Several years ago, having an ad in the Yellow Pages was essentially a basic business requirement, regardless of whether a business fixed leaky faucets, helped drivers fight a traffic ticket, purchase a cruise vacation…and the list goes on. In fact, it was arguably harder to find a business that didn’t advertise in the Yellow Pages than one that did.
However, times and trends change — and what was an essential marketing strategy in the past can become a redundant waste of money today. And unfortunately for the nostalgic among us, buying a Yellow Pages ad definitely qualifies as the latter.
Below, we highlight the 5 reasons why Yellow Pages advertising is a BAD investment:
1. Excessive Cost
Frankly put: Yellow Pages advertising isn’t “reasonably priced.” On the contrary, a package can cost thousands of dollars per year. There are much smarter ways to invest this money, especially since for most businesses, the results of Yellow Pages advertising are often somewhere between lousy and awful, since there is no credible way to track leads.
2. Excessive Competition
One of the strangest dynamics of Yellow Pages advertising, is that a business is directly competing against dozens – but usually hundreds – of competitors at the same time. This is exactly what a business does NOT want to do, because it basically makes everyone look like a commodity (i.e. everyone seems the same). When this happens, customers typically make decisions based on price alone. This is a race to the bottom.
3. No Awareness of the Customer Journey
Today’s customers — B2C and especially B2B – are not always in “buy now” mode. That is, many of them aren’t flipping through the Yellow Pages (or any other directory) while their tap won’t turn off and they need a plumber ASAP.
Rather, they’re doing their research about a prospective business weeks or months in advance, because they have a future purchase in mind (i.e. replace their toilet, re-do their bathroom, etc.). Basically, as far as Yellow Pages advertising is concerned, these millions of potential customers don’t exist – because it’s not about having a conversation. It’s about an ad, and nothing more.
4. Long-Term Commitment & Pushy Salespeople
Virtually all Yellow Pages advertising contracts are at least a year long, and there are many reports of extremely pushy salespeople who hammer away at business owners until they relent or threaten to complain (and sometimes that doesn’t work). Any business model that has to resort to these tactics is fundamentally broken and won’t be around for much longer.
5. Customers Just Aren’t Using It
And last but certainly not least: Yellow Pages advertising is a bad idea because today’s customers just aren’t using it! Rather, they’re using the web to find what they need, including information about a business vs. just its name, phone number and address. In fact, Bill Gates is quoted as saying that “Yellow Page usage among people below 50 will drop to near zero over the next five years.”
The Bottom-Line
There was a time when Yellow Pages advertising was a necessity, and the question wasn’t “should you get an ad,” but rather “how can you NOT get one?”
But as noted, times and trends change. The Yellow Pages is an important part of business history. But that’s the operative word: history. Today’s customers are looking for a richer, more informative engagement that Yellow Pages advertising simply cannot offer, and never will.
If your business is looking to harness the power of inbound marketing – which is far more cost-effective and results-based than Yellow Pages advertising, then contact us today.
We’ll be pleased to help you “turn the page” on Yellow Pages advertising, and reap the ROI that only inbound marketing can deliver!
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