Yell.com and Y.Pages ??

« **on:** June 24, 2009, 04:20:37 pm »

Opinions please on Yell.com and Y.P...

Just renewed mine and took out a bigger ad in Yellow Pages. Works out an extra £50 per month.
Total outlay is around £1300 per year.
For that I get a web link/ highlighted listing on Yell.com and a credit card size colour ad in 2 Regional yellow Pages.

Time will tell if it works or could I have put my money into a more productive form of advertising ?

Cheers.

« **Reply #1 on:** June 24, 2009, 06:33:24 pm »

Hi

I have come out of yell pages & off yell.com this year. Was a bit scary doing it but really glad i have, when the new yell book was delivered this month its about half the size it normally is.

I found i got as much work from Thomson last year as yell pages & all i have in that is the free listing. Yell pages use to work for commercial jobs but as offices have the internet now i find most people search Google rather than Yell.com - thats why you'll find Yell are now trying to jump into bed with Google so much. If you dig around on the internet there is a lot of people who say yell is in a bad way & wont be around much longer.

Why pay Yell their massive prices when Google lists you for free locally on their business centre? Also, in their book you are showcased with all your competition so the take up rate is watered down. I spoke to loads of customers about it before i decided & many were negative about Yell, saying they dont trust trades listed in Yell, or that even when they do use it they go for the free listed people as they find the local numbers that way & they tend to be more competitive.

If you have only just signed up you do have a cooling off period & can cancel, but some may say i am wrong & stick with it.

I think promoting your own website & local trade directories etc to be much more productive as well as a well planned leaflet!

Jase

« **Reply #2 on:** June 24, 2009, 06:38:39 pm »

Obviously some people still look at yell.com cause a job I did this morning was from there.

but yellow pages is getting thinner - as all the directories are.
but people still look there too, especially those who are not internet savvy (and still plenty about) so if you can get a good deal maybe worth keeping in because so many are out.

« **Reply #3 on:** June 24, 2009, 07:52:56 pm »

Hi,
Good luck with this new bit of advertising, I hope you get a good response from it.
The vast majority of my business is within a 10 mile radius. My advertising is in the local free newspapers and directories. I've got a listing in yell.com but only because they offered it to me for free! Don't know how that happened but I was happy to say yes to a free listing! I don't think it would be worth me advertising with yellow pages, given that I get a good response from local advertising. Not only that, but yellow pages covers a wider area and I'd need to charge travel costs if I was going much further afield......
Ben

« **Reply #4 on:** June 24, 2009, 08:02:18 pm »

Yell not working at all here, YP is working and make a profit from it not like years ago though, downsizing my yellow pages this year to eventually nothing.

Shaun

« **Reply #5 on:** June 24, 2009, 08:07:00 pm »

I took this about 3 months after they had been delivered !

« **Reply #6 on:** June 24, 2009, 08:18:03 pm »

Flats are different, most owners don't live in them so if it wasn't yellow pages it would be something else and most younger end do use the internet as older people do use the book.

Shaun

« **Reply #7 on:** June 24, 2009, 08:54:14 pm »

I've just come out of YP as it just doesn't work for me the only calls you get are salespeople .Over the past year I've had the grand total of 5jobs from people who got me from YP.That doesn't even get near to covering the £1500 that it cost me for the year .

« **Reply #8 on:** June 24, 2009, 09:02:37 pm »

Where abouts do you live Dave?

Shaun

« **Reply #9 on:** June 24, 2009, 09:02:47 pm »

Is it easy to get out of the contract with yellow pages?? I've just stared a year contract on yell, i wasnt aware of any cooling off period, but if its not looking good, im told given the value of my contract, they wouldn't care if i stopped.

Anyone heard of TOUCH local? its all online and google based and seems quite good.

