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.

Some fun with Yellow Page headings

Those of us who work in the Yellow Page industry would not usually put the words “fun” and “print yellow pages” in the same sentence.  But local newspaper columnist J. T. Knoll writing in the SouthEast Kansas Morning Sun effectively did just that today with his piece on “True Stories Found in the Yellow Pages”.

JT used the local Names & Numbers print directory in Pittsburg (which also includes his community of Frontenac) to marvel at some of the heading indicators listed at the top of each page, which resulted in some interesting combinations such as:

• Advertising  – Air:  Don’t forget to breathe
• Appliances – Asphalt:  For toasters and juicers  you can take on the road
• Brake-Burglar:  Used along with an alarm; it slows the burglar’s escape so you can catch him as he runs away.

Do you have any other good top of page heading combinations in your book??

Who says Yellow Page publishers are dull, uncreative, and no fun??

One of the items pinging around the internet world these days is the hunt for Batman.  Really.

Turns out that American actor Adam West, best known for his lead role in the original Batman TV series on the ABC TV network and the initial Batman feature film from 1966 lives near Ketchum, Idaho.  Even at the ripe young age of 84, West is still well known for his voice work on animated series such as The Fairly OddParents and Family Guy.

An online blogger known as slapshotten11 also happens to live near West, and recently decided to look him up in the Names & Numbers Sun Valley Idaho phone book that covers the Kethcum area.  As he found, it wasn’t easy to track down the Batman:

The idea was the brain child of Ken Martin, a sales manager at Names & Numbers. We asked him to tell us more about how this little bit of fun came to be in the Sun Valley Names and Numbers Telephone Book:

“…About 20 years ago, I was skiing in my home town of Sun Valley, Idaho.  It was April and a beautiful day. I stopped for a mid-mountain break and snack at the historic Roundhouse Restaurant.  The deck at Roundhouse is a favorite place to enjoy the sunshine and views.  While there, I overheard the unmistakable voice of Adam West, a Sun Valley local.  He was having lunch at Roundhouse with his wife.  Adam’s voice is quite distinctive and reminded me of his character Batman from the Batman television series.  As per local Sun Valley etiquette, I let them enjoy their day without any intrusion and resumed skiing.

A few weeks later, we started sales for the Sun Valley Names & Numbers Telephone Book.  One night, I reminisced about my encounter with Adam West and thought it would be fun to put Batman in the telephone book.   I gave that a bit of thought and came up with an idea.

At the time, it was pretty easy for me to add a new “custom” yellow page heading.  I thought; let’s create a new heading for CRIMEFIGHTERS.  As I began to write up the appropriate paperwork, I thought I’ll make it more fun by creating a cross-reference to the white pages which led me to more creative thinking and including something about ‘Bruce Wayne – Millionaire’ and Adam West.  I wrote up an order with 4 different white and yellow page listings (as seen above).

Several months went by as we continued our sales in Sun Valley and I completely forgot about the Batman listing.  The book was delivered in November and I was having dinner with some friends at a local restaurant.  Our waitress knew that I did the phone book and told me how she went to look up the phone number of Tom West and came across the listing for Adam West and Batman.  She thought that was hysterical.  I thought, I hope we don’t get sued for trade name or copyright violation.

The next morning, I was in our office and the telephone rang.  It’s a small office and I could hear the receptionist’s conversation.  Our receptionist’s name answered the phone and I heard her say “Oh hi Batman, this is Robin…..  yes, he’s here,  would you like to speak with him?”  Robin informed me that Batman was on the phone and wanted to speak with me.

I took the call.  It was clearly Adam West’s voice who asked me if I was the person responsible for putting Batman in the telephone book.  I hesitated before responding, thinking again… what have I done and do I want to admit this.  I had to tell the truth and replied that indeed it was me.  Adam West responded that he thought it was great and that he really appreciated that we hadn’t listed his actual telephone number and asked if he could stop by to pick up some copies to send to his friends.

