Names & Numbers Recognized as Publisher of the Year

At its recent 2013 Annual Convention and Partners Trade Show in St. Augustine, Florida, the Association of Directory Publishers (ADP) recognized Names & Numbers, as this year’s Gold Book Publisher of the Year at the Gold Book Awards.  It was the first time the company has been recognized.

The ADP’s Publisher of the Year recognizes a company that has “exemplified overall excellence and achievement.”  Names & Numbers currently publishes 66 phone books throughout the mid-west and northwest areas of the country along with offering a suite of mobile and online Yellow Page products.  Established in 1974, currently Names & Numbers publishes more than 4-million phone books annually and employs approximately 250 people in 11 states.

The Gold Book Awards recognize publishers and suppliers for outstanding achievements in the directory advertising business. “Congratulations to all of our 2013 Gold Book Award winners,” said Cindi Aldrich, the new association president. “These winning companies are applauded for their outstanding directory products and marketing innovations in the directory publishing industry.”  Additional information about the Gold Book awards can be found on the association website at www.adp.org.

We interviewer Founder/CEO Ken Brock back in 2010 (link to full article), and you will note that many of the things Ken said at that time are still true today and part of the reason why his team has been recognized.  He and his team follow a very straight forward approach – put out a very accurate, high quality product that users and advertisers both enjoy using, promote them passionately in the local community, be an integral/active part of the community, and try to walk in the door of every business in the market.  The text type in the books is not microscopic in size to save a few pages.  White pages are included, as well as a robust community information section.  The covers are free of any advertising and feature scenes from local photographers/artists.  That’s the formula for being a successful publisher, and being recognized by the publishing community.

Congratulations to the entire Names and Numbers team for your accomplishments.

New Yellow Pages Market Forecast 2013 Available

It’s back and all new!  Local Search Authority (aka David Goddard) has just released its latest edition of the industry’s premier market analysis and forecast report, Yellow Pages Market Forecast 2013.This annual report is always packed with all of the most current statistics and detail you need to build a successful plan for growth this year and beyond. It offers an in-depth, authoritative analysis of the entire U.S. yellow pages market, from utility publishers to independents.   This study is the source for informed perspective on significant market developments and objective, accurate forecasts for industry growth.  At YP Talk we frequently use the Forecast in our research to uncover the driving forces shaping the strength and direction of the overall industry and specific markets. This annual report has been published continuously since 1986. This forecast comes from the desk of David Goddard who has been tracking the industry since it first started in the late 1800’s (ok, well, not that long, but at least for the last 20 years I have known him).  He is also the author of The Goddard Report, a leading publication that concentrates on the unique interests and needs of companies involved in print and online directory operations.  The Goddard Report is published continuously online, and 12 times per year (monthly) it is issued digitally as a PDF for download. Who Needs the Yellow Pages Market Forecast? YP Talk readers know that I don’t endorse just anyone.  But the simple answer to the question of who needs this forecast is that the players in the industry are changing constantly.  If you are a stakeholder of any type in the Yellow Pages/Local Search industry – publisher, CMR, investor, consultant, or even an industry supplier, you cannot afford to NOT own the Yellow Pages Market Forecast 2013. If you are serious about participating in the market this is the go-to source you need on your desktop. Click here to find out more, to get your discount, and purchase the report:  http://www.imslocalsearchauthority.com/2013marketforecast.php

People – May

It has been a while since we updated our regular blog sponsored by Hawthorne Executive Search .   It is all about people in the Yellow Pages industry. If you have news you want to share about someone that is involved in the Yellow Pages industry (including retirees) that we should all know about, drop us a line and tell us how they are doing. Send your submissions to ken@yptalk.com.

Herb Gordon

The industry suffered a big loss when Herb Gordon, retired former president and CEO of the Association of Directory Marketing (ADM), passed away unexpectedly of a heart attack on Saturday, May 4, 2013.  Herb is survived by his wife, Annemarie, three sons, nine grandchildren, two sisters, and a large extended family.