« **Reply #10 on:** June 24, 2009, 09:18:59 pm »

Joe - thing is, you had a job from yell pages today but you may of still got that job if you hadnt paid for the advert & just had the free listing - people tend to look at the free listings to find a local number/address

All advertising can work, the nack is using your advertising budget to its best potential - spending £150 to yell a month just doesnt make sense when i could advertise in 4 or 5 local trade directories for the same, have a half page advert in each one, not be up against another 15 or more carpet cleaners on the same page & get so much more work from it

Dont be brainwashed by Yell!! Feel the fear, come out of it & get more work from elsewhere!

« **Reply #11 on:** June 24, 2009, 09:25:54 pm »

Horses for courses.....
If you're not in it you won't be found by thosewho use it, having said that I did a job the other week from Thomsons and we haven't advertised in that for several years

so it was someone who hadan old copy!
Have stopped YP because it hardly brought in the amount for the large outlay, so this year went for a sponsored listing on Yell.com
Within 2 weeks we picked up a commercial that on it's own paid more than half the cost of the advert.

« **Reply #12 on:** June 24, 2009, 09:59:02 pm »

Neil - you prove my point

you will be in Thomson - it will be a free listing, they list all businesses, it wont be from your old paid for advert

« **Reply #13 on:** June 24, 2009, 10:57:55 pm »

Quote from: New Look Clean on June 24, 2009, 09:59:02 pm

Neil - you prove my point
you will be in Thomson - it will be a free listing, they list all businesses, it wont be from your old paid for advert

No. It was the book, she showed me the advert.

« **Reply #14 on:** June 25, 2009, 06:38:43 am »

Bromley in Kent Shaun .

« **Reply #15 on:** June 25, 2009, 08:13:50 am »

Quote from: Adam Fearnley on June 24, 2009, 09:02:47 pm

Anyone heard of TOUCH local? its all online and google based and seems quite good.

A friend of mine had these lot round the other day. They seemed to want a lot of money (can't remember figure) and having had a quick look at a few search terms all I can see that they do is have a sponsored listing for their directory on the right hand side of the page.

That on its own isnt worth it.

« **Reply #16 on:** June 25, 2009, 04:03:16 pm »

Like others have said, Yellow Pages is dying a slow and lingering death, at least for most people and Yell.com has never really taken off. We're downsizing YP this year to the smallest possible ad just to maintain a presence and will probably drop Yell altogether.
At one time Yellow Pages and Thomson Local were absolute musts and virtual certainties to make you a profit, now you're lucky if you get your money back.

Simon

« **Reply #17 on:** June 25, 2009, 05:43:24 pm »

Had YP round this morning
I have gone bigger in YP,credit card size,only because a lot of people round here still seem to use it, and 3 listings on Yell

but he has offered to put free phone numbers on for the remainder of this year (3 mths) to see if it works and if not i can cancel. I couldnt do that last year as i had no cooling off period......... things must have changed

Daryl

« **Reply #18 on:** June 25, 2009, 09:30:07 pm »

Thanks for all the comments.
I certainly didnt know about the "cooling" off period or at least the sales guy didnt mention it so I may well look into that.

One thing that does concern me is that Yell.com and Y.P now list your business with their "own" number which is diverted to my home so they can moniter calls.
Thing is, their number doesnt, in my opinion make me look "local" !! (The prefix is different).

Am I worrying over nothing or shall I stick with MY number and do my own monitoring ?

« **Reply #19 on:** June 25, 2009, 10:08:58 pm »

Stick with your own number. If you have your own systems for monitoring where enquiries are coming from you don't need their method.

Like you my "local" numbers seem far more effective in generating business.

« **Reply #20 on:** June 25, 2009, 10:50:45 pm »

Hi Terry

It's really important you have your local number, don't listen to YP bs, afterall you are paying.

Cheers

Doug

« **Reply #21 on:** June 25, 2009, 10:59:16 pm »

Do you think some people say XYZ doesn't work purely to dissuade their competition?

By the way Yell is rubbish in my area.