Isn’t it funny?
The people spending the most money on
Yellow Page ads Have THE worst ads in the book!
(this is not Rocket Science! It's Just Yellow Pages)
Have you ever notices that most yellow page ads look the same? Most ads have business card information with no compelling reason to call the business. The top of your ad must do one thing: Appeal & Identify your target market, and force or entice them to want to read the rest of your ad!!
Guess What I've Discovered Over the Years That Ad Agencies don’t want you to know .........They Hate the Yellow Pages!?!
They like Newspaper, Magazine, TV and Radio ads because there is plenty of kick back money!
When asked about Yellow Pages, they say: “THERE is NO money for us with Yellow Page ads!#*@!!
So why would then try to design a decent ad or recommend this proven product?”
Lesson 1: Don't give up your print Yellow Pages (yet).
Local advertisers need not abandon their print Yellow Pages just yet.
Still, 60% of local look-ups occur in the print world (for now). While the shift to Internet is dramatic, print is still viable in many markets. Don't wait too long to advertise online, because all indications show local web search surpassing print as early as next year and being totally dominant in three short years. The lesson here is to advertise where you get results regardless of the medium. That may be common sense, but it sure ain't common practice.
Lesson 2: Local Search leads directly to offline contact.
ComScore found that most people made contact and purchased from local merchants after searching for local information online. Does this surprise anyone? Restaurants are one of the top local web searches, and last time I checked, restaurants generally require you to show up in order to get food.
Lesson 3: Internet Yellow Pages have some of the best customers
IYPs have better customers than that the search engines because they are further along the buying cycle. Customers coming from Internet Yellow Pages spend more than customers coming from other advertising sources. The downside is that the traffic on IYPs is a fraction of the major search engines. You gotta do both to get quantity and quality.
Lesson 4: Local markets vary widely.
ComScore found that there were significant regional differences in local search traffic. To advertise effectively, ask your customers where they search online. The local Yellow Pages publishers' sites are strongest where they have print directories. Rural advertisers need to strongly consider their local newspaper sites. Those sites often have the highest local traffic and they have very loyal customer bases.