Mobile social media use grew 37 percent in the last year, with more than 72 million Americans accessing Twitter, Facebook and other from their handsets.

Market research firm comScore reported this week that the mobile social media user base has grown 37 percent in the last year. More than 72 million Americans used social media applications on their smartphones or tablets this month, with Facebook leading the way at more than 57 million mobile users.

According to comScore, Facebook mobile access grew 50 percent from August 2010 through August 2011. Twitter and LinkedIn, while having fewer overall users, experienced greater growth, increasing 75 percent and 69 percent, respectively

In terms of activity, 69.5 percent of mobile users update statuses or send Tweets from their handsets, while more than 53 percent used the Twitter application to post a link to a website.

For marketers, the expanding mobile social user base places an especially large focus on social media marketing, as potential conversions through this channel are now substantially greater. Ensuring that websites include content that supports local SEO may especially help drive foot traffic to nearby stores.

In terms of mobile operating system use, Brafton reported recently that Google’s Android is the most popular. The company recently unveiled Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest iteration of Android, and it will be rolled out to various handsets in the coming months.

Joe Meloni is Brafton's former Executive News and Content Writer. He studied journalism at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and has written for a number of print and web-based publications.