Yellow
Pages Advertising: Is it for Everyone?
By Susan Young, President, AimFire Marketing
April 2006
With
the popularity of the Internet as the latest business search
tool, you may have wondered: does it make sense for your
business to advertise in the yellow pages directories? Well, you
should still consider advertising in the yellow pages,
especially if you meet the following criteria:
1)
If your
target customers are residential customers. Residents
are probably more likely to use the yellow pages than a
business, although there are many exceptions to this rule. Even
businesses are likely to consult a directory listing to find a
list of qualified product or service providers.
2)
If you
have a service-oriented business.
If your customers typically call with an immediate need (such as
a plumber, a lawyer or a florist), you will benefit from yellow
page advertising.
3)
If you
own a restaurant. People
still browse the yellow pages looking for new places to dine or
order take-out food. You can even utilize yellow page coupons in
your advertising to pull a greater response.
4)
If you
have a lot of competitors.
If you have many companies competing in your category, it may
make sense to purchase a listing to differentiate you from the
pack. If so, make sure your ad portrays your unique selling
proposition of why people should contact your business over the
nearest competitor's.
A Word about Online Yellow Pages:
For
those who have shunned the yellow pages in favor of online
marketing and search engine optimization or search engine
advertising, wait just one second. Are you possibly overlooking
an additional online marketing venue? After all, yellow page
directories now incorporate online versions of their directories
for those who would prefer to search online. Your print
directory listing will also appear online, but you may also pay
an additional fee to have an online "Web page" or ad that
comes up higher on the search results. Here you can incorporate
your logo, marketing bullets and even an online coupon or a link
to your website. These online listings are less expensive than
you might think. And yellow page publishers are starting to
build partnerships with some of the search engines and
directories to ensure that people can find local businesses
through the Web.
Pricing
and How to Get Started:
Yellow page advertising ranges from $100 or less per
month for an online listing and customized Web page to hundreds
of dollars per month for large display ads. Although the price
might be high for some companies, yellow page advertising gives
some the ability to capture the interest of a customer who is
ready to buy. And those are the best types of customers!
Susan
Young is president of Aim Fire Marketing, an Indianapolis-area
marketing, public relations and website strategies firm that
works with growing companies to implement effective marketing
programs. You can contact Susan and learn more about Aim Fire
Marketing by visiting www.aimfiremarketing.com.
Copyright - Aim Fire Marketing. You can reprint this
article on your website or newsletter by including this and the
above paragraph. |
