Whether it's a traditional yellow pages phone book or the modern online yellow pages, the yellow pages are often the first place potential customers go to find and compare businesses. In fact, on a yearly basis, United States Yellow Pages are used to make more than 13 billion references.

With so many people turning to the yellow pages, you want to make sure your business stands out. So take the following steps to maximize your exposure:

1. See how your competitors are listed in the yellow pages phone book.

2. Draw attention to your yellow pages listing with an advertisement.

3. Hire an agency to maximize the benefit of your yellow pages marketing effort.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Search your competitors in the yellow pages telephone books

Before you purchase advertising in the yellow pages, it's a good idea to find out what your competitors are up to. Take a minute to look them up in the telephone book, view their ads and adjust your marketing strategy accordingly.

I recommend: AT&T's YELLOWPAGES.COM allows you to search business listings in telephone books across the country. From the linked page, just click on the city you are interested in searching. Frontier Communications is a yellow pages publisher that offers a fully searchable online directory.

Advertise in the yellow book pages

With millions of listings in the yellow pages, you need to do something to make your listing stand out. The best way to do this is by purchasing an advertisement.

I recommend: Yellow Book USA publishes more than 1,000 directories across the United States. The company sells a wide variety of ads to fit most budgets. Idearc Media also has a flexible set of advertising options for its Verizon print directories. The company claims its yellow book pages are used by millions of people.

Hire an ad agency that specializes in yellow pages advertising

If you plan on making a large advertising purchase with several yellow pages publishers, you should consider hiring an advertising agency that specializes in the yellow pages. These experts can design, coordinate and implement your advertising program.

I recommend: Check out Michaels Wilder. The agency is a long-time member of the Yellow Pages Integrated Media Association and promises to provide a high-impact, cost-effective ad campaign. AB Advertising Group specializes in placing regional and national yellow pages ads. The agency's representatives have contacts with the publishers of hundreds of yellow page phone books.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Potential customers can't find your business if your listing contains an error. So check to make sure your company is properly listed in the local yellow pages telephone book and the Internet yellow pages. If you find an error, contact the publisher to have it corrected.

An online Yellow Pages phone book is an online directory of businesses listed by phone number, address and industry. Your phone company probably gives you a large bulky phone book with a printed Yellow Pages directory annually with your phone subscription.

The online version includes all the same information but adds more information, such as website addresses, banner advertisements, maps and links to local pages. Consider using an online Yellow Pages directory the next time you need to find a children's clothing store, a graphic designer or a new favorite restaurant in your area.

Search online Yellow Pages to:

1. Find businesses or people listings in your local area.

2. Look up a specific business to find the exact address, phone number and website using online business pages.

3. Buy online Yellow Pages advertising to boost your brand awareness and loyalty and ultimately profits.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find a specific business or person using Yellow Pages online

If you already know the name of the business but need a current address, phone number or website, consult an online Yellow Pages phone book to find the missing information. Many searches give you extra information such as menus, store hours, directions or customer ratings.

I recommend: Input the business name and city into the search fields to find exact listings for the things you need. MSN Yellow Pages, Dex and YP.com give straightforward listings to help you find the closest Dairy Queen or Wells Fargo branch, plus some user reviews. Search onlineyellow.com for ratings of popular restaurants and services.

Search for businesses near a specific area with a Yellow Pages website

Look for products and services without knowing a specific business name by searching for the industry keyword in Yellow Pages online. Search 'bakery' or 'automotive' in a particular city or zip code to find all possible listings within the area.

I recommend: Browse Yellow.com to find listings for multiple online business sites. Internet Yellow Pages, BrightPages and AOL Yellow Pages all allow you to search by keyword to compare area listings.

Use online Yellow Pages to search reverse listing

Often we write down phone numbers for businesses and think we'll remember the name and address later, only to realize all we have is a phone number. Or we miss a phone call from a number we don't recognize. Use the reverse listings from online Yellow Pages phone numbers directories to find the business.

I recommend: Input the phone number into the search bar to find the business name and address that goes with the phone number. YELLOWPAGES.COM, yellowbook, CenturyTel and Dex all offer this reverse listing service.

Search online local Yellow Pages to find city information

Online local Yellow Pages do so much more than just list contact information. You can search for a local pizza place and find directions, reviews and even daily specials all from the Yellow Pages website. Find traffic patterns, weather alerts and local happenings.

I recommend: Find online Yellow Pages that give you more than just a name, address and phone number. Directories like superpages.com, Yahoo! Local Yellow Pages, YellowUSA and gomylocal.com give you access to entertainment information, maps and directions, weather information and city history to help you plan vacations or keep in touch with local news.

Advertise with an online Yellow Pages website to increase traffic

Advertising allows you to build online Yellow Pages for your business, using banners, links, higher placement and video advertisements. Make sure online searchers find you before they find your competition.

I recommend: Read the Work.com Guide to Maximizing Your Yellow Pages Advertising for more information on the subject. Advertise around the Internet with OnlineYellowPages.com, One World, MagicYellow, Dex, YELLOWPAGES.COM and Yellow.com.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Look in your phone book to see whether your area has a special Yellow Pages website designed for your local business listings. Many towns have their own Yellow Pages directory websites with pertinent news and information customized for your city.