When one is on a tight rope, the most dangerous course is to stop.

That quote, from Henry Kissinger's "White House Years," could apply as much to marketing as it does to politics. Now is not the time for mobile or Internet marketers to go into hiding, regardless of the state of the economy.

This year is crucial for evangelists of mobile marketing within brands, agencies, media and service providers. Last year got them a foot in the door of Fortune 500 companies with projects and tactical pushes. This year they should aim for a secure place at the table, aside more mature media.

The goal should be nothing more, nothing less: a mobile marketing strategy for Fortune 500 brands for 2009.

Not projects, not leftover marketing dollars, not crumbs, but a respectable budget for consistently employing the mobile channel either solo or in conjunction with other media for branding, customer acquisition or customer retention purposes.

A weak economy is forcing consumers to shop by price and not brand. Loyalty ties are weak. Marketing is the glue that reunites brand with consumer, and mobile is the new Super Glue.

Do diligence
So take the bull by the horns and kick off the New Year by either locating the most recent Fortune 500 magazine issue or going online to http://www.fortune500.com and downloading the database.

Then, divvy up that list among your team -- by alphabet, revenue, industry category or geography -- and devise a mobile marketing strategy for each and every one of them.

Yes, each and every one of those Fortune 500 companies.

Of course, some companies may no longer be on that list for 2009 simply because of the mauling from the financial markets and slackening consumer spending.

But, by and large, companies on that list have strong fundamentals and a proven track record with marketing.

However, it's safe to guess the one area that the Fortune 500 list needs more help with is Internet and mobile marketing.

That's where the mobile marketing evangelists step in.

Think for each Fortune 500 company. Pretend that you are the marketing director or chief marketing officer and devising the marketing plan for 2009. Where does TV, print, radio, store, outdoor or online figure in the company's outreach plans? And where does mobile fit in with those channels? Which channels would mobile give legs to?

Examine the industry and its place in the macro environment. See who the typical customers are and what media they rely on to help make their purchasing decisions. Are the customers and prospects mobile and likely on which devices and data plans?

Anticipate what tightened consumer spending will do to that industry and the companies within. Does mobile marketing help sway consumer buying decisions? Does it address a pain point? Does it restore loyalty?

Research the Internet and various trade and business publications to get a handle on the marketing history of these Fortune 500 brands. Piece the narrative together along with the companies' product pipeline.

Now some Fortune 500 companies may already be existing clients, so the due-diligence work gets easier.

But what this intelligence does is offer a marketing picture of the targeted Fortune 500 companies.

Audacity of scope
Based on that knowledge, take the next presumptuous step: craft a mobile marketing strategy for the targeted Fortune 500 company.

Use a combination of SMS text messaging, mobile Web, mobile applications, mobile commerce, mobile content, click to call, in-game ads, mobile loyalty programs, mobile banner ads, mobile search, mobile video and mobile promotions to craft a plan.

Not every mobile marketing service provider will have expertise in all areas, but there is no harm in mentioning other mobile media along with the specialty touted for the Fortune 500 brand.

Make sure the media spend is a realistic number for the marketer: enough to cause the pleasure, but dull the pain. So exclude the vehicles and tactics that make no sense. Think lean, mean and clean.

Once the mobile marketing strategy for each Fortune 500 brand is formed, create a two-page document -- illustrations alongside suggested ploys -- with what is the ideal mobile marketing strategy for the target.

No doubt the document will be slightly off the mark simply because only the marketing managers at the Fortune 500 companies know the real picture.

But pressing nose to the glass works -- that's how customers walk into stores. So don't be afraid of being presumptuous or audacious. Marketers appreciate chutzpah or anything that makes life easier in their marketing outreach and inbound efforts.

Make sure to email the document -- and for good measure, send a copy by mail or express courier -- to the right contact. It is key to send the plan to the appropriate contact, or else the effort is all in vain.

If the marketer responds, then make sure it's the physician talking and not the salesperson. Remember, a prescriptive approach works better than a plain hard sell, especially when everyone is suffering the effects of this economy. Listen, and keep the dialogue going.

There's a fair chance many recipients will either ignore the emailed plan or overlook it in the hurly-burly of daily business life. Wait two weeks and then call that executive. You never know.

Fortune favors the sold
It is important to remember that, deep down, this is relationship-building with the Fortune 500 -- the list whose adoption is critical to make mobile marketing as widely accepted in 2009 and beyond as TV or Internet marketing.

Once the Fortune 500 is swayed, expand to the Fortune 5000. Or work backwards from the Inc. 500 or Inc. 5000 -- the small-business equivalent -- and then the Fortune 5000 and finally the Fortune 500.

Mobile marketing's promise is proven, challenges and all. But everyone needs convincing, even more so in a take-no-prisoners economy. So, mobile marketing evangelists will have to sell twice: first the concept and efficacy of mobile marketing, next the proprietary mobile marketing service.

It is pretty certain that any provider of mobile marketing services worth its salt has its own long list of resolutions, some ambitious, some simple. But that brings to mind what Oscar Wilde said: "Good resolutions are simply checks that people draw on banks in which they have no account."

This New Year's resolution -- a mobile marketing strategy for the Fortune 500 -- is simple, achievable and an exercise in market intelligence and relationship-building. Mobile marketers should keep it, or risk losing another year to mediums whose ROI is in question but who benefit from the vacuum.

Happy New Year.