RefreshClassifieds

Hot on the heals of the 2007/2008 print directory launch in Montreal,  the Yellow Pages group has launched a light edition for the Calgary market in Canada.  It would appear that like the full directory the light edition is being distributed to all homes in Calgary.   Also like the full directory the light edition will include all advertising categories.   The light directory appears to be targeted on people who want a glove box edition, or something to carry with them but not clear how big the market is for portable print directories.

Maybe the most interesting aspect of the light edition is the inclusion of a “Your Life Events Planner” section.  Directory usage is often linked to different life events like moving, getting married or having kids.  Each of these generates a need to contact new busineses in your area.  I think think its a great idea that a directory attempt to connect with these life events that generated so much value for advertisers.

Overall I don’t think there is clear value for advertisers in the light edition.  I’m not sure that a smaller former factor will really generate enough additional usage to justify the addition expense of advertising in both the full directory and light edition.

Disclosure:  Yellow Pages Group purchased Trader Media Corporation in 2006 and I was an employee of Trader Corporation from 2006 to 2007 which was owned by Yellow Pages Group.  I still own stock in Yellow Pages Group as a result.

Jobloft.com latest blog entry about the National  Job Fair & Training Expo, reminded me that online classified sites often forget to use offline channels to increase their brand awareness.   Its great to see Jobloft, a relatively new online start-up, using events and trade shows to grow their business.  Lets look deeper at why these events are generally good value.

The National Job Fair & Training Expo is located at the Metro Toronto Convention Center and should receive approximately 9,000 visitors during the 2 day event.  Lets assume the event costs about $10,000 to attend, with cost for booth space, staff and other expenses.    Lets assume with a reasonable booth position 80% of visitors are exposed to your booth, so the cost for exposure is about $1.40 visitor.   This is just the cost of exposure, and a good event strategy should include interaction tracking either through a contest or some other means to track people entering the booth.

When compared with  search advertising the costs for keyword like “Toronto Jobs” and “Toronto Training”, the cost per click is approximately $1.40 and $2.30 respective in Google Adwords.  This is on a cost per click basis, which basically get the user to your web site but doesn’t ensure they actually interact with it.  Is this equivalent to someone walking by your booth at Tradeshow?  Lets assume its pretty close.

On these numbers alone though, the value of trade shows is not clear and it looks about even value with search advertising.  But consider the industry contacts that are also at this type of trade show.  In the case of the National Job Fair, there are 158 other exhibitors, many of them would probably be interested in Classified Job advertising.  You’re essentially getting free exposure to industry advertisers, which in many cases are the most valuable, for free as part of the event.  When you consider this as part of the equation the value of these events becomes more clear.

Each events needs to be evaluated separately though, if the exposure rate fell below 80% of attendees or cost to attend ballooned above $10,000 then the value of the event should be questioned.