Smaller Advertisers to Spend More on IYP: Study

A significant percentage of small- and medium-sized businesses this year plan to significantly increase the percentage of their budgets allocated to Internet Yellow Pages advertising, according to a recent study.

Eight percent of advertisers in a recent survey of small- and medium-sized businesses indicated they are likely to spend more of their budgets on Internet Yellow Pages this year, compared to 2 percent last year, according to Princeton, N.J.-based market researcher The Kelsey Group.

Among the media tracked by The Kelsey Group’s Local Commerce Monitor Study — online and print Yellow Pages, newspapers, direct mail, magazines, outdoor, coupons, local television, Web sites, search engine key word buys, email and online city guides — only pay-per-click Internet Yellow Pages showed a statistically significant jump in planned spending, according to the researcher.

“Over the last couple of waves of LCM research, we’ve seen gains for Internet Yellow Pages in terms of businesses using the online medium as part of their advertising mix,” said Charles Laughlin, program director for The Kelsey Report, in a statement. “This is the first year we’ve seen an indication that advertisers are now ready to allocate more budget for Internet Yellow Pages. The data is a strong indication that traditional Yellow Pages publishers are making measurable progress in positively positioning Internet Yellow Pages with their advertisers.”

According to The Kelsey Group, the study represents findings in 14 markets: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Hartford, Houston, Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, Norfolk, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Sacramento and Seattle.