Find it in the Yellow Pages vs
Finding it via Internet Marketing
Exactly What Are You Looking For?
Internet marketing should be your first priority when looking to create a strategy for marketing your business as opposed to a large spend in the Yellow Pages. Have a look at the facts and statistics about Yellow Pages directory before you shy away from investing in search and paid marketing options.
To most companies, advertising in Yellow Pages is the unshakeable cornerstone of their annual marketing spend and they would no more think of canceling it than they would hire David Brent as office manager.
Surely Yellow Pages is established, recognized everywhere and enjoys strong distribution. It's expensive, but is there any alternative?
A moderately sized quarter of half page ad is looking at 3-5K a year. A whole page? That can be anything from 5K to over 8K for the year. There's no negotiation; take it or leave it - and that's with the regulators on their back capping and indeed cutting rates by 3.4%.
How surprising is it that more and more of my clients are cutting back expenditure on Yellow Pages?
Not surprising at all really. If you think about it, search is not new and it has played a major part in marketing activity for decades in the form of phone books and directories. Effective search engine marketing simply takes this a giant step further, unlocking as is does the incredible introductory potential the web medium provides between supplier and consumer to connect and do business.
This trend is reflected in Yellow Pages own market analysis, which shows a downward trend in client retention from 78% to 75% year on year. Interestingly, it is newer customers who are leaving.
Yellow Pages ads are viewed by people who have all ready made a decision to buy.
Don't emphasize why your product or service is needed but rather why it should be obtained from you. Consumers need and want two types of information from Yellow Pages adverts.
Firstly, they need to know why they should purchase from one company and not another.
Secondly, they need information that facilitates making their purchase i.e., they need to know how to make the purchase or have a call to action.
If you really focus and see things through your customers eyes then your Yellow Pages ad copy should virtually write itself.
The use of color and how Yellow Pages charge for it is pretty unbelievable.
The book is now printed on white paper (think about it you can't have white ink)
Yellow Pages charge more for white in your adverts - 40% in fact.
But, Yellow Pages actually have to take an extra step to print a yellow colored ad i.e., they overlay white paper with a yellow ink but this is cheaper than a white ad.
Our surveys show that color is not the most important factor in selecting an advert. In fact, it is well down the list.
Yellow Pages sales reps often argue:
"It'll only cost you $800 a year to move up to the next largest ad size and ad color. Don't you believe that the increased sales you'd obtain would more than offset that expense?"
This is a bad argument for a number of reasons....
It assumes that the business generated by your original ad pays for itself
It assumes that you make a 100% profit on each sale (nice work if you can get it)
It assumes that the use of $800 for additional Yellow Pages advertising would generate more business than would the use of the same $800 in another media
Nonetheless I see many of my clients putting all their eggs in one "Yellow Pages" basket without obtaining effective proof that their adverts are actually working.
The secret is to monitor the response to each and every advert you place.
If you can't measure it you can't manage it.
I know from my experience as a former Yellow Pages sales rep that one had to continually create a false sense of urgency. Typically Yellow Pages reps only work two directories die they are in each area for six months at a time. The reps are paid a commission on signed orders so it'd's no surprise they go in for the kill.......
This article was written by David Clarke a partner at DBS and an internet marketing consultant who offers 0845 to mobile and 0845 number services.
Start Your Own Niche Yellow Pages
The Internet is expanding daily, and more businesses are willing to advertise online. This market will continue to grow and become prospers for those who have their own directories for eager advertisers. Having a yellow pages of your own can help you to reap the rewards of these niche advertisers. Niche yellow pages can be the connecting point to local, ethnic, and religious advertisers on the web looking for people to find it in the yellow pages. 
Lets consider 3 types of niche yellow pages: local, ethnic, and religious.
Google and Yahoo are already tackling the local markets with their local search. Local search is really big business. Starting a local yellow pages directory could prove to be a great idea in this emerging market. For instance, let's say you start a Memphis Tennessee Yellow Pages Directory. Just by being familiar with the surrounding of this city you can make personal contacts that will enhance advertiser relations. Google and Yahoo can't have a hands-on- approach to the local search, although they have billions of dollars. You can grow your yellow pages directory by sponsoring local events, radio station promotion, and list local owned small businesses.
Ethnic yellow pages are a great way to capture the spending dollars of a particular community. Let me give an example of this. I started an African American yellow pages to help minority owned business in local communities. This proved once again to be a great move, and this niche yellow pages has grown quickly. It allowed me to run minority ads and other announcements pertaining to the African American community. You can start a woman's, Asian, French, Arab, Jewish, or any type of ethic find it in the yellow pages that comes to mind.
Last but not least, starting religious yellow pages is great idea too! You can promote it first in your Church, Synagogue, or Mosque. I started a Christian yellow pages to support business in churches. This yellow page has grown and I also formed and has allowed me to form personal contacts with other Christian webmasters and businessmen.
Remember to research your niche market. Do keyword research, check your business model, and do proper seo work on your site. Choose good software. I recommend php yellow. You can start profitable yellow pages today!
Julian Rice is the owner of blackbusinessplanet.com a black business site. It also contains a niche black yellow pages. Julian is seo expert and ebook author.