About a week later, on the front page of USA Today was the caption:  “Holy Run Around – in the local Sun Valley telephone directory, Batman is listed under CRIMEFIGHTERS in the yellow pages”  They then proceeded to provide the rest of the chain of listings.  The story also was on nationally syndicated radio as well as on the Tonight Show.

The listings have continued to appear ever since and is part of what sets the Names and Numbers Telephone Directory apart.….”

Who says Yellow Page publishers can’t be creative and have a little fun?   Perhaps more publishers should consider similar efforts as a way to bring some additional attention to the high quality print and online products they produce.  It certainly can’t hurt…

People – April/May

It’s been another active month for announcements about people in
the Yellow Pages industry.  This regular monthly blog sponsored Hawthorne Executive Search  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.

Ken Brock:

Ken Brock the founder and President of Names and Numbers has received, The Spirit of Pittsburg award from the Pittsburg, KS Area Chamber of Commerce during their annual meeting which was held Thursday, May 26^th.

The Spirit of Pittsburg award is the highest honor bestowed by the association and recognizes an outstanding community member, who through his or her
service, volunteerism and personal sacrifice has made Pittsburg a better place
to live, expecting nothing in return. This outstanding citizen reflects a steady, positive influence on others in daily life.

The award was presented to Mr. Brock by the evening’s special guest, Kansas Governor, Sam Brownback.  During his presentation of the award, Governor Brownback spoke of a local Pittsburg, Kansas doctor, who was assisting victims of the recent Joplin, Missouri tornado. According to Brownback, the doctor stated, God put me in Joplin because I had the skill set to help out. Using the statement as a segue, the governor said, “he believed God put Ken Brock in Pittsburg, not to receive an award as the 2011 Spirit of Pittsburg but because of his skill set and commitment to the city.”

Upon accepting the award Brock noted that “I have made a commitment to the Pittsburg community since moving Names and Numbers to Pittsburg years ago. My wife Debbie and I travel a lot in our work. We travel to a lot of cool places. As soon as we arrive at these nice facilities, at these nice towns, it’s about three or four days before I say, Debbie, I’m home sick. I’m ready to go home now. No matter where I’ve been, I always look forward to getting back to Pittsburg.”

Richard Hanna

Dex One Corporation announced the addition of Richard J. Hanna, as executive vice president of sales and marketing, effective immediately.  Hanna will be responsible for all sales and marketing functions, leading the company’s transition from a product-centric to a customer-centric organization. He will also be tasked with shifting the sales force from a solo-selling model to a team-based approach to increase customer contact frequency and support the delivery of a wider portfolio of digital solutions. Hanna will be based at Dex One headquarters in Cary and report to the company’s CEO Alfred Mockett.

Hanna has held a variety of senior leadership positions at several technology and telecommunications companies, including AT&T, Cidera, MCI, MFS-Intelenet, Motive and Teligent.

“To compete in today’s marketplace we must build a world-class, 21^st century sales force that is professionally trained and armed with the latest tools and technology. Rick has a wealth of experience assembling high-performance sales teams and he will ensure this gets done at Dex One,” said Mockett. “Rick has a solid track record of leading the sales and marketing functions in the hyper-competitive technology and telecom sectors; he understands what it takes to win in the marketplace and provide outstanding service and support to customers.”

As president of the small and medium business division at MCI, Hanna guided a $1.5 billion operation with 3,500 employees. He led the restructuring of the field and telemarketing sales efforts, resulting in a rapid double-digit improvement in sales and customer retention.

As president and CEO at MFS-Intelenet, he launched the nation’s first competitive local exchange carrier, growing the company at an annual rate in excess of 40 percent. The company had operations in 45 major markets, with more than 2,000 employees.

“I am very excited about the opportunity to lead the sales transformation at Dex One. This is something I have successfully tackled several times throughout my career and understand the energy and effort required to reach the desired outcome,” said Hanna. “Dex One is at a pivotal time in its history and transformation is essential in order to return to growth.”

