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Lots of things make mobile video campaigns tricky. Many current phones can't launch video clips automatically, and many wireless networks can't transmit it without breaks and dropouts. And among the U.S. users who could surf the mobile Web over their cell phones, only about one in six does it now.

But many who do are right in the sweet spot for U.S. Navy recruitment, ages 17 to 24. As a result, the Navy has been running 15-second video spots on mobile Web networks to a strong response.

The most recent ad, a montage of zooming choppers and cameo'ed SEALs, touts the Navy's college-credit programs and posts a URL and a click-to-dial toll-free number. The ad ran on sports, news and entertainment sites through Third Screen Media's network of mobile Web properties from mid-October through December 2006.

In this case, the medium is part of the message. “We try to be wherever this audience is interacting — on the Web, on TV, on radio and in print,” says Joe Gaulzetti, senior vice president for accounts at Campbell-Ewald.

“Young adults 17 to 24 are constantly on their mobile devices,” says Daidria Grayson, the agency's account supervisor. “To convey the idea that the Navy is high tech, we had to get into that mobile Web lifestyle.”

Third Screen's platform optimized the campaign for three kinds of display — autoplay, click-to-play and static banners — depending on users' handset capabilities.

The campaign was bought on cost per thousand impressions, but Campbell-Ewald measured clickthrough rates and conversions and found that both metrics were well above 2%.

Gaulzetti says the Navy often sees a drop in response to other marketing channels during summer or the holidays. “Mobile video may be a piece we deploy to bridge that gap, while holding off on direct mail or other media,” he adds.