Yellow Pages Advertising or Site Build It: Which Advertising Method Is Most Effective?
Are you considering an investment in yellow pages advertising? Maybe you've already invested a hefty sum and are evaluating the effectiveness of your yellow pages ad.
One of best ways to evaluate a certain method it to compare it to others, especially more cost-effective advertising.
Check out the comparison between yellow pages advertising and SBI - Site Build It below and then examine SBI's undeniable results. If you want advertising that delivers, it's hard to beat SBI.
| Yellow Pages Ad | SBI!-Built Web Site | |
| Content | There's very little you can say about your business in a tiny little rectangle. And don't even try to update your content during the year! | Show off your local business to its best advantage. No size, color, or media limitations. Update anytime -- make special offers, let visitors know about new products or services, etc. |
| Visitor attention | Near zero -- eyes scanning listings | Total -- once your prospective customer is on your site, you have 100% of his/her attention. |
| Visitor mindset | Dubious, suspicious -- Yellow Pages is advertising. We've all had experiences with services that were downright dismal. Zero credibility. | Interested, open-to-buy, PREsold -- they found you through Google, feel smart, and read your excellent content, becoming PREsold upon you as an expert who shares. A Web site that provides as much business information as your prospect needs, along with friendly/useful content, allows the prospective client to know and trust you. High credibility. |
| Exposure, traffic | Near-zero -- it may generate a few calls per week (per month)? | Substantial -- attract hundreds, even thousands, of targeted visitors per day, on an ongoing, ever-building basis. And, if you do it right (and you will), they will return to your site. Your e-zine also gives you the opportunity to reach your customers on a repeat basis. |
| Measurable | No -- do you have any idea how many exposures you get, or how many people call or visit due to your ad? How can you measure ROI (Return on Investment)? | Yes -- you will know exactly how many visitors arrive, every day, every hour... and you will know everything about them. You know the Lifetime Value of a new customer (i.e., the amount of profit that a new customer will bring to your business over his/her lifetime of dealing with you). It makes it so easy to compare that against the cost of an SBI! Web site. |
| Build customer loyalty | N/A -- not applicable | Your own e-zine -- develop an increasing sense of loyalty with existing customers, as well as repeat business. You can reach them, free, whenever you want to. |
| Competitive advantage | Low -- everyone takes a Yellow Pages ad. That's why you did. Who gets the attention? The companies with the expensive BIG ads. EVERYWHERE. | High -- your Web site, properly done, can both build new local business and pull your competition's customers to you. |
| New revenue streams | No -- Yellow Pages just advertises that you have a business. | Yes -- an SBI! site builds content, which builds targeted visitors and establishes you as an authority in your field. This establishes the potential for multiple streams of income that can even surpass total income from your current local business. More on this below. |
| Open new markets | No -- Yellow Pages is a local medium. | Yes -- the Net is a global medium. More and more, it will replace large paper-bound directories as the way to find local businesses with local clientele. But obviously, it also opens up global potential. More on this below. |
| Expandable search -- geography | No -- Yellow Pages is a local directory. And it's totally non-interactive. Users either find you... or not. If you did not buy a listing for a particular locale, they won't. | Yes -- suppose the local curling club is looking for a bag-piper in its local town. None? Look in the adjacent town(s). Still none? Look in the nearest mid-size city. Ah... There you are. Better still, SBI! shows you how to get found for that first town... even if your office is not located there. |
| Expandable search -- keywords | No -- you buy a listing for a single category. If a user searches in a different-but-related category, s/he won't find you. For example, you sell and service sprinkler systems in your town? Your prospect is looking up "landscapers" -- s/he calls the landscaper who recommends a competitor. | Yes -- your prospect searches for "+landscapers +your-town" and finds you (because you created some content about landscaping), is PREsold by your site's excellent information, and calls YOU. |
| Cost | Expensive -- hundreds of dollars per year, per listing, per geographic area, per category, for each 4" x 2". | Inexpensive -- an SBI! site costs less than a single 4" x 2" Yellow Pages ad, no limit on keywords (i.e., how prospects find you), geography, size, etc. No complicated packages, just one single yearly fee. |
Click here to learn more about SBI.
Click here to see why Dr. Birch chose SBI over yellow pages advertising.
When and How to Use Yellow Page Advertising
When should you purchase a yellow pages ad for your business? Only after you have your website up and running. Don't distract from building a powerful customer-generating machine with Site Build It.
Once you have your website up and running, here are some tips on how to use the yellow pages.
Some people believe that yellow pages do not receive response like other advertising methods do and this is true to some extent but not in totality. When talking about traditional yellow pages, there sure is a decline in number of people opting for advertising in it. According to a recent report, even the most attractive advertisement in a particular section is not getting the response from callers like they used to get before. On the contrary, the prices of placing ads in directories are on a rise, which speaks a different, story altogether.
In reality different categories are witnessing different rates of decline. Like the lawyers category is seeing the maximum decline, where as emergency service provider’s section has the same call rate. And sections like mobile phones, real estate and furniture are seeing a rise due to the increasing customer demand. Altering the size of the advertisement or changing the look cannot do wonders any more.
Experts suggest that relying on yellow pages to get customers isn’t enough. Other options should be considered as well along with it. With the Internet reaching every home, nearly half of the Internet users use the net everyday. They prefer to buy stuff online, from the comfort of their homes. Research should be done on the Internet to get reviews about the product. People, who don’t usually shop online, also are also opting to shop online as information is provided at the click of a mouse. It is easier for people to trust as customers who used the product give their feedback about the product after using it.
A relatively newer concept is the yellow pages going online. The good thing about them is that they are updated frequently unlike the printed directories and can be viewed from any part of the world. According to researches conducted, the response increased by twenty five percent every year. So those who are interested to invest in yellow pages advertising can think of going online. Directories are submitted to search engines, which on typing a keyword or phrase bring the results. Small and local businesses, too, can land on the pages brought by the result. The cost of creating a website can be saved if all the relevant information about the company is included in the online yellow pages. Look out for the date to renew the directory listing, and if there is a need to change the advertisement, it is not a big problem on online yellow pages. Some starter websites offer to place advertisement in their yellow pages for free. Search out for such websites on the Internet.
Larger businesses can start their own websites and place links in the online yellow pages. Articles can be framed about the business and can be submitted to Ezines and websites related to the area of business. Some websites also allow posting articles for free. The purpose of the yellow pages is basically to get potential customers but that doesn’t mean that existing customers should be neglected. Steps should be taken to strengthen the relationship with them and to retain their trust by maintaining the standard of the products supplied to them. Once they are completely satisfied, the price-rise won’t bother them and they will talk about the company to people they know, which will fetch new customers.
The objective is to work smartly and select the right method of advertising. If a business isn’t using any other method for advertising apart from using yellow pages, it can cause problems and the products may not sell. Analyze how much money is spent on placing ads in directories and estimate whether the amount of customers the business gets is desirable. Whenever a call is received from a potential customer, ask them how they got to know about the enterprise. This will help to analyze which advertising method is ideal for the business. It is never late to correct the mistake and go for the right method.