Yellow Page Advertising for Lawyers - Where have all the calls?

I get calls every week from lawyers saying that they're getting more calls from yellow page advertising. After doing quite well in the past, afraid to stop advertising. They want to know what is happening and what to do.

Apparently, the lawyers are not the only ones. In his article "Quit wasting money on advertising yellow pages" by Peter Fernandez, DC, a yellow page, print advertising and practice management consultant for chiropractors, Dr. Fernandez answers the question: "Why is advertising in the Yellow Pages changed from one of the best ways to advertise one of the worst in a few years? "(see 1, below)

This article attempts to explain where all the calls went. I believe that lawyers began advertising in the Yellow Pages much earlier than on TV because of the cost, most lawyers were reluctant to become pioneers of television advertising, and lawyers have been pursued by vendors yellow pages, but not by sellers television. From 1976 to mid 1980, the Yellow Pages ads and newspaper ads were virtually the only place a potential customer might find a lawyer advertising. Therefore, advertising for lawyers in the Yellow Pages did not have much competition and has had excellent results.

Many lawyers crowded the Yellow Pages, which then became very crowded. In recent years, and after a few pioneers, many advocates of the yellow pages ad discovered what every other business has long been known that television is by far the media is more effective and convenient. According to TNS Media Intelligence / CMR, from January 2004 to September 2004, lawyers have spent $ 287.3 million on TV compared to just $ 71.3 million on print, radio and 11.4 million $ 4.1 million on Internet advertising. According to research conducted by the Bureau of television advertising, public perception of television gets votes more authoritative and more exciting. Both influential and persuasive, TV wins over other media, in both categories, with a wide margin among adults 18 +. TV scores 81.8% in the category most influential newspapers in second place with 8.5%. TV scores 66.8% more persuasive with newspapers, again in second place at 14.2%.

Just like buying in bulk or large quantities of something, the cost per person reached by advertising drops when you buy media that reaches more people. Broadcast television reaches many times more people than a county-level page of a mystery novel and cost much less per person reached. In New York DMA (TV market broadcast), there are 29 provinces reached by TV. If there was only one page of a mystery novel in every county, you should advertise in the yellow pages of 29 books to reach the same geographic area, such as TV. Unfortunately, there are several books of the yellow pages in each county. Smaller books of the yellow pages of the community also produce less of a return on investment, because they reach people even less. Many lawyers have found that the cost of a full-page advertisement in two county-level books yellow pages, you can advertise on TV with a decent budget and reach the population of an entire DMA.

Today, because of the large number of lawyers advertising on TV, potential customers are deducted from the books of the yellow pages. Moreover, in the field of personal injury, the problem is aggravated. Serious injuries are usually in bed in a hospital or at home watching TV. Lawyers on TV advertising to reach potential customers long before they can even injury
get to the yellow pages books.

When lawyers began advertising, there was only one page of a mystery novel. Now there are generally three, four or even five county-level books and yellow pages as the village, community or neighborhood yellow page books as well. Some advertisers have even lost their position in the Yellow Pages because they have signed a contract with another page of a yellow book not realizing it was a different book and could not afford two books. Because a consumer typically keep a yellow page book and throw it out the other, the question an advertiser faces is which book yellow pages to advertise or to advertise in all of them. It will be your ad in the yellow pages of a book that is thrown in the trash? I keep only one book and remains in the closet, rarely used. Today, I use the Internet instead of a yellow book.

Where once there was only one yellow page book in town getting 100% of yellow page advertising revenues now are losing a large share of this revenue to other competing books yellow pages, but their costs remain fixed. All companies yellow page of a book to print and distribute the same number of books. Unless all advertisers to advertise in all three yellow page books, publishers have to raise taxes on advertising, thus increasing the cost to reach a consumer yellow page. In an attempt to increase revenue, the yellow pages of the books have also started to create new properties for sale, including advertising on the cover, spine, pages cards and even Post-it Notes-style ads. These advertisements high visibility yellow pages consumers deviate from regular full-page advertising.

In short, there was once a single page of a detective story in town, it was cheaper to advertise the book, there were fewer lawyers advertising in the book, there were some lawyers advertising on TV, the Internet was not what is today, and there were many more people using the Yellow Pages we are today.

So what is a lawyer to do with advertising yellow pages? If you are one of the three or four largest advertisers in your market with an advertising budget large enough for a television advertising campaign substantially between billboards and radio, you may want to consider advertising in all the books of the yellow pages. If you are not one of the largest advertisers in your market, my suggestion is to stop advertising in the yellow pages of books and spend your money on TV. If you have a phone number available 1-800 vanity and extra money in the budget, you should also advertise on billboards and radio.

1 http://www.worldchiropracticalliance.org/tcj/1997/feb/feb1997fernandez.htm ......