Speaking Sensis

NSW Small Business Month is a big a highlight of the year for the Sydney Yellow Pages crew. We work hard to better understand what businesses need from their media services providers in a changing world, so we love having the opportunity to hear first-hand from the hundreds of business owners who attend these events about what’s keeping them up at night on the marketing front.

A lot of the discussions I was privy to during Small Business Month this year centered around the basics: Who’s your audience? Where are they looking?  What kind of tribes and communities are they a part of? How do I communicate and interact with them? How do I set up my website, leverage search engines or other media such as online and mobile directories to get them to buy my products and services? And there were questions about where digital marketing fits in – online, mobile, social…

One of the presenters that Yellow Pages® put forward during Small Business Month was our resident economist and small business analyst, Christena Singh. Christena’s the author of the Sensis® e-business Report which is based on interviews with 1,800 small and medium businesses (up to 199 employees) across Australia. The latest Sensis® e-business Report released on 22 September explored how SMEs use and purchase digital technology. It found that while Australian small businesses are embracing new technology and gaining good results, most don’t have a digital strategy to align activities with the business’ objectives and market plans. And without a plan, small businesses are possibly not getting the best return on their digital investment. 

Of those businesses that did have a digital plan, the report found that most have not integrated all the digital components. It was most likely to include online (80%) and internet (80%) strategies. Mobile and social media strategies were only incorporated in one third of digital plan. For anyone who runs a small business or works with small businesses, this report is a fascinating read and is free to download: http://about.sensis.com.au/small-business/sensis-ebusiness-report/

At Yellow Pages®, we see it as our job to get businesses as many leads as possible via our multi-channel platform – print and digital. When a business takes out a
Yellow Pages® ad, their details can be searched for via major search engines like Google Maps and Bing, as well as www.yellowpages.com.au and www.whitepages.com.au. Online optimisation campaigns are available using our Click Manager product. And we now have links to social media sites Twitter and Facebook through some of our media solutions. The details are also available via our mobile applications and the 1234 voice service (think 1234 sock puppet!). 

We want to make digital marketing easier for businesses by looking at the various options and developing a plan that’s suitable to their business model, industry and perhaps most importantly, their need to maximise their time by optimising all the solutions available. We can also help businesses track the success of their investment through our various measurement programs.

Hopefully the sessions that we led at events like Digital Day cut through some of the noise for small business owners. If you’re in business and you missed the sessions, visit the NSW Small Business Month website or contact Yellow Pages® for advice on a cost effective solution for your business.

When I hear that a company has a digital strategy, I say – “so what; I want to know the details of the plan and when it will deliver something that makes a difference to people”. 

It is reassuring to know that right now at Sensis people are busy delivering the digital strategy to make a positive difference to advertisers and the people who use our products and services.  Of course there are some big plans, and exciting projects as part of this, but at the grassroots its also about continuing things such as improving the way we do the basics – like improving the online user experience.  This is something we work on continually using consumer feedback and historical site data.

A few of the latest improvements for Yellow Pages® and White Pages® online sites, set to go live in March include:

• the removal of the radio buttons used to select a business type search or business name search. Instead, yellowpages.com.au will automatically determine, based on the search term, whether the user was looking for a type of business, or a specific business, and handle the search accordingly. For example, a user searching for bunnings is obviously looking for a specific business. On the other hand, a user searching for used cars is clearly looking for a type of business. We’re making this change because we know that users don’t always notice the radio buttons, and consequently accidentally run the wrong type of search, leading to poor results;
• Auto-suggest functionality is being enhanced, with business names now also being suggested;
• Update of the business profile page for Yellow Pages® advertisers. We have updated the look and feel and added new video and photo tabs for advertisers who choose this type of ad. Plus, now when you print business profile pages you will get a cleaner and simpler result; and
• Extension of “my list” tool on White Pages® online from business search to residential.  My lists allows users to “select” advertisers contact details and create personalised lists which can be shared via email with others. 

There is more coming soon in the development pipeline including work on widgets, linking with facebook and twitter, plug-ins, brand name search, geocoding and more.  Stay tuned.

According to the Sensis® e-Business Report – one of Australia’s longest running and most respected digital media surveys – the mobile generation has arrived.

For years there’ve been promises. Now the proof is well and truly in the pudding. According to the 14th Sensis e-Business Report, Australians and their mobiles have really clicked.

Almost half of all 20 – 29 year old Australians have now accessed the mobile internet. And teenagers aren’t far behind them, with 47% of 14-17 year olds and 34% of 18 – 19 year olds also surfing the web from the comfort of their phones.

In fact, all up, over a quarter of all Australians over the age of 14 have now accessed the mobile internet.

But the size and growth of the mobile generation is only part of the story. The other exciting bit is how Australians are using the mobile internet.

Unlike their dot.com boom predecessors, today’s mobile generation know exactly what the internet is about. And they’re getting straight down to business – in a big way.

41% of mobile internet users are looking for information on products and services, making it the number one mobile activity. And number three, at 36%, is looking for suppliers of products or services.

According to Mark Shaw, GM of Sensis’ digital advertising business MediaSmart, “this interest in product and service information is well and truly hitting the mobile usage numbers. Usage of Yellow Pages® Mobile has almost tripled in just one year¹”.