Herb led ADM (which merger with what was then the Yellow Pages Association – YPA – more info) for eighteen years, retiring in June 2009, after the merger.  During his tenure, he served on the Boards of ADM, the YPA (now Local Search Association), and Association of Directory Publishers – the only person in the industry to have the unique honor of serving on all three boards.  He served at a time when the industry was just starting to experience unparalleled change.

For more go to our recent YP Talk article by clicking here.

 

Jeff Hoyer

Local Market Launch, the Santa Barbara-based startup that is driving new standards of quality and service in local presence solutions for national brands, multi-location businesses and SMBs, announced today that Jeff Hoyer has joined the company as Vice President of Sales. He will lead the company’s sales efforts, with a focus on channel partner development among local media companies, including directory publishers, newspaper publishers and broadcast companies, as well as digital media agencies and certified marketing representatives (CMRs).

“Jeff will be a tremendous asset as we continue to grow our channel partner network,” said Brian Coryat, founder and CEO, Local Market Launch. “His deep expertise and proven track record in the directory publishing, business listings management and SMB digital marketing space make him a valuable addition to our leadership team.”

Hoyer is a local media solutions veteran with significant experience in executive management, sales strategy and execution, online marketing, SEM/SEO, advertising sales, customer and client relationship management and leadership development.

“Accurate business listings data is the foundation of today’s local digital economy, as consumers increasingly engage with local businesses through social networks and mobile devices,” said Hoyer. “Helping local businesses, national brands targeting locally and multi-location businesses manage their listings data efficiently and effectively has to be an essential element of any local media company’s digital marketing solution set. Local Market Launch has developed a solution that is truly ahead of anything currently on the market in terms of data quality, focus on the customer experience and ease of ongoing management. I am excited for the opportunity to bring it to the marketplace.”

Prior to joining Local Market Launch, Hoyer was SVP, Sales & Marketing at Name Dynamics/Universal Business Listing. He also served as VP, National Sales for R.H. Donnelley/Dex Media, where he managed a national team of 30, with P&L responsibility of $420 million in print, online and PPC products. Previously he was Group VP, TMP Worldwide, managing four VP/GMs and a portfolio of national clients.

 

Richard Wall

Dex Media’s Richard Wall, Vice president for Enterprise Application Engineering has been named “One to Watch” by CIO Magazine.

The CIO Executive Council’s annual Ones to Watch award identifies the rising stars in IT. To be honored, these future CIOs must have demonstrated leadership, driven innovation and delivered value to their business.

Wall has led organizations within IT at many companies and has experience across several disciplines including architecture, development, production support, and quality assurance. He is responsible for application development and maintenance activities at Dex Media, including all applications supporting Lead to Cash processes, mobile and online applications and websites representing Superpages.com, search platforms and traffic distribution integration to search partners, customer portal, and Business Intelligence Systems (BIS) applications

 

Bill Dinan:

Telmetrics’ President  and LSA Board Chairman Bill Dinan is scheduled to speak at SMX London on Mobile Search Best Practices.

With mobile advertising spend continuing to increase, leading call measurement provider Telmetrics announced that Bill Dinan, president of Telmetrics, was scheduled to speak at SMX London on the “Paid Search Advertising in a Multi-Device World” panel.   SMX London is a premiere U.K. event for search marketing and other online advertising professionals.

Dinan will address mobile search best practices including tailoring and localizing ads to incorporate mobile consumers’ category-specific usage patterns and preferences. The presentation will include insights from the recent xAd-Telmetrics U.K. Mobile Path-to-Purchase Study, which was based on an online survey of 1,500 U.K. smartphone and tablet users conducted by Nielsen.

 

 

The Facts Are The Facts, And They Are Not in Dispute

I borrowed this title from actor Kevin Bacon’s statement in the “Few Good Men” movie, but it applies in this case.  I’m sure you see them all the time too.  I get 4 or 5 of these types of incoming comments each week.  Most are bogus or just pure spam.  But these two made me laugh since they are contrary to what the call tracking data is telling us about print Yellow Page usage:

“Yellow Pages are obsolete”

The following comment was posted on the YP Talk comment area:

I was googling “why do yellow pages still exist” and I was delighted to find this hilarious article desperately defending them instead. It’s like reading someone trying to defend the slide rule. Sorry buddy, but technology has made yellow pages obsolete. They provide no value, but they do kill a lot of trees. Mobile phones with internet access are now dirt cheap and ubiquitous, providing the same information to people. Even my grandmother has a cell phone. Nobody in their right mind would use the yellow pages, other than as kindling or paper weight.

