The head honchos at AT&T noted that there were a few differences in the way iPhone users and Android users used the app. In general, they observed that users of the Android version of the app were likely to do the following:

• Search for establishments distributed over a wider geographical area outside of major cities
• Search for the same categories as iPhone users, with restaurants, pizza and Chinese food being the top 3 searched categories.
• Have a significantly lower chance of searching for a night club or beauty salon
• Search for a bank or gas station

While no major conclusions can be drawn from this data given the relatively small sample size, it does suggest the existence of some key demographic differences between Android and iPhone users. Preliminary studies of other known data seem to point to this conclusion as well.

Android powered devices are owned by a wider spectrum of the population, fueled by the existence of several Android handsets that are significantly cheaper than iPhones, with some even being sold by pre-paid carriers. This has led to some quiet rumbles within Apple about perhaps releasing a less expensive version of the iPhone in the future.

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• About 27% of all Yelp searches originate from the iPhone app alone. This is a number that dips slightly during the weekdays, as Yelp searches from PCs rise accordingly. During the weekends, iPhone and mobile searches in general rise as more users on the move rely on Yelp mobile apps to help them get where they want and need to go.
• In just the past 30 days, Yelp users have used the iPhone app to make more than half a million calls to local businesses. This equates to Yelp helping generate about one call every five seconds to a local business.
• Point-to-point directions to a local business were generated by nearly one million users from their Yelp iPhone App in just the past month.
• In the past month, over 1.4 million visitors have visited Yelp for iPhone.

With over 32 million unique visitors a month, Yelp has grown into the leading online review guide on the internet, and it continues its growth in the emerging market of mobile devices. As evidenced by the data above, mobile devices are the fastest growing medium through which consumers use Yelp to help connect them with their desired local businesses.

With all this in mind, Yelp now seeks to capitalize on this mobile revolution and the success its recently released Yelp Check-ins feature, recently submitting the 5th version of their iPhone app. Here are some of its new features:

Users can now unlock “Yelp Badges” by checking into a combination of businesses. These badges can help a user show off exactly what type of businesses he or she has been checking into, being readily shareable on the Yelp iPhone app and social networking meccas Facebook and Twitter. There are plenty of badges out there to unlock, giving users plenty of reason to check into their favorite businesses more often.

One more reason for users to check in is to get a shot at becoming Yelp royalty. The user with the most check-ins at a single business is awarded the title of Duke or Duchess. Those with the most Dukedoms in a neighborhood get promoted to Baron, while those with the highest number in the entire city get to become King or Queen.

Member Search functionality and a few bug fixes have also been added to the latest version of the Yelp app.

With updated features like this, Yelp is living up to its mission of connecting consumers with the great businesses in their area. And the great thing is, iPhone users don’t get it all to themselves, as Yelp is set to roll out an updated version of their app for Android phones in the near future.

The post Yelp Mobile Builds the Bridge Between Online Searches and Offline Purchases appeared first on LocalGiant.