Luxury automaker BMW launched a campaign promoting its first X6 Sports Activity Coupe, using mobile as part of a multichannel effort to build a relationship with consumers.

The campaign is running nationwide on television, print and radio, driving people to a mobile WAP site created especially for the new car. The mobile aspect of the campaign is powered by mobile marketing company Waterfall Mobile, asking consumers to text a keyword to the 67463 short code.

"BMW's goal is to get people to go to the WAP site, which has all the specs on this particular car," said Matt Silk, executive vice president of Waterfall Mobile, San Francisco. "The site also helps users locate a car dealer in their neighborhood."

BMW collaboprated with its d agency iconmobile for this campaign.

Each call to action has a different keyword to text in for tracking the effectiveness of each medium.

For example, consumers who see the ad in The Wall Street Journal are asked to text BMWWSJ to 67463 to get more information on the X6.

Consumers who text in receive an email thanking them for their interest in the car and are provided with a link to the WAP microsite at http://www.bmwusa.com/allnewx6/mobile.

The site lets users view a slideshow of pictures of the inside and outside of the X6. Also, users can explore the X6 in terms of performance specs, handling, design, safety and technology.

WAP site visitors can sign up for email alerts about the car.

"I think the mobile aspect of the campaign focuses on branding and getting the cross-over vehicle out there," Mr.Silk said. "The various locations for the calls to action are ways that BMW is starting to test the waters to see which one of the media placements drives the most participation."

Mobile is being used as an extension of the original campaign built around this car. It is meant to complement that campaign and to build a subscriber list for future promotions.

Waterfall Mobile

Waterfall Mobile has worked with other interactive advertising agencies representing automakers for mobile campaigns.

Take Japanese automaker Toyota Motor. The Waterfall Mobile platform was used mobile to brand Toyota Yaris cars by the agency Drill Team.

The campaign was sponsored by Toyota, but was actually for the South by South West festival. Toyota made it possible for people to get updates on the event's happenings. Consumers could even create an itinerary for themselves via their handsets.

Toyota wanted to brand itself as a company that is all about consumer experiences by letting consumers have a free and useful service.

"Across and outside of the BMW campaign, what we are seeing is there is so much confusion around what to do in mobile," Mr. Silk said. "But when it comes to what to do everyone wants to know what's the right thing to do. We let our clients try it all -- voting, texting, WAP sites."