My response, while trying to be somewhat diplomatic was as follows:

 Thank you for your commentary. It’s comments like this that show exactly why the print yellow pages still work as you clearly had already decided on the answer you wanted to hear before you even did your Google search.

I can only assume you missed the article which showed that 76% of all adults do still use the printed YP each year. Or the one about how 85% of those people who do use a book make a purchase once they pick it up. Or that advertisers are seeing AT LEAST a $10 to $1 return for their advertising investments. Perhaps you also missed the article about how call tracking results for print ads have shown INCREASES in the number of calls over the last two years. But even if you had seen that, I doubt you would believe it.

So maybe the better approach with someone like you who appears to only believe what they see at the end of the arm, how do you think all that mobile stuff got there, especially the parts from local businesses??  Answer: yellow page reps working with those businesses that get them listed where ever their clients might be. Print, online, mobile — that’s the definition of “Yellow Pages” these days…

I had really wanted to be much wittier in my response, but the facts are the facts….

How shallow can I be:

This other one came across my radar screen and it sounds like it was a man on the street type interview from an Aussie city.  They are easy to do – let’s find a cross section of people who don’t fit the demographics of a typical small business in the print or online Yellow Pages, who probably aren’t experiencing the life events that drive usage, and then ask them leading questions:

Do People Use Yellowpages Anymore? – YouTube Do People Still Use The Yellow Pages?  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_psVGi-pEQc

Note how many of these people commented that page 1 of a Google results page is the extent they will go when looking for local businesses.  I don’t know about you, but if I’m spending $15,000+ on a new roof, need an experienced dental surgeon, a local limousine service for a special night out, or have to have my air conditioning system repaired, I don’t think I’m going to limit myself to the just the results Google choses to give me on the first page of a search.   That seems a bit shallow to me.  What about you??

Looks like a perfect opportunity for one of or two industry associations to develop a similar video which shows the exact opposite, with real people who spend real money for real products and services – that’s the real power of yellow……

 

 

Herb Gordon, Former ADM President/CEO Has Died

There are always people who you run across in your personal and business careers that make a lasting impact.  For me, Herb Gordon was one of them.  It saddens me deeply to tell you that Herb Gordon, retired former president and CEO of the Association of Directory Marketing (ADM), passed away unexpectedly of a heart attack on Saturday, May 4, 2013.  Herb is survived by his wife, Annemarie, three sons, nine grandchildren, two sisters, and a large extended family.

Herb led ADM (which merger with what was then the Yellow Pages Association – YPA – more info) for eighteen years, retiring in June 2009, after the merger.  During his tenure, he served on the Boards of ADM, the YPA (now Local Search Association), and Association of Directory Publishers – the only person in the industry to have the unique honor of serving on all three boards.  He served at a time when the industry was just starting to experience unparalleled change.

It was during the time that he was on the YPA board that I got to work directly with Herb.  Simply put, he was a gentleman no matter how passionate a discussion got, he was a masterful politician keeping the peace between publishers and CMRs who were always at each other’s throats, and he was a passionate supporter of the national channel.  I can say I didn’t always agree with him, but I did have a great deal of respect for him no matter his views.

Previously, Herb held senior management positions at Ketchum Communications, including president, Ketchum Yellow Pages, and executive vice president, Ketchum Specialized Services, and was a member of the company’s executive committee and board of directors.

Herb was a well-educated man.  He was a graduate of Tufts University and the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program.  And he was a patriot, having served as a U.S. Air Force missile officer from 1960 to 1965, working on the country’s first inter-continental ballistic missile unit.

