While pay-per-call usage is growing across all local search media channels, Telmetrics reports today that mobile advertisers and SMB programs are the real drivers of a more than three-fold growth in adoption. The call measurement solutions provider is tracking 348 percent more pay-per-call ads in Q1 2012 than in Q1 2011.

Mobile experienced the highest gains as the number of measured mobile pay-per-call ads jumped more than 30 times since last year. Earlier in 2012, Telmetrics predicted that mobile marketing would drive pay per call. We expect mobile advertising to continue to disrupt traditional advertising investments for all media.

Call durations are also increasing, as advertising providers continue to optimize their local search programs to generate more relevant leads and monetize those leads through pay per call. On average, call durations have increased 20 percent since Q1 2011. In the pay-per-call industry, call duration remains a stable indicator of lead quality. Here’s a breakdown of the call duration by segment:

Mobile-3.5 mins/call

Yellow Pages-2.8 mins/call

Internet Yellow Pages-2.7 mins/call

Paid search-2.2 mins/call

Telmetrics tracks the lead generation quality of local search advertising and pay-per-call programs for publishers and agencies that serve SMBs. BIA/Kelsey will release an in-depth Advisory on the pay-per-call industry within the next few weeks.