Yellow Pages are a very important lead source in the marketing mix. 
Yellow Pages can be expensive so much thought has to be given to

	How large is your advertisement?
	Where can it be positioned?
	What are your competitors doing?

The first misconception with Yellow Pages : Yellow Pages is not there primarily to advertise your business name, it is there to attract prospects who are surfing the Yellow Pages looking for a business to complete a particular job they need doing. So the heading on your Yellow Pages advertisement must be a catchy heading - not your company name.  Treat the Yellow Pages as you would an advertisement in the media. Example of headings The size of your advertisement.  A large advertisement can put you at the front of a particular Yellow Pages section. Size enables you to leapfrog your competitors.  The game the Yellow Pages representative plays is that they will not tell you what your competitors are doing from one year to another, so I find if best to take a “punt” and go for the best position possible. A large advertisement gives you room to tell your story with a commanding heading and colour photos

Very Important Steps   1. Use only high definition photos.  The larger the photos, the better. Small detailed photos never seem to reproduce well.   2. The colour of the Yellow Pages paper is a dull yellow and not of high quality, which translates into poor reproduction.  To overcome this, instruct your Yellow Pages rep that you require a “white background” to be printed on your advertising space prior to the rest of the colour, text and photos being applied.  This makes a huge difference to visual appeal, and makes your photos stand out.   3. Don’t over-clutter your advertisement.  Less is best.  The more white you see around the perimeter of your advertisement, the better.  This helps to give you separation from other advertisements next to you.  A page of Yellow Pages advertisements can look very busy and cluttered.   4. Your receptionist must ask that all important question : “we are tracking our advertising Mrs Jones.  Would you mind telling me where you saw us – newspaper, Yellow Pages, T.V., radio, etc.   5. Yellow Pages has a yearly cost that can be easily divided into a cost per month e.g. $500.  This can then be divided by the number of enquiries received, e.g. 25, for a cost per lead of $25.   6. Action leads from the Yellow Pages immediately as the prospect is usually getting quotes from your competitors as well.  Being first shows you are keen for their business.   7. Your questioning technique during the sales presentation will reveal if it is best to come back with your price after the competitors have given their price, or if it is best to close then and there.   I always went for the close without giving the price, to find out where the prospects’ intentions lay.   8. Their reaction will be dependant on the amount of value you have built into your presentation prior to the close and what sense of urgency you have created to get a decision NOW.