Following his retirement from ADM, Herb continued to write the NMD Flash newsletter.  He enjoyed finding articles of interest for readers and kept up to date with the industry.  In his spare time, Herb played tennis (a lot of tennis as he wasn’t a big fan of golf), cheered on Pittsburgh sports teams, traveled, played bridge, researched WWII history and enjoyed gardening.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 11, 2013, 11:00 a.m., at St. Andrew’s United Presbyterian Church, 801 Beaver Street, Sewickley, PA 15143.  Contributions may be made to the Salvation Army, 700 North Bell Avenue, Carnegie, PA 15106; or the American Cancer Society, 320 Bilmar Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15205.  Remembrances may be sent to the family at 310 Maple Lane, Sewickley, PA 15143.

Herb was a unique man in with a great enthusiasm and passion for life, and equally as enthusiastic and passionate about the industry.  People like Herb aren’t replaceable.  So he will unquestionably be missed.

Yellow Page News Briefs – April

This regular article provides a snapshot of Yellow Page recent industry news you may have missed.

Industry Recycling News:

Seattle Councilmember and handful of residents still venting over opt-out

Don’t want yellow-pages (etc.) directories? Opt-out deadline ahead West Seattle Blog (blog) Both Seattle City Councilmember Mike O’Brien and a PR agency for the yellow-pages-directory industry have sent reminders today that a deadline is ahead for opting out of the next big round of deliveries – go to this website by May 6th if you want to …

Phone Book Recycle Kickoff Party – Branson, MO

Recycling locations for telephone directories are available at various locations in the City of Branson. Any resident and business that wants to recycle their directories may do so at Jubilee Foods, Dewey Short Visitor Center and the Branson Recycle …

Unwanted Phone Book Drop Off Planned – Nebraska

Now is a good time to get rid of unwanted phone books since new phone books were recently distributed to Lincoln homes and businesses. Laura Cole of The Berry Media Company says 51,000 pounds of outdated telephone directories were recycled last …

Berry Company noted for recycling efforts

Dayton company urges phone book recycling WHIO Dayton The Berry Company’s “Think Yellow, Go Green” program has kept 1.5 million outdated phone books out of landfills by recycling more than 750 tons of them. Earth Day was the fifth anniversary of the program. Berry has teamed up with schools, The Boy …

Industry Conferences:

EADP conference in June

The European Association of Directory Publishers (EADP) in cooperation with the European and German Search, Directory and Database association and will have its next conference in Berlin on June 10-11, 2013.  You can now register on the EASDP Conference site.

This year’s conference will have a theme of “Using the creative chaos of speed and innovation”.  All information, program, exhibitors, speakers, and online registration are available on the EADP site.

Kelsey Group – Leading in Local

Austin will play host to the Kelsey Groups annual “LEADING IN LOCAL: SMB Digital Marketing” conference that will take place Sept. 11 – 13, 2013. This conference will focus on the fast-changing SMB marketing solutions space and examine the digital innovations that are transforming how SMBs attract, retain and upsell their customers.  Today is the last day for early registration discounts.

Yellow Pages in the News

Green light for Dex – SuperMedia Merger

Bankruptcy court gives OK to Dex One-SuperMedia merger WRAL Tech Wire By Staff, wire reports Cary, NC — Dex One and SuperMedia, two money-losing phone-book publishers, won a judge’s permission on Monday to merge and exit …

New Cover Girl for the Phone Book

Phone books are being delivered across the Townsville region at the moment, and the woman on the cover has a really interesting story to tell. Angie D’Arcy is mother to a child with special needs and in 2008 she founded The Umbrella Network to give …

Bogus Yellow Pages still out there

Company knocks off Yellow Pages invoice to dupe business owners A Knoxville businesswoman says she received a bogus invoice from a company claiming to be the real Yellow Pages and requesting a fee to renew the listing in …

Angie’s List remains hot

All the indicators are going in the right direction as modern-day yellow pages Angie’s List, which helps people find trustworthy carpenters, dentists, mechanics, and more, reported its first quarter results today. Revenues were up 68 percent to $52.2 million, paid memberships were up 60 percent year-over-year — hitting two million just two days ago — and its cost-per-acquisition was down 12 percent.

