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First Webs, Inc. |
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Rockford; Chicago; the World |
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Internet Yellow Page Ads Online?
Should I Use Them in
Search Engine Marketing?
Print Yellow Pages are the most
important form of advertising for the Local Business. Some may argue, but
we think they still are. Now nearly all US Yellow Page directories have
web sites. So what, you say! Well, according to some experts,
including Dr. Ralph Wilson of
Wilson Web Marketing Today, a handful
of Yellow Page sites get a lot of traffic. Furthermore, they
feed directories on many local portal sites. It is another source of
traffic to your business site.
Granted, IYPs may not have the
rich content that Local Searchs like Google and Yahoo! offer. However,
consumers view IYP as a safe haven for shoppers. It's also important to
note that IYPs have their own development staffs, and it seems they are
strategically moving more in the direction of Local Search in terms of
content. Print Yellow Pages and Internet Yellow Pages are still the staple
for the small business in a local marketplace. They should not be ignored.
In terms of distribution, 2
players have emerged as the leaders in feeding local portal sites with listings.
Those 2 are SBC
SMARTpages.com and
VerizonSuperPages.com. Let's look at each of them. |
SBC Smartpages and SBC YellowPages
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SMARTpages.com is designed to connect buyers to sellers, with a database of over
15 million national business listings and content organized around Shopping
Guides, City Guides, Life Events, Business Guides and more.
SMARTpages.com receives more than 210 million visits annually. Over 70% of
visitors to SMARTpages.com contact a merchant and more than 46% make a purchase
from a merchant following a visit to the site.
Source: SMARTpages.com |
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SMARTpages.com feeds Yahoo! Local Yellow Page listings. It has a Google
page rank of 8/10 (Very Good), and an Alexa Rank of over 700 (Good).
SMARTpages.com operates Cityguides at
www.smartpages.com/cityguides
providing listings in 20 major cities. |
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Verizon SuperPages
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Seventy five percent (75%) of people using Superpages.com contacted a business
they found at Superpages.com; 45% of those people then made a purchase.
Source: VerizonSuperPages.com |
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VerizonSuperPages feeds MSN Yellow Page and InfoSpace listings. It has a
Google page rank of 8/10 (Very Good), and an Alexa Rank of over 300.
Verizon services 29 states and DC. |
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A variety of listings and enhanced
listings are offered by the Online Yellow Page providers. Some listings
are "free". However, knowing what to list, where to list it, and what to
say should be left to professionals.
Contact Us if you need assistance in writing and placing your IYP ads.
Depending on the type of project you have with us, IYP listings may be included
in the package. |
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Local and National Directories
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Local Directories can be an
important source of new business. There are many to look at; some specific
only to that locality. These are just a few of the types we are aware.
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City Guides |
Examples are CitySearch, AOL CityGuide, AreaGuides, Cities, OnlineCityGuide, and
Verizon CityPages. Your city newspaper may have its own guide, as in
"yourcity.org".
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Newspaper Based Guides |
Examples include the Boston Globe, Charlotte Observer, and ShopLocal. One
may exist for your city newspaper. |
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Portal Ties in to Local Search Engines |
Examples of these include Yahoo!Local, Yahoo! Yellow Pages, Yahoo! Local City
Guides, and Yahoo! Maps.
In contrast (as of this writing) Google has no
city guides or city sites. To find a local business, one includes the
locality in the search, i.e. pet stores in Chicago would be searched by "pet
store Chicago". |
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Which IYP or Local Directory
Listing Should I Use in My SEM Program
The options are confusing.
Unfortunately, there is no simple answer - except to say it depends on your
business, your locality, and your competition. At Northern Illinois Search
Engine Marketing, we are familiar with the directories and can guide you in
selecting your listings. |
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