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Advertising in the Yellow Pages...Has anyone dared to try this? (1 Viewer)

Kevin Alexander

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My brother wants to advertise his services on a quarter of a page in the Yellow Pages. From my understanding, this can be very expensive. What happens if your sales don't cover the price that you are investing in the ad monthly? Is there a cheaper, equally as effective alternative to attract potential clients?
 

ChadM

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We had a family business at one time and I considered it essential. I think the only cheaper equally effective alternative is an attractive location (signage).

If I do not KNOW someone who performs the service I am looking for I usually start in the yellow pages.

That being said if you tell what service your brother performs maybe we can think of an alternative.
 

Kevin Alexander

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What happens if your sales don't cover the price that you are investing in the ad monthly?
My purpose in asking that question is that unlike other types of services such as electricity, water, and cable that can be shut off if you don't pay, an ad in the YP (yellow pages) has already been printed and widely circulated. There is nothing tangible that can be reposessed if you you don't pay. What is done then?
 

Kevin Alexander

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I've heard of some who have paid monthly, and I think I remember hearing that their business phone service was interrupted if they didn't pay. I don't know how true that is though. Paying up front is always an option as well. But what small business entrepenuer has $20,000 to hand over for YP advertising. BTW, my brother is an electrician.
 

Philip_G

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my dad has a small business, yellow pages are INSANELY expensive. and yes, he paid monthly. His problem was WHICH ONE to advirtise in, there's about 10 in his location it seems
 

Ashley Seymour

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. But what small business entrepenuer has $20,000 to hand over for YP advertising. BTW, my brother is an electrician.

That sounds way too high to spend for an electrician.

Why not contact some local builders in the area?

What level of electrician is he? Apprentice, Journeyman, or Master?

My brother has a small electrical contractor business south of Daytona. He early on joined a good sized Rotary Club and did business with the membes there for years.

Perhaps a good leads club, or other service organization would be worth a try.
 

Jacinto

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I have an ad in the yellow pages for my business, but it's not one of those big ones; it's just a small in-column ad, but it is the first one of those in my section alphabetically, so I know it gets a lot of attention. But unless things change drastically in the next five months, I probably won't be renewing it. Since December, I've got plenty of calls, and a handful of meetings, but only one actual paying job generated by the ad. Granted, that one job paid for six months worth of running the ad, but it's still only one job.

I get way more calls from people asking if I'm hiring than I do from people in need of my services. I'd say about 95% of my work comes from networking and word of mouth, but I can see how that could change depending on your field - I'm a freelance Graphic Designer and Illustrator.
 

Steve Felix

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Jan 17, 2001
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Steve Felix
I have a one-inch in-column ad that I would have been paying $62/mo. for except they put me in the wrong section. Now I have a year of essentially no YP advertising and lots of calls asking me if I do something that I don't! Thanks, SBC!

I am paying $19/mo. for a basic listing in an alternate and less seen category that did manage to make it into the right spot.

I don't think I'll renew even if they promise to fix the placement problem. The ad is for wedding videos and for this type of service I think people use the yellow pages primarily for price checking. I'm not the cheapest (merely the best;)) so I just get lots of "OK, thanks, bye."

Edit: I'm sure these companies deal with non-payment constantly, and since they can't take their product away I'd guess the defaulting party's credit score would be affected.
 

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