yellow pages

« **on:** January 07, 2007, 06:30:22 pm »

hi men , just spent 1500 on advertising on yell and yellow pages
hope it works !anybody advertise with them? and what response do you all get on average .

« **Reply #1 on:** January 07, 2007, 06:33:03 pm »

Spent £2500 this year with them and will probably brake even with them.

It does not brake any records, Just look in the book and see how many are new companies that have been sold on it.

« **Reply #2 on:** January 07, 2007, 06:36:08 pm »

Dont use em anymore. Used them for 5 years and to be honest only averaged about 1 Job per week. A lot of price shoppers that will "have a word with their husbands and get back to you" but never do.

I took a full colour credit size ad out and only just broke even. However maybe in some areas yp works but not where I live.

Will

« **Reply #3 on:** January 07, 2007, 06:48:56 pm »

Had a big ad in a couple of years ago nothing from it then they wanted me to go bigger.Now I stick to the Ncca corporate box there's only me in it

« **Reply #4 on:** January 07, 2007, 07:23:43 pm »

Hi Will
I've used them for the last 12 years and find it's all about what's in the ad, and not looking like every other carpet cleaner in the classification e.g.(domestic & commercial,fully insured and all that nonsense),think about what people want and then offer it in the ad!and then deliver it! don't forget about the referals you should get too! I run an ad that costs me about £6000 a year but it certainly more than pays for itself over and over, and I've noticed the bigger and more impressive the ad the less price shoppers you get too!

all the best
John

« **Reply #5 on:** January 07, 2007, 07:28:23 pm »

I'm am now convinced now that you need to be right at the front of the CC section or right at the back.

If you end up in the middle then it wont work, 1 CC near me said it always worked when he was at the back, this year this didn't happen and he noticed a big difference at the lack of calls. I was right in the middle this year and it was a total flop, where as in previous years when at the front it did bring in a bit more work.

You also need a good advert too, but that's stating the obvious!

Phil

« **Reply #6 on:** January 07, 2007, 07:35:52 pm »

I've noticed that YP has dropped in the amount of calls this year, there are more players in the market that dilute the yellow book.

Although a pain in the rs leaflets are good which I found out again this year, I can focus on 1 small area and travelling times are small between jobs.

Shaun

« **Reply #7 on:** January 07, 2007, 08:15:10 pm »

Necessary evil!!

« **Reply #8 on:** January 07, 2007, 08:24:13 pm »

i've put £2.5k advert in Y/P (JP style) its pretty crap!

right at the front too.

« **Reply #9 on:** January 07, 2007, 08:29:03 pm »

i do half a page and get a 4.25 to 1 returns which i'm happy with
ad cost £2800 per year.

« **Reply #10 on:** January 07, 2007, 08:38:03 pm »

Well I pay £3500 for a half page ad in two directories because my area straddles the two. Which I think is quite good value. I get alot of my work from ?YP and wouldnt dream of giving them up.

Chris

« **Reply #11 on:** January 07, 2007, 09:17:22 pm »

Tried them for the first time last year with a £630 ad, have broken even plus half times cost of the ad again runs up to around June of this year so hopefully more bookings to come.
I have already improved and increased the ad size that will be costing around £1200, hope its the right decision.
Nigel.

« **Reply #12 on:** January 08, 2007, 01:50:20 am »

I spend approx £5000 per year and get a return of about £20,000 so you could say that it works for me!!

« **Reply #13 on:** January 08, 2007, 02:17:17 am »

hi

my accountant says that every pound spent advertising should produce another £4

never really worked like that for me, but he says inland revenue
looks at things like this.
i cant see how something like this can apply to all sectors

darren

« **Reply #14 on:** January 08, 2007, 03:39:12 am »

allways found yellow pages rubbish and as for yell.com thats even worse, for me the best has allways been toms local

« **Reply #15 on:** January 08, 2007, 08:10:40 am »

I have a £2500 add, and it hardly brings in anything, i def wont be repeating it

« **Reply #16 on:** January 08, 2007, 08:16:46 am »

The sales reps would have us believe differently the bigger the ad the more work it brings.I turned it round when the rep came to see me she wanted £2500 for an ad I said I would pay them a % on each job as if it was as good as she was telling me they would earn more money from me.It works for some people and not for others the same as Thomsons & the BT book works for some and not others.

« **Reply #17 on:** January 08, 2007, 03:55:50 pm »

Strange mixed response here for Yellow Pages.
My best friend was an ex rep for them. I recently informed him of this and his response was - All depends on area, competition, wording and design of ad, placement of ad, and luck.
Nigel.

« **Reply #18 on:** January 08, 2007, 04:24:36 pm »

i had a full page add in the y.p. afew years back , and it was totaly a waste of money

and i would never use them again

« **Reply #19 on:** January 08, 2007, 04:36:47 pm »

Just had a call from a lady in Wooler who got my number from the yp as she wanted someone who is Ncca qualified here's me telling people it doesn't work :

« **Reply #20 on:** January 08, 2007, 05:03:04 pm »

Hi STeve

Same for me, Had nothing from Yellow Pages for about 5 weeks and got 3 Calls and 3 Jobs today, amazing really as I am in the nidle of Book but next to the Chem Rubbish people.

Its been better than last year but is not as good as they would like you to believe.

Have you be listening to their latest Advert on Talksport. Plumbers get an average of 55 calls a week and Taxi companies get 44 calls a week. Love to no how they can prove this.

Cheers

Neil

« **Reply #21 on:** January 08, 2007, 06:08:21 pm »

They offered me an 0845 no FOC and said they can 'monitor ' the calls i acceptd at first but then changed my mind as i nearly allways ask how they have heard about us.

« **Reply #22 on:** January 08, 2007, 06:24:22 pm »

Look at other ads in YP. CD always have a photo, its cheesey but it works. When I changed from a cartoon pic to a photo response upped 25-30%. I have cut from a colour three column by 40mm to a single column. So far no diff in response.

Thompsons do not work in this area.

Always ask where people got your name record it on the jobsheet and analyse it monthly. Either cut or improve ads that dont work. I do my own artwork and save the fee. Its then as I want it.

The first 12 months that I operated full time I ran ads in the local paper then it died I think all potential customers had replied, so I cut it and have not used them since.

trevor

« **Reply #23 on:** January 08, 2007, 07:56:29 pm »

We definitely wouldn't give up on the book just yet.
I'd say of every 10 calls about 6 would be from yp. We just have a modest quarter column but it suits us fine. One year we did go large (almost half page) and we were lucky to get one call a fortnight. That year sucked but as soon as we went small again - hey presto! Maybe that depends on location though. We work East London which does mean you get a lot of people just wanting the cheapest price rather than the best quality.

Regards,
Darren.

PS. We give them both, by the way!

« **Reply #24 on:** January 08, 2007, 10:24:47 pm »

And me. Put a trade ad in YP about 6 years ago (albeit not for CC). However I did have one caller (the only one) in Spring 2005, but the service wasn't what they thought it was !

Pete (JS2)