ost Professional Plumbing,” which just about every book in every city proclaims? Take your time in brainstorming an idea that will get the viewer to read on. Then you can still end with your name, address, and phone number.

You can also be more cryptic like, “We Don’t Do Plumbing!” and then explain that you are troubleshooters or solution providers. Or try, “There are no Plumbi

It’s the first day of the week and time to evaluate your current Yellow Page ad. You should realize that this ad has a variety of elements that can determine whether it attracts the right customer or, for that matter, any at all. Each has a specific function that can work on it’s on or support a cohesive theme. But let’s concentrate on the first item that more consumers will see and therefore, the most salient piece of the marketing puzzle.

It all begins with the headline. Now, depending on several things, you have already decided that it will be your name because (a) you love it, (b) it’s a recognized company or brand name like Honda or Singer, (c) you’re a company that’s been around for ages, or (d) you can’t think of anything else to say. For whatever reason, if you want to use your name as the headline, consider this. It’s most often the first thing seen and therefore sets the tone for the entire ad. So be careful what you wish for, as the saying goes.

If you’re a new business or one that has a generic name, think about a headline that is (a) provocative, (b) informative, (c) descriptive, or (d) humorous. Say you’re a plumber. An example of each might be: “Learn the 5 Mistakes a Do-It-Yourselfer Makes.” Or “We’ll Teach You Preventative Maintenance.” Or “Do You Know What’s Inside Your Pipes?” Or finally, “Do You Have Pipe-dreams or Pipe-nightmares?”

This then becomes the lead-in to the subtitle or text that explains the headline. Now, isn’t that more interesting than, “J.T. Smith Plumbing,” or “Low-Cost Professional Plumbing,” which just about every book in every city proclaims? Take your time in brainstorming an idea that will get the viewer to read on. Then you can still end with your name, address, and phone number.

You can also be more cryptic like, “We Don’t Do Plumbing!” and then explain that you are troubleshooters or solution providers. Or try, “There are no Plumbin

therefore, the most salient piece of the marketing puzzle.

It all begins with the headline. Now, depending on several things, you have already decided that it will be your name because (a) you love it, (b) it’s a recognized company or brand name like Honda or Singer, (c) you’re a company that’s been around for ages, or (d) you can’t think of anything else to say. For whatever reason, if you want to use your name as the headline, consider this. It’s most often the first thing seen and therefore sets the tone for the entire ad. So be careful what you wish for, as the saying goes.

If you’re a new business or one that has a generic name, think about a headline that is (a) provocative, (b) informative, (c) descriptive, or (d) humorous. Say you’re a plumber. An example of each might be: “Learn the 5 Mistakes a Do-It-Yourselfer Makes.” Or “We’ll Teach You Preventative Maintenance.” Or “Do You Know What’s Inside Your Pipes?” Or finally, “Do You Have Pipe-dreams or Pipe-nightmares?”

This then becomes the lead-in to the subtitle or text that explains the headline. Now, isn’t that more interesting than, “J.T. Smith Plumbing,” or “Low-Cost Professional Plumbing,” which just about every book in every city proclaims? Take your time in brainstorming an idea that will get the viewer to read on. Then you can still end with your name, address, and phone number.

You can also be more cryptic like, “We Don’t Do Plumbing!” and then explain that you are troubleshooters or solution providers. Or try, “There are no Plumbi

ason, if you want to use your name as the headline, consider this. It’s most often the first thing seen and therefore sets the tone for the entire ad. So be careful what you wish for, as the saying goes.

If you’re a new business or one that has a generic name, think about a headline that is (a) provocative, (b) informative, (c) descriptive, or (d) humorous. Say you’re a plumber. An example of each might be: “Learn the 5 Mistakes a Do-It-Yourselfer Makes.” Or “We’ll Teach You Preventative Maintenance.” Or “Do You Know What’s Inside Your Pipes?” Or finally, “Do You Have Pipe-dreams or Pipe-nightmares?”

This then becomes the lead-in to the subtitle or text that explains the headline. Now, isn’t that more interesting than, “J.T. Smith Plumbing,” or “Low-Cost Professional Plumbing,” which just about every book in every city proclaims? Take your time in brainstorming an idea that will get the viewer to read on. Then you can still end with your name, address, and phone number.

You can also be more cryptic like, “We Don’t Do Plumbing!” and then explain that you are troubleshooters or solution providers. Or try, “There are no Plumbi

. An example of each might be: “Learn the 5 Mistakes a Do-It-Yourselfer Makes.” Or “We’ll Teach You Preventative Maintenance.” Or “Do You Know What’s Inside Your Pipes?” Or finally, “Do You Have Pipe-dreams or Pipe-nightmares?”

This then becomes the lead-in to the subtitle or text that explains the headline. Now, isn’t that more interesting than, “J.T. Smith Plumbing,” or “Low-Cost Professional Plumbing,” which just about every book in every city proclaims? Take your time in brainstorming an idea that will get the viewer to read on. Then you can still end with your name, address, and phone number.

You can also be more cryptic like, “We Don’t Do Plumbing!” and then explain that you are troubleshooters or solution providers. Or try, “There are no Plumbi

ost Professional Plumbing,” which just about every book in every city proclaims? Take your time in brainstorming an idea that will get the viewer to read on. Then you can still end with your name, address, and phone number.

You can also be more cryptic like, “We Don’t Do Plumbing!” and then explain that you are troubleshooters or solution providers. Or try, “There are no Plumbing Experts,” which implies that you know everything, and that instead, you are constantly learning and keeping up-to-date on the latest techniques. Either way, the headline is the key to success.

Speaking of success, you may want to learn about all the other vital elements to your ad. Right about now, you also might also be asking yourself how I know so much about directory advertising.

Well, I was a YP rep and consultant for nearly 25 years and, prior to that, had my own advertising agency. I also have a degree in marketing. I’ve been designing Yellow Page ads for the past three decades. So I have experience in creating ads and have advised almost 7000 companies on how to put together the most effective ones. If you have a display or in-column ad, regardless of size, color or position, I can tell you it most probably needs improvement in essentials areas like the headline, artwork, body text, placement, book, or heading. You must also understand the ROI or return on investment and learn how to track the results as well.

So consider getting some expert advice before you place your next ad. If you want to more detailed instruction on all the inside secrets to better YP marketing, then please visit my website listed below.