Ziplocal Partners with Marchex

Marchex, Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHX), a leader in mobile performance advertising, today announced a partnership with Ziplocal, an advertising platform that

Other news:

Print Yellow Page penetration “amazes”

Foursquare Has 93% Penetration In Retail – Plus New $41 Million Note Forbes Foursquare = 93%; Citysearch = 66%; Facebook = 65%; Google+ = 59%; Yellow Pages = 55% (I am often amazed at this sort of penetration for a physical book, however, it might also include digital presences the Yellow Page industry has been slow to create …

 

How can the industry collaborate?

Just got back from the Local Search Association annual conference, and once again I heard a lot suggesting/pleading/begging from various speakers that the industry really needs to think differently, act differently, and most importantly collaborate better.

In the 25+ years I have been in the industry, the one thing you can be guaranteed to hear at an industry conference is that the industry needs to work together.  Conceptually, everyone agrees that all boats will rise if the overall industry can grow.  But usually within 10 minutes of arriving back in the home office, the issues of the moment take over and that whole collaboration thing gets filed away for another year.  Perhaps now more so than in the past, we can’t let that happen.

I don’t think anyone would disagree that today the industry faces massive change both internally and from forces external to the industry.  It wasn’t very long ago that there were usually three, four, five or more print directories in a market and that was it.  Then about ten or so years ago, this “digital” thing started, and toss in a prolonged business slowdown (some would even call it a recession), and small business owners/marketers have had to change their attitudes and philosophies about promoting their businesses to often just keep their lights on, and maybe even pray they could grow a little.

Industry collaborations are possible, and can be very successful.  For example, remember the “got milk” campaign?  Often hailed as one of the most successful ad campaigns in marketing history, got milk? was launched in 1993 when fluid milk processors in California agreed to allocate $.03 of each gallon sold to fund an overall promotion effort. The campaign was licensed nationally in 1995 for use in print ads featuring celebrities with “milk mustaches.”

The program still continues to this day with an interactive website promoting various health benefits.  The campaign is managed by the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board, which has an approximate annual budget of $110 million.

Another example is the “Pork: The Other White Meat” effort from the National Pork Board.  This original campaign, which is often cited as one of the most memorable campaigns of all time, was intended to promoted pork as a healthy meat option.  Realistically, as the National Pork Board acknowledged it was really an effort to stem the steady decline in pork sales.

The original $7 million budget in 1987 contrasted to the $30 million spent primarily on network   television ads for the “Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner” campaign from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and the $112 million spent on ads for branded chickens.  Using this program promoting pork as a lean meat to more health-conscious consumers, pork sales in the United States rose 20%, reaching $30 billion annually by 1991

This year the Pork Board is launching its new $11 million Pork: Be Inspired campaign, which aims to increase sales by targeting customers who already eat pork.

So there are examples where industry players, competitors in effect, have banded together to promote their overall value, and as a result everyone in the industry saw higher sales.

Which brings us back to our beloved Yellow Pages industry, and to you the readers of this newsletter.  The topic for discussion is simply:

1. How can the industry work together?  Now, not a year from now, but right now, to show the outstanding value we bring to advertisers??
2.  What steps are needed?? 
3.  Who needs to get together in a room to start to make this happen??

We want you views and suggestions, and if you’re worried about your company not being pleased to see your name (or the company’s) in the comments, we’ll block them out and change names.  But the clock is ticking…

Send me your thoughts at ken@yptalk.com..

 

 

Survey: SMB’s Wasting Their Time With Social Media

Ouch.  The digital fanatics’ aren’t going to like this one:  As reported in the USA Today — Most small businesses feel like they are wasting their time on social media, according to a new survey.

The survey indicated that about 61% of small businesses don’t see any return on investment on their social-media activities, according to a survey released from Manta, a social network for small businesses. Yet, the big disconnect is that almost 50% of those SMB’s say they’ve increased their time spent on social media.  What’s going on?

