Ford Motor Co. took third place for the 2009 Mobile Marketer of the Year award.

Based on the nominations received from readers and submissions from this publication's editorial team, Mobile Marketer is convinced that Ford serves as role models for outstanding use of mobile advertising and marketing. Here is a breakdown of Ford?s work in the mobile space in 2009.

Building awareness
Ford tapped Microsoft Advertising to build awareness for the Ford Sync product via branded experiences for MSN, XBox Live and mobile.

The Ford Play It 4-Ward campaign combined original branded content with a multi-screen campaign across the PC and mobile?including banner ads on-deck with Verizon Wireless?and in-game ads now live in Activision's Rock Band, DJ Hero and Guitar Hero game series.

The campaign debuted on MSN and could be downloaded as a mobile application, with the same original content available on the PC and on the mobile phone.

Click-to-WAP
To promote its new WAP site, Ford?s Lincoln brand launched a multichannel mobile campaign that included mobile Web banners, SMS and bar codes.

Banner advertisements ran via the Quattro Wireless Network. Quattro Wireless created the mobile site for Lincoln as well.

Consumers were also able to text MKSTAG or MKSDEMO1 to 4LINC (45462) for more information on the car. The mobile call to action was promoted in print advertisements.

Consumers with smartphones could also take advantage of the tag system Ford launched with Microsoft earlier in this year.

By simply pointing a smartphone camera at the bar codes in Lincoln print catalogs, consumers were automatically directed to the Quattro-hosted Lincoln.com mobile site for more in-depth information.

Bar codes
Ford's new 2010 Taurus had a multifaceted advertising campaign that included a mobile bar code initiative meant to enable other media that was being used in the promotion.

The campaign kicked off on Aug. 4, with an aggressive Web presence and a Microsoft tag system let consumers simply point their smartphones toward bar codes printed next to technology features in Taurus ads for more in-depth information.

Mobile advertising
Ford ran a multi-faceted mobile campaign that included branded content and mobile advertising to promote the launch of the 2010 Mustang.

Ad-supported mobile entertainment site Myxer's new Mobile Media Storefront showcased Ford-branded content and the user-generated content related to Mustang in a custom-designed storefront, available on both the wired and mobile Web.

The Ford campaign also included mobile advertising.

Help drivers with mobile
Ford relied on mobile phones to help drivers navigate quickly and safely.

The automaker announced an application that synchronizes mobile phones to vehicle systems, allowing for a personalized driving experience.

The application, "Traffic, Directions and Information," integrated the portability of mobile navigation with the power of vehicle display and audio systems, delivering real-time, turn-by-turn voice-activated interactions.

Mobile video
Ford 's Lincoln brand ran advertising on recently launched mobile video content from NBC's news programs, now available at MSNBC's mobile Internet site.

MSNBC.com Mobile featured branded video destinations for "Today," "NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams," "Meet the Press," "Dateline," "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" and "The Rachel Maddow Show."

Launching cars with mobile
Ford Flex saw a 1.41 percent click-through-rate from a mobile campaign used to promote the launch of the new car model by driving consumers to the Flex WAP site.

The three-month nationwide campaign optimized engagement on sites that combined a high-income audience together with stylish trendsetters. More than 3.5 million impressions were served.