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the Yellow Pages are Dead...

5K views 34 replies 20 participants last post by  Stephen H 
#1 · (Edited)
In a deep discussion with a few businessmen today (not online) the subject of the phone book came up. It seems most on the ball businessmen feel that within the next 5 years the phone book will be the 8-track of the 1980's. Soon to be dead and never revisited. with the advent of cell/smart phone/ipad technology, the idea of having a phone that can find a service will make the use of paper pages outdated and redundant. I guess it makes sense.
What do you think?
Greg

PS- thanks for the help in evaluating my commercial
 
#7 · (Edited)
It depends on what type of business you own. I didn't put a yellow page ad in this year but I still get calls from last years YP book.

I probably average one call a week from last years book. Most are people over 50. My average service call is around $235 so that's over $900 a month in sales from last years book. The original ad cost me $600 for the year.

It's not dead yet for some of us.
 
#9 ·
My phone book wanted 600 a month for the most basic of ads. I say if they are calling you to solicit your business you know you don't need it. If the advertising generates positive returns the businesses will flock to ot in droves. Its the soap principle; the less you need it the.more they have to advertise it.

I havent had a phone book call in two years, I think they gave up because they werent making money on their.marketing efforts.:clap:
 
#8 ·
Phone book is dying. Never will have the same cache that it used to have. But certainly not dead. I have gotten several calls from the y.p., and several of those prospects are technically savvy. They mention how it is easier to pick up the book and have more choices.

What I do think is a waste of money, is advertising in the Dex Knows online directory. If one is going to look on line for a service, they are most likely to google, not go to an internet phone directory. But, I wouldn't just drop out of the phone book yet
 
#16 ·
It's a generational thing like everything else that eventually disappears.
Our generation (those of us over 50) is probably the last to use the yp. Once we are gone so too will be the book. Probably sooner.

I actually saw a pay phone not too long ago. I haven't seen one of them in a looooong time.
 
#21 · (Edited)
It's been a while since I made this point here, so a little reminder is good for those in the know and useful for those who are not aware of the YP tactics. For years, YP were raising rates to cover increased overhead on something they knew was offering diminishing return. They milked it until they could do so no longer.

The writing was on the wall, but they failed to adapt until they could no longer ignore the problem. They did find a new cash cow, but be warned, these are the same people who extracted ridiculous sums of money for very little in return. They are still calling you, but the sales people have been "retrained" to sell you their newest promised land.

What is it they're selling now? SEO services. They may have the big name, but if you trust them to provide ROI, you might as well buy YP advertising since it will make little if any difference.

I admit, coming from an SEO guy, that borders on competition bashing. There are plenty of good SEO providers, this just isn't one of them and a Google search, or even searching this forum, will reveal that it's a fair warning rather than a bash.
 
#22 · (Edited)
Not only that but they failed to create a whole web browsing experience like aol or yahoo. They could have had Geo targeted new feeds based on their subscription service for everyone using the browser. But they decided to provide nothing worth value and scour People for the next sucker to sell something to.
 
#24 ·
I have lately seen a few customers use them again. Here, many of the phone-book companies went under, and I believe Dex Knows is about to concentrate on the computer as well. Having said that, as a consumer, it is quicker and easier to open up the book and look at the many outfits versus the 5-10 companies that are on page one.

Obviously, having a web page is important. But, it's very difficult to land on page one. It's not too difficult to stick out in the book anymore. At least around here, it's not all that expensive anymore either.
 
#25 ·
Lots of people use "home pages"

It's all about ROI. It's not about opinions, certain trades tend to do well in books and others not so much. It also has to do with the quality of the advertisement. Many people fail have terrible ads but blame the marketing delivery vehicle.

When I first put my ad in the YB I called similar companies in other states and talked to the owner. They told me what the results were. I followed others success and it worked.

Is it shrinking? Yeah, sure it is but it's far from dead. If a company doesn't get results they don't run the ad over and over. Lol

The reason people have ads is because it works for them. One day that might change but we are not at that point yet.

Also, keep in mind that business owners in construction are a different breed of people. They love to not spend money, many who don't spend money on YP's are also having serious problems in other places as well. It takes money to advertise, many are broke. Being broke has little to do with the quality of a marketing tool so take advice very carefully and do your own research.
 
#26 ·
Also, keep in mind that business owners in construction are a different breed of people. They love to not spend money, many who don't spend money on YP's are also having serious problems in other places as well. It takes money to advertise, many are broke. Being broke has little to do with the quality of a marketing tool so take advice very carefully and do your own research.
Gotta spend it to make it, right?
 
#27 · (Edited)
BamBamm5144 said:
Gotta spend it to make it, right?
I think in many respects the answer is yes.

A company needs to make a decision. Are they going to invest the time it takes to build a solid campaign via WOM like me (rare) or will they go the spending route.

Some companies need to spend lots of money because of either demographics , competition, or lack of marketing knowledge. Both work.

Between emails and phone conversations I chat with 20-30 people in this forum. When I ask what they spend on marketing most don't spend anything which is funny because many call me out of desperation....... failed business.

If you can't comprehend how true WOM actually works you will be required to spend lots of money. The fact is many people don't.

I've said this a million times and I'll say this again, there's a darn good chance a contractor will retire broke. One of the reasons this happens is because of a poor mentality when it comes to business sense. The price of poker is steep in construction to build a solid customer base (lots of contractors). Few engage in building a foundation that gets the results they want.
 
#30 ·
I don't understand why they charge so much. In my area book (Houston, 4 million people), they want somewhere around $240 per quarter for the most basic of a business listing. Now I realize that the book cost money to organize, print, deliver and market, but come on - you get a tiny snippet of with your name and phone number for that much.

Why in the world would I invest that kind of money to be placed in an endless sea of poorly documented contractors?

WOM and a great website is the way to go. Eventually the 50+ year olds will all be dead or in retirement homes. And at that point the phone book's only use will be a leveling device for a family sofa.
 
#35 ·
that's an excellent point.
Mike the plumber-is in a business tailor made for the yellow pages since it's primarily a service business

maybe pool cleaning is the same way???? I don't know

but somethings with a longer sales cycle-are no longer quite as relevant to the yellow pages

Remodeling Kitchens????- very few emergency calls there!!!!!
I think the longer time a customer has to shop around and the more research they need to do-the less valuable an ad in the yellow pages is.

I am interested in slate and tile roofs and the exteriors of houses built in the 1920's and earlier--------------running small ads in local historical society newsletters and local preservation society newsletters puts me in front of like minded people with exactly the houses I am looking for.

$100 ad leading to $10,000-$15,000 individual projects??? you do the math
stephen
 
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