In reality, many small businesses just don’t have a true place they fit in yet when it comes to social media.  Most SMB’s will jump in because of peer pressure, or media pressure, or the perception that their business will be left behind even if they have no clue what they’re trying to get out of a social-media campaign. The quote of the day in the article is from Stephanie Schwab, CEO of Crackerjack Marketing:

“Just thinking that Facebook alone will send droves of customers to your doorstep is a mistake a lot of people make”

Why are SMB’s getting into social media anyway?  The study indicates that:

• 36% said their goal was to acquire and engage new customers,
• 19% said to gain leads and referrals,
• 17% said to boost awareness.

And I’m willing to bet that 90+% of them think it’s cheaper than traditional media like print Yellow Pages.  And it may be at the onset.  But isn’t it usually true that you get what you pay for?

Take this one SMB quoted in the article:

“…Regina Hartt, owner of Hartt’s Pool Plastering in Turlock, Calif., says social media hasn’t helped her business because there are too many disreputable companies in the construction business, and no amount of “Likes” on Facebook is going to sway a prospective customer to spend $5,000 to $40,000 on a pool-plastering job. Hartt created a Facebook page for her business over a year ago, but she says out of the 200 to 300 jobs she does a year only three or four come from people who have found the business online…”

How many jobs do think this pool company could get from a print and online Yellow Pages ad program over the course of a year?  I would be willing to bet it far exceeds what they are getting from Facebook.

Perhaps the industry can help SMB’s through this dilemma.  Aren’t we the people who do the “fact finding” on each and every call to help identify where a business stands?   And aren’t we the industry that has simple, one stop solutions in print, online, and mobile?

Folks, we just need to show them the “power of yellow…”

Say Hello to Local Market Launch

I recently ran an article that “Mom & Pop Are Still Not Advertising Online”, and I think I figured out why. Two reasons actually:

1) It’s not easy. The Internet is a big, wide open, complex, even formidable space with lots of moving parts. There’s search portals, social media, hyperlocal directories, niche sites, IYP’s and on and on. Even geeks really into this stuff have trouble keeping up. And then throw mobile on top and you have a real mess to navigate.

2) It can be very expensive. One SMB showed me a recent proposal he got that would cost him several thousand dollars for something he wasn’t sure he could even get a decent ROI on.

So naturally, many small business owners are reluctant and unsure on who to trust and how to proceed. We think we may have found just the solution for this dilemma, a new supplier for the Yellow Pages industry – Local Market Launch.

Background
The beginnings of this new industry entry are classical Yellow Pages start-up type stories. Brian Coryat, the company’s Founder & Chief Executive Officer, launched his first internet directory listing service back in 1995 — AAA Internet Promotions. After that he moved on to Web-Ignite, one of the first SEO companies, but is best known for founding and taking public the online advertising company ValueClick, for which he was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2000 for eCommerce.

After moving on from ValueClick, Brian decided to try something different and acquired a small hotel in Wisconsin. When the economy sputtered he began looking at every nickel being spent and noticed a line entry for $700 per month which he later identify was yellow page advertising. Determined to grow his struggling hotel identity beyond just the local print directory, he began the process that every SMB goes through trying to establish a consistent identity across the Internet. It was during that period that he realized that if an experienced industry professional like himself was having such problems, imagine what the less knowledgeable SMB owners were going through. So about 18 months ago he started Local Market Launch headquartered in the heart of beautiful downtown Santa Barbara, California.

Recently the company has announced another important hire in bringing on 20+ year Yellow Pages industry veteran Jeff Hoyer.  Jeff brings background as the former VP, National Sales for R.H. Donnelley/Dex Media, (managed a national team of 30, with P&L responsibility of $420 million in print, online and PPC products), and he was also Group VP at TMP Worldwide where he managed four VP/GMs and a portfolio of national clients.

