NEW YORK ? Executives speaking at the IAB Mix Conference and Expo pointed to mobile's natural role within social media and the importance of using mobile to capture consumer interaction.

During the ?Marketers are transforming their capabilities to take advantage of social media panel? at the IAB Mixx Conference and Expo, executives said that social media is important to all campaign channels. The session also presented a new study from Booz and Company and Buddy Media.

?The intersection of social media and mobile is essential,? said Rachel Weiss, assistant vice president of digital strategy and interactive marketing at L?Oreal, New York.

?Social is an incredibly important part to build a community, but we do find that the interaction in a community happens many times on a mobile device,? she said.

Building communities
According to the ?Campaigns to capabilities? report from Buddy Media and Booz & Co., Facebook, Twitter and Youtube still control the majority of social media strategies.

However, location-based services, such as foursquare, are also increasingly playing an important role.

The study found that location-based services, such as foursquare, made up 8 percent of the activity that companies named as being the cornerstones of their social media strategies.

Additionally, 81 percent of survey respondents said that social media is a part of their company?s strategies, showing the importance of real-time and targeted messages.

?Social media has become the center of the marketing mix,? said Karen Premo, principal of global media and entertainment practice at Booz and Co., New York.

Senior executives have also started to understand social media more.

The study found that one-third of companies surveyed said they had a senior executive who is responsible for social media.

The top reasons behind using social media include brand building, interactivity and engagement with consumers and building buzz about a brand.

Rachel Weiss, assistant vice president of digital strategy and interactive marketing at L?Oreal, New York

/>Consumer is always right
According to the executives, one of the main reasons behind using social media is the ability to interact with consumers on a one-to-one basis.

?Social is the purest form of digital marketing,? said Michael Lazerow, chief executive officer and founder at Buddy Media, New York.

?It affects an entire organization from in-store displays to in-hotel experiences,? he said.

Alyssa Waxenberg, senior director of emerging platforms at Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, White Plains, NY, also spoke at the panel.

?Social media helps us understand what people are saying about our brand and how they are interacting with the content,? Ms. Waxenberg said.

One of the biggest fears marketers have about digital is that there is not a solid way to measure many metrics.

However, Ms. Waxenberg said Starwood Hotels was surprised by what the company learned via social media.

?There is a huge breadth of data once you dive in to social media with more than you know what to do with,? Ms. Waxenberg said.

In order for brands to really hook on to digital media, the company?s employees must have a grasp on it.

?All marketing is digital today,? said Venky Balakrishnan, global vice president of communications at Diageo, London.

?Social media has become the way of doing business,? he said.

?Consumers expect to participate in activities and affairs of our brands.?

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is editorial assistant on Mobile Marketer, New York