9 Guaranteed Ways To BOOST Your Yellow Pages Advertising PROFITS!

One good Yellow Pages ad can keep you in business for years. I’ve seen it happen too many times not to believe this. If you’re in a business where advertising in the Yellow Pages is the norm, then here’s a great opportunity for you to blitz your competition and get your cash register Ka-Chinging.

Warren Kruger from Perth wrote an ad for his accounting business a couple of years back that completely revolutionised his business. His phone rang hot for months! It was a small ad too, nothing fancy, just following the proven principles I’m gonna mention below. So this isn’t rocket science and it isn’t beyond you to write your own ad. You just need to know the basics that’ll get your phone ringing.

Look, if all you do is have a compelling headline plus some reasons why a prospect should call you… your ad will be head and shoulders above any ad in your category.

Here’s what you need…

1: An Outrageous Headline
Make a big bold promise in your headline. Every ad needs a headline. And your business name isn’t a headline.

Sure, have your business name in the ad, but have it down the bottom. The top of your ad belongs to the headline. This is where you get the attention of your prospects or you lose them. And if you want to lose them, the best way to do it is to use your business name as the headline.

Headlines make or break your ad. Studies have shown that many people only skim the Yellow Pages. But more importantly, they skim the headlines. And if the headline of your ad doesn’t get their attention, they’re going to skip your ad as well. So this is where you should spend most of your time… coming up with good, attention getting headlines. Here’s a simple method to come up with the perfect headline. Ask yourself:

“What’s the biggest benefit my customers get when using my service?”

You see, great headlines are more to do with your customers than they are to do with your service. A great headline is what the customer gets, not what you are selling. There is a big difference.

So don’t focus on your product or business in your headlines. Instead, focus on what your product or service can do for the customer. For example…

Will your service:

• Save them time or save them money?
• Will it make them look younger?
• Give them more energy?
• Ease their pain?
• Appeal to their pride or status (big point for affluent buyers)?

What benefit do they get?

What end result benefit do they get?

Look, people are searching for solutions to their problems. So here’s another question to ask yourself:

“What problems does my service solve?”

The answer to these two questions will lead you to the right headline. You see it’s all about them, your customers and prospects and what they get. Never about you and what you’re selling. It’s all about them and what they get. Here’s a few winning headlines you can adapt and use in your business. Notice how each one contains a benefit and or solves a problem.

“The Amazing Guarantee From Perth’s Leading Interior Environment Specialists… Your Most Thorough Carpet Clean Ever…. Or It’s FREE!”

How to Quickly & Easily Lose Weight
and Reshape Your Body Without Effort!

“At Last… An Accountant That Comes To You & Guarantees Maximum Refunds Within 14 Days or Your Money Back!”

2: X Number Of Reasons to Call
This works great. Just list at least seven good reasons why someone should call your business over any other. You simply list as many reasons why your prospect should do business with you. And you do this emotionally, hitting as many of the prospect’s hot buttons as you can.

Here’s an example of what I mean taken from a very small Yellow Pages ad I did for one of our Member’s - Birgit Hall’s Laser Hair Removal Clinic…

• PAINLESS. Our latest laser technology actually cools and soothes your skin while removing hair.
• OUR TREATMENT IS PERMANENT. Forget shaving, bleaching, and waxing…this one lasts.
• QUICKER. You’ll be in and out in no time! Modern laser technology treats more areas at a time.
• PERSONALISED. With your FREE Initial Consultation we analyse your skin type and customise our approach to best suit your needs. (Valued at $65.00…Yours FREE!)
• SAVES YOU MONEY. Don’t pay inflated prices ever again! We’re competitively priced so shop around and see for yourself…you’ll be pleasantly surprised with our low prices.
• EXTENDED HOURS. We’re open 6 days a week plus evenings for your convenience.
• MEN WELCOME. 45% of our clients are men so don’t be shy; we’re used to dealing with guys.

Keep in mind, this was a tiny ad. But I still had room for 7 good reasons to call. If you give people reasons why they should call and those reasons are specifically tailored to meet your prospects needs, wants and desires, then they will ring… it’s that simple.

3: Make an Offer
Offer something for FREE like a free report that solves the problems of your market. An accountant could have a free report with the title: “21 Tax Saving Tips.” A plumber could have a report titled: “18 Easy Water Saving Tips.”

4: Guarantee
The bolder the better. Put your guarantee right up front and tell your prospects they risk nothing in dealing with you. Most businesses guarantee what they do. But they don’t tell anybody about it. We however, shout our guarantees so there is no confusion… our prospects immediately know they are covered.

5: Multiple Means Of Response
Don’t just have one way of contacting you, have several. Include your business phone number, website, and make use of the FREE 24 hour recorded message line as well that offers your free report. The more ways you include the better.

6: Multiple Reasons To Respond
Just as you should have many ways to respond to your Yellow Pages ad, you should also include many reasons to respond. One reason could be your free report. Another could be some kind of lucky draw to win a prize. It could be a free consultation, free trial period, free examination, whatever. Just include many reasons why a prospect should call. Don’t just settle on one. And don’t expect your prospects to figure it out. Tell them exactly what to do and what they will get.

7: Tell a Story
It’s called “reason why advertising” … you tell your prospects what you do and how they benefit from this. You simply tell them in an emotional charged way what you do. Here’s an example from a carpet cleaning Yellow Pages ad I came across…

Hi, my name is Joe Smith and if you’ve ever worried about dirty carpets and the health hazard they contain, not to mention their spotty, grimy, worn appearance, then this could be the most important information you’ll ever read. Here’s why…

Then it continues into the story. SIDE NOTE: If you’re a serious student of copywriting, you’ll notice a well used and very effective “copy click” in the paragraph above.

8: Use Your Photo
People buy from people right? So include your photo. This builds a bond and shows your prospects you are a real person. Also, photos of your family may help in some cases… people love kids and if you’ve got a dog, make sure your canine buddy gets in the shot as well. NOTE: Always have a caption for your photo… tests prove people read the captions.

9: Use Testimonials
Have as many testimonials as you can fit in the allocated space. Make sure your testimonials cover different benefits of your product or service. Don’t just throw any old testimonial in… make sure each one counts and hits a different benefit that you provide.

Include all this in your next ad and see the difference for yourself.

HERE’S A TIP I want to leave you with: Another secret is once your new emotional direct response ad is working for you, and your response rate has gone through the roof, DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT TELL THE SALES REP HOW GREAT THEY ARE WORKING!

Guess what happens…the sales reps goes on down the road to your opposition and tells them what you are doing (plus shows them). All of a sudden your advantage is GONE!!!!!!

P.S. If you want to fast-track the implementation of your sales and marketing and get more sales enquiries within the next 42 Days call now 1300 887 865 (int +61 7 5630 1155) or email: customers@crocodilemarketing.com) and ask about the Crocodile Implementation Club.

No related posts.

About the Author

I love getting my teeth into sales by using technology. My name is David McMahon (Master Crocodile Coach) and I can enhance your Sales Performance and CRM Automation by leveraging your time using the latest sales marketing and sales training so it is now faster and easier.

To find out how you can get more sales in less time, register here now for your free Sales Performance Assessment to see if you qualify.

While you're at it, why not follow me on Linkedin?