Value Proposition:
Hoyer was able to give us some insight as to the value Local Market Launch can bring to both Yellow Page publishers and CMR’s. Basically the company performs three critical functions:

1. Business Listings Management (BLM): They work with SMB’s to develop a business profile, highly customized to their local market, validate and enhance the client data to ensure a standard, quality listing. That profile is then optimized across top 30 search, social & directory sites, sites such as FaceBook, Yelp, Foursquare, Google+, Bing Local, City Search, and Merchant Circle. Once the business profile has been established they then push that information across the net syndicating it to over 150 search portals building the SMB’s brand presence consistently, uniformly.
2. Local Search Optimization (LSO): After the initial stages of BLM, they come back every month, analyze the business’s top competitors and build citations based on where those competitors have business profiles.
3. Ongoing Reputation Monitoring (RM): Here they provide interactive agencies, publishers, CMR, national brands, and even those mom & pop SMB’s a dashboard which allows them to break down usage and viewing results of their business’s reputation and social web presence in any number of sorts such as division, zone, etc, and receive daily report cards

When I questioned Hoyer about what a typical average cost that an SMB would expect to see for this type service, he indicated that they are targeting a $600 first year price point. But it doesn’t end there.

Given the swift growth of mobile Local Market Launch is not limited to just working on solutions for the Internet. To provide a similar, consistent profile on mobile platforms, the company helps develop individual business landing pages which are completely mobile optimized, and then spreads that profile across the internet.

What I think will make this company very different from other providers is its agency friendly business model. The dashboards discussed above are customized for each agency. The company also has no plans to establish a direct relationship with SMB’s. They expect that publishers and CMR’s will be able to take their core product and white label it with their own brands. Under Hoyer’s guidance the company has already begun testing with a “large-scale” publisher.

The company currently has about 20 people and is beginning to rapidly hire in the Santa Barbara area. Of note is that none of the work they do is being done by offshore workers. Everything is being done right here in the good old USA.

LML Will Be at LSA:
Hoyer revealed that the company will be making a big splash at the upcoming Local Search Association conference in Las Vegas April 13-16. The company is planning a wine tasting event in their private suite and he hinted at a drawing for a weekend on the company in Santa Barbara, possibly in a private yacht. Companies interested in meeting with Local Market Launch (or to do the wine tasting) should contact Jeff at mailto:Jeff@localmarketlaunch.com or via his office line of 805-960-5572.

 

Partner With Local Market Launch
If you are an agency, marketing firm, media publisher, Internet directory or an organization that reaches local businesses, consider partnering with us today.

• White-glove, dedicated specialists for each client account
• Single point of contact for each partner project
• Scalable and effective
• Easy to integrate tools for resellers
• Revenue sharing for the life of the client
• Custom campaign capabilities

Need more information? Give us a call at (800) 720-3291 or email partners@localmarketlaunch.com.

Yellow Page News Briefs – March

This regular monthly article provides a snapshot of recent Yellow Page industry news you may have missed……

Industry Recycling News:

YP.com and The Swashbucklers of SouthWest Louisiana
The 2013 telephone directory recycling campaign kicked off in Southwest Louisiana at the opening season game for the indoor football Louisiana Swashbucklers recently. The game was dedicated to “Team Green of Southwest Louisiana” and sponsored by YP – The Real Yellow Pages. It marked the official launch of the recycling campaign which began with the delivery of the 2013 yellow page telephone books. The 2013 cover of the edition of the YP Real Yellow pages features the Louisiana Swashbucklers and local fan favorite, wide receiver Sammy Knight.

The Swashbucklers game was dedicated to the promoting and creating awareness of the importance of recycling and the protection of the environment and Southwest Louisiana natural resources. “The Louisiana Swashbucklers are proud to be associated with Team Green of Southwest Louisiana and YP “The real yellow pages” stated Chris Meaux President and General Manager of the team. We encourage all of our fans to recycle their old phone books when they receive their 2013 copy of the Real Yellow Pages”.

This was the second annual season opener dedicated to Team Green. (Source)

Farmington Recycling Program Expands
Yellow Pages recycling for those residents not on the Town’s trash/recycle pickup is now located at the Staple House parking lot (next to the Main Library) in a small dumpster. It will no longer be at the ATT Building on Main Street (Route 10). (Source)

Elementary Schools kick off Phone Book Recycling Event
ALBANY, GA: New phone books are starting to show up and that means it’s time to toss out the old ones.

