We have reached a point in time in marketing where some things make sense, and some don’t. In the pre-internet era, it was typical that a business had an ad listing in the Yellow Pages. Consumers and businesses all had Yellow Pages, so it was widely known that many eyes would see the ad over the course of a subscription year, making it a wise marketing cost.
So if everyone used the Yellow Pages, wouldn’t it make sense to place an ad listing for your business? Yes.
The idea is to bring targeted traffic to your listing so that consumers and businesses have quick access to your information. Yellow pages accomplished that for many years since most people used it.
That era has come and gone.
In the internet era, or what I like to call the “Information Age,” the majority of consumers and businesses don’t use the Yellow Pages as a listing reference. It’s obvious why, given the power of search engines. Search engines bring the most relevant information right to you in a matter of seconds.
One of the most clever references to a search engine is this: “The shortest distance between a person and something else is the search engine bar.” Although I cannot remember who said this, it was very enlightening to me. People just don’t spend the time to flip through directories when everything is online and available in a matter of seconds.
The Shift to Online Presence
You are probably asking, “So if a Yellow Pages listing isn’t the answer, what is?”
Short answer: Search Engine Marketing.
This is a combination of on-page Search Engine Optimization, link-building through online directories, Social Media, etc. It is maximizing web presence for specific keywords so that, as consumers and businesses enter keywords regarding your business, you rank at the top of organic search results. This is far more effective than a Yellow Pages listing. Here’s why:
Let’s say I own a golf course. In order to be found in the Yellow Pages, my ad listing would be broadly categorized under “golf.” Meaning that my golf course is listed next to hundreds of other golf courses in the region in alphabetical fashion. Hardly effective in my opinion.
Now let’s shift to online. My golf course is located in Tualatin, Oregon, so I want to attract those located in my region. First I would optimize my website for keywords such as, 18-hole golf course in Tualatin, golf courses in Tualatin, golfing in Tualatin, driving range in Tualatin, etc. Then, I would verify ownership of my Google Places page for my golf course and use most of those same keywords to categorize and describe my business. I would do the same in Bing local listings, Yahoo, Yelp, etc.
The beauty of these listings is that it provides the same value as a Yellow Pages listing, except you are able to categorize your business uniquely, drive traffic to your website, collect online reviews, etc. Online listings are much more dynamic than paper listings via the Yellow Pages.
Here’s one last benefit that most would find the most important: Yellow Page listings can cost thousands of dollars a year, and most online listings and on-page optimization is FREE. However, it does take time and hard work to do the research and implement it.
I’ll be flat out honest. As a marketing professional, I see no value in having a paid listing in the Yellow Pages. A very high percentage of people are online nowadays, and they want information instantly. It would be wise to begin marketing online using SEM tactics versus spending large amounts of money doing “old-school” marketing methods.