Early in his career, Hanna held a variety of management positions in sales and marketing in the telecom industry.  Hanna is a 1977 graduate of the University of
Central Connecticut.

Jim Hail:

The Association of Directory Publishers bestowed its highest distinction on Jim Hail, president and co-owner of Hagadone Directories, Inc. at the group’s recent annual conference.

Presentation of The Wil Lewis Award to Hail took place at the Gold Book Dinner and Awards Ceremony concluding ADP’s annual convention. The award recognizes outstanding lifetime contributions to the directory publishing industry and to the effectiveness of the Association. The Wil Lewis Award is named in honor of the late Wilbur Lewis, founder of White Directory Publishers and a three-time past ADP chairman.

“I am honored and humbled to be only the 11th recipient of The Wil Lewis Award,” Hail said. “It is, I believe, imperative for small directory companies like HDI to have a voice and influence in national industry issues.”

Hail founded HDI in 1987 and is twice past chairman of the board of the Association of Directory Publishers.

“What makes The Wil Lewis Award so prestigious is that it is bestowed not annually, but rather only when a nominee exceeds the lofty threshold set by Wil Lewis himself in the judgment of a minimum of 75 percent of the sitting Directors of the Association,” said Larry Angove, ADP president and chief executive officer.

In presenting the award to Hail together with Rick Lewis, former president and CEO of White Directory Publishers and son of Wilbur Lewis, Angove shared comments of longtime ADP leaders who nominated Hail for consideration.

One stated, “I don’t know where to start when it comes to Jim. He has put his heart and soul into ADP. As chairman of the board, publisher, mentor and teacher, I honestly cannot think of a better choice to receive The Wil Lewis Award.”

Hail is a former newspaper editor and publisher and was publisher of the Coeur d’Alene Press and president of the Hagadone North Idaho Newspaper Group prior to founding HDI. Today HDI publishes regional telephone directories in Idaho, Washington, Montana, Oregon and California.

Steve Blondy

Dex One Corporation has also  announced it has commenced a nationwide search for a new chief financial officer to fill the vacancy created by the pending
departure of current CFO Steven Blondy, 51, who will step down on or before
July 31, 2011.

“We thank Steve for his valuable service to Dex One and its predecessor company R.H. Donnelley. Since joining the company in 2002, Steve has played an important role in expanding operations and improving the company’s cost structure,” said Dex One Chief Executive Officer Alfred Mockett. “His contributions are wide-ranging and we wish him well going forward.”

The separation was mutually agreed upon by the company and Blondy, who will help ensure an orderly transition and receive benefits as outlined in his employment agreement.   A prominent search firm is engaged and is in the process of identifying and evaluating candidates.

Stéphane Marceau

Yellow Page Group’s Chief Marketing Officer, Stéphane Marceau, has left the company to pursue other career Interests. His resignation is effective immediately.

“Stéphane came to Yellow Media to lead the digital transformation including overseeing the development and overall marketing of digital and mobile products for the Company’s various brands.  Now, with this digital transformation well under way, we are grateful for his contribution and respect his decision,” said Marc P. Tellier, President and Chief Executive Officer, Yellow Media Inc.

Yellow Media has invested significantly over the last few years to expand the knowledge and capability of its marketing function. The current strong marketing executive team will continue to build on the momentum established and ensure continuity. Mr. Marceau will be a special advisor to the organization for a transition period.

Kathy Perez:

Announced that the Directory Assistance and Information Services Conference – Thriving on the Frontier has been scheduled for November 15th – 16th, 2011 at the Landmark Hyatt Regency, Dallas TX.

“Following on the success of last year’s inaugural event we have created a compelling agenda to provide you with the strategies you need and exceptional networking opportunities.   We are pleased to be teaming up with The Paisley
Group to host THE industry event this year.  We have created one single
event that will bring together everyone in the industry for an outstanding
conference. “

Early bird discounts are available at the Paisley Group Conference site.