By Shira Simmonds

As many brands dive into mobile and allocate a significant portion of their media spend towards the channel, agencies and in-house marketing departments are attempting to create and execute mobile campaigns on their own.

While several of these campaigns have positive metrics behind them, the vast majority of them are not following what I call the vital mobile survivor guidelines.

The U.S. mobile market is unlike any other.

Mobile is a highly personal media channel that demands a delicate and precise call to action. While traditional marketing efforts attempt to extend the user experience for as long as possible, mobile campaigns should aim to keep the user experience quick, transactional and deliverable.

A mobile campaign that fails to respect the personal boundaries of the consumer will inevitably fail. Stronger mobile marketing companies are especially sensitive to this verity.

Before even considering a mobile campaign, it is critical that companies do their research and choose a mobile company that has delivered proven, consumer-friendly results.

By proven results, I am referring to documented increases in ROI, hits to a Web or WAP site, mobile coupon redemption, or just basic opt-in response rates.

By following the five simple steps below, your mobile campaign will have a better chance of success.

Strong consumer-friendly call to action. Most mobile campaigns in the U.S. are permission-based because they use a short code and are provisioned by U.S. mobile carriers.

Many mobile companies take it a step further and require a double opt-in process so that in order to receive the content, the consumer must request it twice.

It is critical that the brand running the campaign is in no way associated with spam and should ensure that the consumers agree to and request the content being sent to them.

In order for consumers to be incentivized to pick up their phones and text-in or enter their phone numbers on a Web site, there needs to be a strong call to action.

Put yourself in your consumers' shoes: What would you text-in for? A chance to win a spa vacation? Cash? A chance to meet Derek Jeter?

Although every campaign has different goals, there is one common denominator -- simply asking consumers to text-in for alerts or promotions without an attractive incentive will not result in the response rate your clients demand.

Database building. Several television networks launched premium SMS campaigns in order to engage the audience at home with the show they were currently watching.

Although they generated a hefty profit, where they lacked foresight was in not collecting a database of phone numbers for future marketing of new and existing programs.

Collecting an opted-in database comprising brand enthusiasts is the single most valuable component of a mobile program. It is this strategic advantage that sets mobile apart from every other ad channel.

Consequently, it is startling to see so many mobile campaigns, such as these networks' efforts, miss the mark.

Whether it be a small mom-and-pop shop or a popular national brand, collecting, segmenting, profiling and targeting a loyal database is not only a smart strategic move, it is a competitively critical one.

Re-marketing. I always joke that if you look at most mobile marketing companies, they all list McDonald's as one of their clients.

McDonald's has been the typical pioneer brand in testing mobile, and each franchise is testing out various campaigns with a plethora of mobile companies.

What is missing here is the ability for McDonald's to get to know their consumers through the mobile channel, and continue to communicate with its loyal database months after the 30-second TV spot airs or the print ad runs.

Don't look at mobile as a one-off campaign. I have seen more than 30 percent response rates in many re-marketing programs.

These consumers responded to a call to action 30 to 60 days prior, and have once again been introduced to the brand via a targeted and timely text message with a new attractive call to action.

If we look back at the network campaign, a 30 percent response rate could have resulted in millions of viewers.

The power of millions of viewers responding to a new call to action and being driven to a scheduled TV program is extremely valuable, especially during the sweeps for ratings.

Tracking. One of the primary strategic advantages of mobile marketing is the tracking component.

Whereas traditional media such as TV and radio rely on outside reporting such as Nielsen to measure how many viewers watched the client's 30-second TV spot -- assuming they were not in the bathroom, or did not DVR the spot -- there typically has been no way to measure how many people actually purchased a bucket of chicken after watching KFC's 30-second spot.

What most ad agencies don't realize -- or do, but do not want to actually be held accountable for -- is the fact that by adding a simple mobile keyword to traditional media, we can now track the response rate of our entire media buy.

Thus, next quarter they can use this smart data to define what percentage of the buy will go into radio, TV or online, based on ROI metrics.

Advertising. I have seen many fantastic and creative mobile campaigns fail, simply because they have not been advertised effectively.

Since mobile is a pull/push technology, brands need to get the message out there.

Many brands fail to realize that the mobile call to action needs to be added to every media channel, and to be added effectively.

For TV spots this means both audio and visual cues. The keyword and short code should be heard at least three times and visible on the screen for the entire 30 seconds.

For radio, this means the keyword and short code should be repeated slowly at least four times, and the call to action needs to be very clearly defined.

Mobile campaigns have the highest response rates seen in the media world when executed effectively.

Follow the five simple steps above and use the mobile channel as the main communication tool between your clients and their audience. The metrics will speak for themselves.

Shira Simmonds is cofounder and president of Ping Mobile, a mobile marketing firm in Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Reach her at .