing agency Draftfcb, Chicago, for use of an office to write this story.