Yellow pages refers to a telephone directory of businesses, organized by category, rather than alphabetically by business name and in which advertising is sold. The directories were originally printed on yellow paper, as opposed to white pages for non-commercial listings. The traditional term yellow pages is now also applied to online directories of businesses.
In many countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and elsewhere, "Yellow Pages" (and/or any applicable local translations), as well as the "Walking Fingers" logo first introduced in the 1970s by the Bell System-era AT&T, are registered trademarks, though the owner varies from country to country, usually being held by the main national telephone company (or a subsidiary or spinoff thereof). However, in the United States, neither the name nor the logo were registered as trademarks by AT&T, and are freely used by several publishers.
History
The name and concept of "yellow pages" came about in 1883, when a printer in Cheyenne, Wyoming, working on a regular telephone directory ran out of white paper and used yellow paper instead. In 1886 Reuben H. Donnelley created the first official Yellow Pages directory, inventing an industry.
Today, the expression yellow pages is used globally, in both English-speaking and non-English speaking countries. In the United States, it refers to the category, while in some other countries it is a registered name and therefore a proper noun. The term Yellow Pages is not a registered name within the United States and is freely used by many companies. Telephone directories using the official internet address "yellowpages.xx" exist in 75 different countries. They are edited by many different phone companies and directory publishers, mostly independent from each other.
In Belgium, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, the Republic of Ireland, Israel, the Netherlands, and Romania, the yellow pages are known as the Golden Pages. In Austria and Germany, the yellow pages are known as Gelbe Seiten, and in Sweden as Gula Sidorna, which in both cases means the yellow pages. In Portugal and Brazil, the yellow pages are known as Páginas Amarelas. In Spain, Chile, Peru, Argentina and other countries in Latin America, the yellow pages are known as páginas amarillas. In France, they're known as Pages jaunes. In Japan, the yellow pages are known as Town Page. In Sri Lanka, the yellow pages are known as the Rainbow Pages, or the silver page.
A particular yellow pages is a print directory which provides an alphabetical listing of businesses within a specific geographical area (e.g., greater Chicago), which are segregated under headings for similar types of businesses (e.g., plumbers). Traditionally these directories have been published by the local phone company, but there are numerous independent directory publishers. Some yellow pages publishers focus on a particular demographic (e.g., Christian yellow pages or business pages).
Yellow pages directories are usually published annually, and distributed for free to all residences and businesses within a given coverage area. The majority of listings are plain and in small black text. The yellow pages publishers generate profit by selling advertising space or listings under each heading. Advertising may be sold by a direct sales force or by approved agencies (CMR's). Available advertising space varies among publishers and ranges from bold names up to four color twin page ads ("double trucks").
In the United States, the predominant yellow pages are DEX One's DEX, the AT&T Real Yellow Pages, Yellowbook, and the Verizon Superpages.
Business listings used for publication are obtained by several methods. Local phone companies that publish yellow pages directories rely on their own customer lists and include business listings that are provided by phone service providers (ILEC's). Business owners that utilize phone services other than the local phone company (typically a Bell Company) should make certain that their information has been sent to the publisher for printing in upcoming directories.
Advertising in yellow pages directories requires payment in full prior to printing or may be billed monthly over the life of the contract, which is usually 12 months. Typically, a sales representative will assist the customer in creating their ad design and provides a Proof Copy for review and approval. Advertisers should be aware that many contracts have automatic renewal clauses and require action on the part of the advertiser to end future billing.
Yellow pages print usage is reported to be declining with both advertisers and shoppers increasingly turning to Internet search engines and online directories. According to a study by Knowledge Networks/SRI, in 2007, print yellow pages were referenced 13.4 billion times, while Internet yellow pages references increased to 3.8 billion, up from 2006's 3.3 billion online searches. As a result most yellow pages publishers have attempted to create online versions of their print directories. These online versions are referred to as IYP or Internet yellow pages. Independent ad agencies or Internet marketing consultants can assist business owners in determining sound opportunities for yellow pages advertising and provide objective information on usage, possession and preferences.
Archived yellow pages and telephone directories are important tools in local historical research, trademark litigation, and genealogy.
Business Phone Listings Video
Logo
The "Walking Fingers" logo was created by Henry Alexander, a well known New England artist. Upon graduation from the Swain School of Design in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Mr. Alexander began a successful freelance career as an illustrator and commercial designer. He formed a long association with the New England Telephone Company lasting thirty-one years. In 1962 he designed the "walking fingers" logo and within a year it became the national trademark for their yellow pages.
AT&T, the creator and owner of the most famous three-fingered version of the "Walking Fingers" logo, never applied for a trademark on the logo. While they eventually received a trademark on a different version of the logo, the version with the three fingers was not considered by AT&T to be proprietary and they in fact allowed any telephone directory to use it.
The Bell System later applied for a trademark on the logo but had their trademark denied on the grounds that it "had become a generic indicator of the yellow pages without regard to any particular source." Shortly thereafter, Bell began using a trademarkable logo with a lightbulb instead of the walking fingers, but returned to the walking fingers two years later.