Today kicks off a competition between Dougherty County Elementary Schools to collect the most books to recycle. (Source)

Yellow Pages Group Reminds Winnipeg Residents of Directory Opt-Out Program
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA: As Yellow Pages Group (YPG), a leading multimedia and marketing solutions company, continues to expand and grow its digital media offerings, the company is committed to providing people with choice around its traditional print directory offerings. Winnipeg residents who prefer not to receive the print directory can remove their address from the delivery list by completing the form at ypg.com/delivery or by calling 1 800 268-5637. (Source)

Phone books recycling – City of Fargo
Fargo residents are encouraged to recycle old phone books by taking them to recycling drop off sites. Phone book recycling containers are in place at several locations and will remain available through April 26, 2013. Only phone books with glued bindings will be accepted…. (Source)

Industry Conferences:

EADP conference in June
The European Association of Directory Publishers (EADP) in cooperation with the European and German Search, Directory and Database association and will have its next conference in Berlin on June 10-11, 2013. You can now register on the EASDP Conference site.

This year’s conference will have a theme of “Using the creative chaos of speed and innovation”. All information, program, exhibitors, speakers, and online registration are available on the EADP site. (Source)

Yellow Pages in the News

Dex One fighting delisting
Dex One Corporation (NYSE: DEXO) has received notice from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) that it was not in compliance with the NYSE listing standard in Section 802.01B of the Listed Company Manual which requires the company to maintain an average global market capitalization over a consecutive 30 trading day period of not less than $100 million.

The company notified the Exchange that it will appeal the decision and file a formal request shortly. During the appeal process, the company anticipates DEXO shares will continue to trade on the NYSE. Until a determination is made the company’s trading symbol will bear the “BC” indicator until it is either delisted or is compliant with the NYSE’s listing standards.

Publishers Dex One and SuperMedia File for Bankruptcy
Publishers Dex One Corp and SuperMedia have both filed for bankruptcy in a pre-packaged effort following the approval from a majority of the company’s senior secured lenders to change a credit agreement, clearing the way for their planned merger. Dex One and SuperMedia agreed last year to combine their businesses, with Dex One shareholders expected to own about 60 percent and SuperMedia shareholders the rest of the combined company (Source)

The deck chairs get shuffled at Hibu
Yellow Pages publisher Hibu it had fired its two top US senior managers over speculation that they were plotting a buyout of the US based operation. Hibu chief executive, Mike Pocock  told staff members that Jim McCusker, US president, and Mark Cairns, chief publishing officer, had been “dismissed” after “a thorough investigation into conduct by them that the company considered to be disloyal and against the interests of its employees and other stakeholders”. (Source)

Changing of the Guard at Yellow Media
Marc Tellier, the CEO of Yellow Media, is leaving as the company battles thru weak print revenues and a slow acceptance to the company’s digital products. Yellow Media Ltd. (TSX:Y) announced it is looking for a replacement for Marc Tellier, who has been president and chief executive of the company and its predecessors since October 2001.

“We thank Marc for his leadership and many years of devoted service to Yellow Pages Group and his agreement to remain in order to assist in effecting a smooth transition,” board chairman Robert MacLellan said in a company statement. (Source)

Oops. Wrong cover on South Bend phone book
SOUTH BEND, Ind.: Residents in the South Bend area got quite a surprise when they picked up the newest edition of the Yellowbook. The cover is completely wrong. “I opened it up and I looked at the cover and I realized that’s not our county.” (Source)

Other news:

Ohio, Minn. governors float advertising tax proposals
It isn’t the first time we’ve seen this act before, but two U.S. governors are proposing state taxes on business services, including advertising, threatening revenue streams for local broadcasters, publishers and outdoor-display owners. Both Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio, and Gov. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., are considering as part of their budgets for 2014 plans to reduce state sales taxes. “It’s still early in the process, but anytime these issues show up, we have to take it seriously,” says Keith Scarborough, the Association of National Advertisers’ senior vice president for government relations. (Source)

Some humor from France – Paper is Not Dead? 

Not Yellow Pages specific, but even if you don’t speak French, I think you’ll get the point of the paper/paperless humor: http://vimeo.com/61275290