ResponseTap has issued a new report stating that they have found that many more shoppers start their purchase process on a smartphone than was previously known.

Most notable on this report is the statistic that sales influenced by mobile devices are being vastly underestimated. ResponseTap found that since marketers were not tracking telephone call sales and linking them back to mobile activity that the overall conversion figures did not reflecting the true picture of mobile’s impact on purchasing. It was previously thought that mobile phones were part of 0.4 percent of transactions but by factoring in phone sales we see that it the number is actual 1.3 percent of conversions.

Adding telephone sales into tablet related conversions makes a huge difference in that area as well, doubling the previous 1.5 percent made via tablets to 3.1 percent when telephone calls prompted by their tablet activity are factored in. Web based sales reflect similar numbers as many do research on a pc before calling to purchase. These findings reflect previous research that found about half (54 percent) of consumers like to have human contact to complete a purchase.

“There are strong implications here that businesses need to be aware of,” says Kimber Johnson, Managing Director, Pacific App Design, “you need to be aware that while customers may not make the purchase via your mobile web site or mobile application, they may very well be starting to research you and your products there. A strong mobile app or mobile web site could be the key to getting those calls ordering your products.”

Full ResponseTap study results can be found here.

A new poll by Harris Interactive found a 19% increase in interest by users in getting local mobile offers since 2009,  assuming the users has given permission for the offers. Harris Interactive asked, “Assuming you gave permission, how interested would you be in receiving mobile alerts about new products, sales and/or promotions from your favorite merchants, restaurants, or stores on your cell phone/smartphone?”and 45% answered that they were at least ‘somewhat interested’. In 2009 only 26% responded similarly.

When those polled were asked what effect a mobile alert for an offer that they could redeemed nearby would have, over 75% said they find such location-based alerts at least “somewhat useful” and “more relevant” than traditional coupons. Clearly this is one of the areas we are seeing mobile applications mature in as users usage patterns starting to become more defined.

According to Pacific App Design’s Managing Director, Kimber Johnson, “Consumers are looking for offers. Smart organizations are including these offers as part of their mobile offering as these offers are valued by their consumer base and often these offers are the driving force for their consumers to keep regular contact with a brand via mobile application.”

Survey participants in additional questions offered further insight and responded that “offers via mobile were easy to act on” (89 percent), “made them aware of retail locations they had previously not known about” (87 percent), “encouraged them to try out new things” (83 percent) and “promoted spontaneous purchases since they are near the store” (73 percent).

Kathryn Koegel, Chief of Insights at Primary Impact Research, says that this increase “suggests that mobilized consumers are increasingly aware of how easy it is to use mobile phones to save money and time, and have come to value offers that incorporate their location”.