But the mobile generation isn’t just searching. They’re buying as well. 25% have purchased a ringtone, 25% have undertaken mobile banking, 19% have made a credit card purchase, 12% have ordered goods and services, and 10% have bought or sold through an auction site.

Clearly, this is an audience with a penchant for buying. And that’s gotta bring a smile to any advertiser’s face.

Of course, people aren’t just using their mobiles for business. They’re getting social as well.

40% of the mobile generation have used their mobile to access a social networking site. 27% have read a blog (while 12% have written one) and 7% have used Twitter from their mobiles.

And, not surprisingly, the mobile generation is tech-savvy to boot; getting stuck right into the most cutting edge rich media and applications.

Like the 27% who’ve downloaded video, the 25% who’ve downloaded games, the 17% who’ve watched mobile TV and the 12% who’ve scanned a mobile or QR code.

It’s now beyond doubt. A new revolution has begun. And it’s all happening right there in your pocket.

As part two of his ‘The Age of Engagement’ series, Bruce Akhurst shares his thoughts on the rise of social media and what it could mean for marketers and the media.

Want to know about the US food van business that has built a huge following using Twitter? Or the toy company that used advice from its fans to create a truly innovative product development processes? Or the coffee chain that asked its customers for ideas and ended up with 70,000 of them in just one year?

Welcome to the extraordinary world of social media. The use of social networking sites have grown at extraordinary rates. Did you know that two thirds of Australian teenagers now use Facebook, YouTube or MySpace every month? (1)

But, in reality, these networks are just the beginning of the social media landscape.

In this presentation, Bruce takes a look at the world of social media and concludes that it is a game-changer on a par with the launch of television. It provides the potential for small businesses to access serious online technologies. And it can get companies and consumers not just talking with (instead of at) each other, but actually working together to build things that ultimately benefit them both.

(1) Roy Morgan Single Source Australia, base: Australians 14+

Today, Sensis CEO Bruce Akhurst spoke at an American Chamber of Commerce luncheon on what he describes as The Age of Engagement.

Digital media isn’t merely cannibalising traditional media. It’s giving marketers new tools to work with and the ability to build deep, valuable relationships with customers.

The first presentation in this series looks at how local search is helping marketers support consumer purchase decisions in exciting new ways. And how the next generation of local search is being driven by the mobile phone.

The second presentation looks at social media. Be sure to check back as this presentation will be uploaded shortly.

Times might be tough in the media sector today, but there’s a lot about the future to be excited about.

This week, Bruce Akhurst, the CEO of Sensis, will be sharing his thoughts on the future in a two-part presentation: The Age of Engagement.

The first part of his speech – covering the rise of local search – will be delivered at an American Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Sydney this Thursday, 23 April.

And, in a departure from the norm, part two of this presentation, which covers the rise of social media will be delivered using – what else – social media!

So, pop back to the Speaking Sensis blog this Friday, 24 April. You’ll be able to view both of Bruce’s speeches.

One thing becomes very clear when you thumb through Sensis’ recent performance.Despite competitor efforts to undermine the value of print directories all over the world, Sensis has comprehensively proven that the value of Yellow Pages® is as strong as ever… and growing.

Over the last eighteen months or so, we’ve really committed to improving the experience Yellow Pages® delivers to both buyers and sellers. This has led to a range of initiatives that enhance the usability of our products for buyers and the value, accountability and customer support we provide advertisers.

More on these initiatives in a follow up blog next week.

The results of this commitment have been astounding.

First up, Yellow Pages® usage is growing. People all over Australia are letting their fingers do the walking… and clicking… and tapping.

Usage of Yellow Pages® print directories has been stable for the last 18 months(1). Similarly, unique visitors to the Yellow Pages® OnLine site have grown by 19%(2). Usage of the 1234 voice service, which includes the ability to perform Yellow Pages® searches, grew by 9%(3), while Yellow™ Mobile unique visitors grew by a whopping 190%(4)!

In fact, in just nine months, Yellow™ Mobile visits have grown from only 2.5% of Yellow Pages®’ total digital visits to almost 6.5%(5).

Not surprisingly, advertisers are giving Yellow Pages® an emphatic ‘thumbs up’ for value.

The number of Yellow Pages® print display ad units (a measure of display ad coverage in the directories) has grown by 2.1%.

Meanwhile, the number of Yellow Pages® OnLine customers has continued to grow by a healthy 5%.

And, along the way, Yellow Pages® advertisers have acknowledged Yellow Pages®’ value for money in rapidly growing numbers.

In the last six months of 2008, customer satisfaction with Yellow Pages®’ print value for money rose by 7 percentage points compared to the same period in 2007. And Yellow Pages® OnLine value for money rose by a phenomenal 16 percentage points(6).

All together, not a bad result! Clearly, this commitment is paying off for everyone involved.

1: Roy Morgan Single Source Australia. Average monthly unique usage by quarter from Apr/Jun 07 to Jul/Sep 08.
2:  Omniture. Average monthly unique visitors December quarter 2008 vs 2007
3:  Sensis call data, December quarter 2008 vs 2007
4:  Omniture. December quarter 2008 vs March quarter 2008
5:  ibid.
6:  TNS. Sensis Advertiser KPI Report. 2008 metro canvass vs 2007 metro canvass.