In some countries, the familiar "walking fingers" logo is not protected as a trademark and may be used by anyone. This logo is used in varying forms by almost every yellow pages publisher; however, there are companies that use it to imitate mainstream publishers. In Belgium, the Republic of Ireland, Israel and the Netherlands the directory, although using the yellow pages logo, is called "Golden Pages".
Internet yellow pages
Online business directories are known as IYP or Internet yellow pages. On a broader scale they are known as vertical directories. There are consumer oriented and business oriented varieties. All providers of IYP offer online advertising.
According to several reports the search term "yellow pages" was in the top 5 highest revenue generator of all search terms in Google's AdWords program in 2010. Experian/Hitwise reported in January 2011 that the search term "yellow pages" was one of the top 50 search terms across all search engines and all search terms(millions of search terms). This makes "yellow pages" one of the most searched for things on the Internet. These facts indicate that people are using search engines such as Google, Bing, Yahoo, and others for local phone books.
The users of Internet yellow pages have the same intent as the users of print yellow pages. This produces a high quality lead, much like the print phone book, because the user is usually only deciding who to buy the product or service from, not whether or not to make a purchase.
The Local Search Association released an online search usage study in June 2011. Their study of US consumers on how they find local businesses. 57% had used an Internet yellow pages in the past year. 58% had used a newspaper and 74% used a print phone book and 76% used a search engine. This indicates that buyers use multiple sources to locate a local business.
In 2009, Burke, a media research organization released a "Local Media Tracking Survey". A couple of highlights of the study found that users of Internet yellow pages reported that 36% of the time they used an IYP they made a purchase (more than 1 out of 3 leads purchased something) and an additional 44% had intentions of making a purchase. This equates to 80% that are ready to buy. It was further reported that a large number of users had no company in mind when they began their search on Internet yellow pages.
One advantage of IYP's is they are not as prone to click fraud like search engine marketing or Pay Per Click(PPC) models.
It takes many keywords and search terms to cover a small businesses "category" or "heading" for search engines. Internet yellow pages allow a small business to advertise locally and target his audience with single self-explanatory categories that most people are familiar with such as "attorney" or "florist" or "plumbing".
It was reported by Borrell and Associates(a media research group) in March 2012 that online directories have a 12.6% share of the $19 billion local online advertising pie. This is one of the largest shares of the local online advertising revenue out of all options for small businesses.
IYP offers listings differently from standard search engines. Where search engines return results based on relevancy to the true search term, IYP returns results based on a geographic area.
Studies by independent companies such as Nielson and comScore have shown that Internet yellow pages have a smaller percentage of total Internet searches, 85% of all Internet searches, occur on the major search engines Google, Yahoo and Bing.
Most users of the Internet navigate their own personal computers via "direct navigation"- using their favorites. This is why search engine usage is for research and Internet yellow pages are for local shopping and buying, much like their print counterparts.
Advertising on IYP is typically available with numerous a la carte choices. These choices become small "individual sales presentations" which makes it easier for sales reps to sell large advertising packages.
The new version of IYP is classified as a local search directory which provides content with the added ability to refine the search to find the needed service. The new search engine now prioritizes local businesses in its results rather than the results being dominated by regional or national companies. All services offer paid advertising options which typically offer preferred placement on search results pages.
Environmental concerns
In recent years, the yellow pages industry has faced scrutiny from environmentalist groups who claim printed yellow pages are a wasteful resource, citing statistics that nearly 70% of all Americans rarely or never use printed phone directories. Other studies have found that a majority of consumers continue to use Yellow Pages. Approximately 58% of working U.S. adults said they use phone books at home, work or both, according to a 2013 survey by RingCentral that appeared in USA Today.
The Product Stewardship Institute claims local governments spend $54 million a year to dispose of unwanted phone books and $9 million to recycle them. Phone books use low grade glues and are therefore difficult to recycle, and they often clog recycling machinery. Publishers note that phone book directories are 100% recyclable and are made using soy-based and non-toxic inks, glues and dyes.
In 2011, San Francisco became the first city in the US to restrict yellow page distribution to people who opt in, but is being sued in federal court by the Local Search Association on freedom of speech grounds. According to the Sierra Club, 1.6 million phone books were distributed annually in San Francisco, producing 3600 tons of waste, $1 million in disposal costs, and 6180 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. In 2013, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed, and the Mayor signed, an ordinance that repealed the Yellow Pages Distribution Pilot Program (Ordinance 130186).
The 2009 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Municipal Solid Waste report classified directories as the smallest contributor of paper and paperboard products to the solid waste stream, representing only 0.3% - significantly less than all other paper product categories such as newspapers, magazines and books. In 2010, the EPA stopped measuring directories separately from newspapers, indicating the minor impact of directories on municipal waste.
Yellow Pages publishers reduced paper usage by nearly 60% between 2007-2012, and are projected to increase reduction to more than 60% by the end of 2013, according to the Pulp and Paper Products Council. The EPA's 2011 Municipal Waste report showed that approximately 73% of phone directory, newspaper and mechanical papers were recycled.
Yellow Pages publishers maintain a website that allows consumers nationwide to opt out of receiving phone book directories at www.YellowPagesOptOut.com.
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