or how I have x-ray vision and can see into all the buildings nearby and witness the very same slow death of the Yellow Pages as I can see here:

I don’t know the exact number of tenants, but there are 12 suites in this building. I took one of the yellow pages, primarily just to make sure our listing is correct. So, roughly calculated, that means 1/2 of the suites bothered to pick up the yellow pages this year. I’m not sure of the average age of the tenants either, but I believe it goes up by floor At any rate, there are people in university and there are folks who are getting grey hair, mentioning no names.

If we’re still in this building next year, I predict that given the half-life of the yellow pages , these books might not even make it into the lobby…

Noticed. Around 4th & Granville. Billboard with yellow pages advertisement, with their (new?) slogan “The Find Engine”, using the good old two fingers walking. Clever nostalgic hit, or pathetic attempt to claw back some of the market share? Also noticed: no use of any url.

or alive and well, and living in Wisconsin?

I just spent about 20 minutes trying to find a spa in Vancouver that I had found ages ago by googling something. I hadn’t bookmarked them, and couldn’t remember their name, except that it might have started with a “B” and was pretty sure one of the keywords I used was pedicure.

So, off to google I went. And didn’t find them. Tried various searches, different combinations, different guides, recommendations, and, …. nada. Brainstormed and came up with some creative phrases, which gave the equally disappointing result of nothing.

I also had a general concept of the neighbourhood they were in, so I tried google maps – to no avail. In fact, the results were mainly for businesses in Vancouver, Washington, so that was supremely disappointing.

Then, a lightbulb went off in my brain – the yellow pages – of course! Again, tried their online site (superpages.ca) and found nothing.

Finally, I remembered that the old yellow pages motto used to be “let your fingers do the walking” and so I did, and quickly found the company I was looking for.They even have a website, and everything. But, obviously, not well indexed.
Back to the concept – are the yellow pages dead? When it comes down to fleeting memories that someone may have of your business, who knows what chance associations they are using to find you. If they can’t find you at all (ie: they are stubbornly determined like I was) online, then you probably need some SEO (search engine optimization) services. Put yourself in your potential clients shoes, and think of keywords, phrase they might be using to find you as a start.
But, as I learned today, it’s still a good idea to pay for that business line and keep your yellow pages listing active. For now, anyhow…