
First of all, ask yourself, when was the last time you used Yellow Pages to find a product or service. Never? Right. Me neither. So your customers probably aren't either. In fact, research shows that this is a fact.
http://www.adrevamp.com/Articles/Google ... Pages.html
Only 7% of people still use Yellow Pages, compared to the over 90% who use Google every day.
Ok, so paying Yellow Pages is a waste of money, but surely a free listing doesn't hurt? Wrong!
The reason why Yellow Pages offers you a free listing is because the more painters who are on their web-site, the higher THEIR Google ranking will be. That's right. Every painter who lists on their web-site is actually helping Yellow Pages, not themselves! So by supplying Yellow Pages with your details you could actually be undermining your own Google marketing campaign.
Another reason not to list yourself on Yellow Pages is because they do not support the laws regarding licensing, registration and marketing. They don't care if you are a fully qualified painter with 30 years experience who is licensed and insured, or a half-baked jack-of-all trades who doesn't know which end of the brush to hold; they will let you advertise as a painter! And it's ruining our industry.
I lodged formal complaints with Sensis, who owns Yellow Pages, three times, and every time I was told 'its not our problem, we are within the law'. So I took it to the Department of Fair Trading in NSW, and although they sympathised with our situation, they said they could only take action against painters who advertised on Yellow Pages illegally. 'Illegal' advertising means advertising without displaying your license number or registration number. I checked out Yellow Pages ads and MOST painters ads do not contain this information. That means that most painters on Yellow Pages are breaking the law, whether they are licensed or not. A customer using Yellow Pages to choose a painter might choose a painter who is unlicensed, unqualified, and expose their family to dangerous asbestos or lead paint. It's a disgrace!
So next time Yellow Pages calls you, ask yourself, am I helping my business by supporting this company, or am I pouring money down the drain and ruining my industry at the same time?