No building can stand tall without a deep foundation. For mobile marketing, that means requiring a common short code and mobile-friendly Web site for almost every major consumer marketer.

Having observed and covered this industry for a year since this publication's launch, it is obvious that mobile marketing has made tremendous strides. Many Fortune 500 companies along with mid-tier marketers have embraced SMS text marketing, mobile banner ads, mobile applications, mobile coupons, mobile loyalty programs, mobile search and mobile commerce.

But there is much work to be done. The reason is simple: the growth in mobile marketing and commerce is tactical, not strategic.

No industry can gain universal recognition or a guaranteed line item in the marketing budget if it cannot prove scale, standards and ROI. Mobile, in an interesting way, has demonstrated all of these qualities, but it's not obvious to many ad agencies and client-side marketing managers when viewed from 35,000 feet.

Carrier buy-in
Without doubt, mobile has several issues to work through, and No. 1 among them is how the wireless carriers view mobile marketing and commerce.

It has become clear from U.S. carrier-industry action -- or inaction -- that their take on mobile marketing and commerce differs from counterparts in Europe.

The U.S. carriers worry far more about the legal implications of mobile marketing and commerce gone wrong.

Clearly, and justifiably, they don't want to upset a successful voice-and-text, contract-driven business in favor of a chaotic market that is ruled by prepaid plans, as is popular in parts of Europe and Asia.

There are also many other issues that carriers may like to have their way, and which may jeopardize the future of mobile marketing if runaway lawsuits or restrictive state and federal legislation become a common occurrence over SMS, advertising, spam, privacy, tracking or billing.

A future editorial will discuss how some carriers may decide to pull the plug -- or restrict it to their walled-garden, on-deck portals -- if mobile marketing and commerce benefits don't outweigh the risks.

But for now, it is best to embrace these almost-monopolistic operators, work with them and give them skin in the game. One way of doing that is by encouraging more marketers to apply for short codes -- the mobile marketing equivalent of toll-free numbers.

Numbers game
Short codes are short strings of carrier-approved numbers to which text messages can be addressed. They enable mobile subscribers to access mobile applications and participate in voting and polling, customer feedback, database enrollment, news and offer alerts, contests, surveys, chat, games, direct marketing and mobile commerce.

There is no point in mobile service providers and agencies talking up the benefits of mobile marketing if they can't convince their clients to invest in a short code. Not shared codes, but ones unique to the marketer.

If most marketers reaching out to consumers have wired Web sites and toll-free contact numbers, there is no reason -- indeed, no excuse in this mobile world -- why they can't have a short code.

After all, 99 percent of the 260 million mobile subscribers nationwide have the ability to exchange voice calls and text messages on their mobile devices. The growth of unlimited voice-and-data plans is also well-documented.

Yes, a short code costs money, but so does maintaining a wired Web domain or a toll-free number. And it should not be viewed as a cost, but as an investment in a marketing communications vehicle just like Web sites and toll-free numbers are.

It's a matter of time before consumers expect every package or ad to bear a short code with a keyword -- maybe HELP or FEEDBACK or CONTACT or SHOP or BUY. They may not want to call, but instead text-in concerns, praise or inquries.

A short-code program is the key to mobile marketing's ultimate calling: its role in building a mobile loyalty-program database.

Consider the typical churn in an average consumer's physical mail or email address and contrast that with the near-absence of switches in mobile phone numbers. So, convincing a consumer to opt into a mobile database program is gold.

At some point, the mobile loyalty program will match offline and online loyalty programs and even surpass them in size and utility.

Mobile loyalty programs will not only have more reliable data on who's been pitched and responding, but also gain better returns due to the targeted nature of the offers, timeliness and location awareness.

Consider also the green effect of a mobile loyalty program: No more paper, postage, printing, fuel and related labor costs.

A short code is four, five or six digits depending on the carrier. It can be a vanity code, such as that chosen for one of the smartest mobile marketers in 2008: 62262, which spells OBAMA.

CTIA: The Wireless Association, the U.S. carrier trade lobby, is responsible for assigning short codes via its approved agent NeuStar. A site worth checking out is http://www.usshortcodes.com.

WAP map
A previous editorial ("Mobile site is easy first step to demystifying mobile," Nov. 10) has discussed the benefits of a mobile or mobile-friendly Web site, so it's not worth rehashing the same arguments.

But it is worth remembering that more consumers are checking for information on the mobile Web and as things stand today, that experience is incredibly frustrating.

Not everyone is an Apple iPhone user, blessed with a large touch screen whose pinch-and-tap motions have caused the first evolution of the use of fingers since the typewriter more than a century ago.

A WAP or iPhone site with the key features that a consumer on the go will prefer to access is a must for every marketer or retailer.

While condensed, the mobile or mobile-friendly site will have to include search, location-awareness, comparison shopping, contact, feedback, advertising and branding components. For some it may extend to transactional capability.

The smaller screen size and the different consumer mindset while on the go call for a mobile Web site.

Make the case -- now
Mobile service providers and agencies must not shy -- not even in a period of economic slowdown -- from making the case for a short code or a mobile Web site.

Everyone can make a case for not adding costs in a down year. But a short code and a mobile site are not costs, but an investment to a quicker economic recovery through customer focus.

Even in an economic downturn, the consumer will remain just that: a consumer of goods and services, albeit for smaller purchases.

Those marketers that make the right appeal in the right channel with the right message at the right time will win the loyalty, confidence and business of these opted-in consumers.

But marketers cannot sell the house without making sure the plumbing is working. In this case, the short code and the mobile site should be part and parcel of every marketing land-grab in 2009 and beyond.