It's been almost 3 months since the Mobile Marketing Conference wrapped up, and while it doesn't feel like much time to me, that's an age in the swiftly moving digital marketing world. So, what's been happening?

Well, as you're surely aware if you're reading this site: Facebook went public. The result was...less than ideal...and even pulling down related businesses like Zynga and Twitter. Plus, just before the IPO, "GM announced that it was pulling its $10 million advertising budget from Facebook" citing that "the ad formats currently available are unattractive and ineffective."

In an effort to prove their worth (and climb back on top,) Facebook has been beefing up advertising options.

Perhaps most importantly: they are now expanding mobile ads. This post in the Wall Street Journal explains:

Previously, mobile ads on the social network could only be purchased through a premium ad package that included mobile and other forms of advertising on Facebook. But small and medium-sized marketers, or even large brands, who wanted to focus squarely on the mobile market, couldn't do so with Facebook.

Mobile advertising may prove to be the biggest digital media trend in 2012. For example: Richard Ting wrote on The Atlantic "Why Mobile Will Dominate the Future of Media and Advertising" noting:

"Advertisers now have an extremely robust palette of mobile tools to choose from to connect their messages and experiences with their desired audiences thanks to advancements in mobile ad units, mobile search, mobile apps, mobile websites, and SMS."

This post on Business Insider confirms: "Experts seem to consistently agree–mobile is the future of advertising. Consumers are viewing advertisements and other marketing messages via smartphones and tablets, with Google leading the way users find information. When consumers pick up a phone and ask it a question instead of looking it up online, we know our world has changed."

This is a global phenomenon as well. "The data shows the Asia-Pacific region made largest mobile advertising spends with $1.9bn in 2011, followed by North America at $1.6bn."

Additionally, Google is integrating more for mobile. Now, "more than 1 million Google advertisers, from small businesses using the company's self-serve tool to big advertisers not currently buying through AdMob's separate storefront, will see mobile display options right alongside the products they usually spend on."

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo also recently spoke to the power of the medium, saying that "Twitter has raised more money from mobile advertising than web advertising in many instances this past quarter"

Have you gotten started with mobile advertising yet? Why or why not? If you're looking for a  primer on one of the first steps in mobile marketing, perhaps revisit our recap of Stephen Gate's session at The Mobile Marketing Conference (pictured above) on "Best Practices in Creating Mobile Websites."

Follow The Mobile Marketing conference on Twitter and Facebook for more mobile advertising news.

Michelle LeBlanc is a Social Media Strategist at IIR USA with a specialization in marketing. She may be reached at mleblanc@iirusa.com