Yellow Pages Advertising

Mike,

I can see looking up something online is a hassle if you don't always have a computer on and in front of you.  Between my phone that has internet access and almost always being around a computer, it's just quicker for me to type in a search than to pull out my phone book that is collecting dust in the corner of my closet. People like you are the exact reason why the yellow pages are still around and why they still have value.  Not everyone has become a complete tech nerd like me!

Kelly

Chad,

You bring up a good point that I do not think that many people realize about the yellow pages. Generally large online yellow page sites or local directories like yellowpages.com or thinklocal.com, get a bulk of their business listing data directly from print yellow pages. There are data providers who have aggregated the printed yellow page data from across the nation and supply them to online directories. So, if you are listed in your print yellow pages, chances are you may have an online presence that you may not even be aware of.

So, as a small business owner I think it is important to be listed in the print yellow pages, but I am not fully convinced on the need to purchase advertisements within them. Print is still a powerful medium, but in terms of ad spend, I would opt for more online because of the ability to better target your customers.

Julia

Sorry little late on this but , I do not plan to renew advertising in the phone books. I have for 18  years but think it is time to give it up and just have my listing in there. Plus there are now 3 major phone books in my area to advertise in and 1 small phone book so it gets very expensive. I am one who never paid for the online advertising the phone books sold. Why should I pay when I google my name with my zip code and find 65 yes 65 directories  listing all my information for FREE . Nothing beats FREE . Plus very few people pick up a phone book . It is easier to google from your computer or even your cell phone.

Chris,

I have a tendancy to agree with you, however I have one point to make. How do you think you got listed in all of those FREE directories? They got your data from a company that aggregates the print yellowpage listings from across the US and makes them available in for online use.

So to me, the only value of getting into the print yellowpages is so that you can ensure you will get your information distributed to all of those online directories. I would say it would have to take about 6 months maybe more of inclusion in your print yellowpages in order for that to trickle into the web and proliferate to a ton of directories.

This is all free though. I would never PAY to be in the print yellow pages or have print YP advertisements, but I do want to get included in their free listings, solely for the reason I mentioned above.

I also saw this interesting post on local newspaper advertising. Local Newspapers Are Not Dead

Cheers!

I just read a report (at emarketer.com, I think) that said that search engines are now the #1 way people find local goods and services, followed by printed yellow pages etc, followed by local online directories. So 2 of the top 3 resources for local business marketing are online. The other thing that I find clients forget is that if you change anything about your business (location, phone number, products or services etc), you are stuck with the same information in yellow pages for up to a year. Online you can change your information and it gets updated pretty quickly.

I agree. Local search directories can be updated in a matter of seconds. Another advantage they have over yellow page directories is that they also provide driving directions to the business. In fact, in a recent study, 85% person of those who conduct an online local search contact a business, and of that group, 50% actually make a purchase.

I've started to dread receiving phonebooks at my door. I don't really know why I receive them, as I have not had a land line in  6 or 7 years.

Most yellow page companies and newspapers have created online versions of their sites. Some monetize their sites by selling ad space. It'll be interesting to see whether they'll stop printing their original formats. If so, how else will they make money?

I try to be more eco-friendly and toss it into the recycle bin whenever I receive one! I can't stand the idea of seeing a bulky book every time I open the drawer of my living room coffee table. The thing that amazes me the most is that, according to an article written in Entreprenur in January 2006, there were still more than 8,000 print directories published in USA. That justifies the fact that print yellow page advertising is still perceived as a valid advertising method by the advertisers. I am sure that number began to decline since then because of the rising importance of online local search and advertising. Nevertheless, if we assume that the majority of the people who are 55 or older are resistant to computer usage and internet technology, the advertisers might be experiencing difficulties in promoting their businesses via online advertising. They don’t want to leave this age category out of their sights because seniors have purchasing power and they still represent almost one third of the population. On the other hand, I can totally see the downward trend for print advertising in the next 10-20 years as the bigger percentage of the overall population will grow with internet. Will print local advertising ever disappear? Who knows?

Some statistics from a meeting yesterday.

Client is a roofing/ home improvement contractor. Leads come from the following sources:

30% from Pay-Per-Click/ SEO

65% from referalls/ existing clients (company is 8 years old)

5% from printed Yellow Pages (AT&T and Verizon)

Spends $2,700/ month on full page Yellow Pages ads, and is about to cancel them all.

SEO is 7% of his marketing budget. Of course I forgot to ask what % was PPC. Will try to find out.

But thought this was interesting and worth sharing.

Sian

Sian,

Thanks for sharing those numbers with us. They can do a lot better with $2,700/month if they invested it in PPC/SEO. Are they planning to advertise with online yellow pages or are they simply too disappointed with overall yellow pages experience?

It would definitely be interesting to know what % was PPC and also how much they spend on PPC every month.