Perhaps more than any other emerging medium, company executives see the rise of mobile technology as an opportunity to grow their businesses and expand their marketing campaigns, a new study from Oxford Economics and SAP found.

Perhaps more than any other emerging medium, company executives see the rise of mobile technology as an opportunity to grow their businesses and expand their marketing campaigns, a new study from Oxford Economics and SAP found.

In a survey of more than 350 business executives, nearly 60 percent said they believe mobile technology will have a positive impact on their company within the next five years. One of the foremost benefits provided by mobile technology, the report noted, is its potential to as a marketing tool.

The study found that many businesses are now utilizing mobile devices as tools to drive advertising campaigns through mobile applications and websites. Brafton's recent report that comScore data indicates consumers are increasingly searching – and shopping – via the mobile web validates brands' mobile marketing plans.

The SAP study positions mobile technology as a leading marketing game-changer, supporting earlier reports that 40 percent of SEO marketers say the mobile internet has the greatest impact on their search marketing efforts. Comparatively, SAP found that approximately 35 percent and 31 percent of respondents indicated they believe cloud computing and social media, respectively, will impact their companies during the next five years.

A separate study from market research firm Nielsen predicted smartphones will overtake the feature phone market in the United States this year. This would seem to suggest that businesses that adopt internet marketing campaigns for smartphones are likely to gain a competitive advantage in a burgeoning market.